It’s intuitively appealing to imagine a line as composed of infinitely small individual points – or “indivisibles,” as they’re called in mathematics. After all, we know that wood is a composite of individual fibers, and a rope is composed of individual strings, so we would expect the same to be true of the lines and […]
When Thomas Paine’s name is mentioned, you might think “pamphleteer,” “radical,” “author,” but probably not “bridge builder,” either literally or figuratively. Yet Paine spent much of the last several decades of his life dedicated to designing, promoting, and building an iron bridge that could span rivers without impeding the flow of waterborne traffic below. At […]
For centuries, western thinking about creativity fixed on the notion of the lone, heroic genius triumphing through sheer force of will and intellect. The new science of ideas set forth in Smart World compels us to finally abandon this view. In its place, Richard Ogle proposes we take an essentially ecological view of the mind in which […]
More than 250 years ago, Leonhard Euler, the Mozart of mathematics, uncovered a set of astounding hidden connections in the form of an equation with just five numbers. Written simply as eiπ + 1 = 0, it now is called Euler’s Identity, and it has long been regarded by many mathematicians as their field’s most […]
Ethan Zuckerman is director of the Center for Civic Media at MIT, and a principal research scientist at the MIT Media Lab. His research focuses on the distribution of attention in mainstream and new media, the use of technology for international development, and the use of new media technologies by activists. He is the author of Digital […]
William Thorndike, a graduate of Harvard College and the Stanford Graduate School of Business, is the Founder and Managing General Partner of Housatonic Partners, a private equity firm with $1 billion in assets under management and offices in Boston and San Francisco. Since its founding in 1994, Housatonic has made over 60 investments in private […]
In over 25 years practicing pediatrics, Claudia Gold has worked in different ways to address the mental health needs of children. She currently works as a consultant in Human Development at the Austen Riggs Center and is on the faculty of the University of Massachusetts, Boston Infant-Parent Mental Health program, William James College, and the Austen Riggs Center. […]
Greg Laughlin received his doctorate in astronomy and astrophysics from the University of California, Santa Cruz in 1994 just a year before the first extrasolar planet was discovered around a sunlike star. After completing a series of postdoctoral appointments at the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, the University of […]
Children don’t grow up simply by adding inches and pounds—child development is a much richer mix of physical, cognitive, social, and emotional growth. While children make progress at their own pace, parents can help (or, occasionally, hinder) them. Understanding the many ways in which your child grows is the essence of parenting, and the goal […]
When Abba Eban died in 2002 at the age of 87 he was praised for the passion and erudition of his public voice and its effect on international opinion. As Israel’s representative at the United Nations during the independence struggle of 1948, its ambassador to both Washington and the United Nations during the Middle East […]
Austen scholar Amy Smith’s memoir of a reading group road trip from Mexico to Argentina with Austen’s books as her traveling partner, offers new delights by seeing these beloved books from the other side of the border. Amy Smith had read everything from Pride and Prejudice and Zombies to the many Austen sequels and prequels and even dating handbooks. […]
Business renewal isn’t for the faint of heart, but when a mature business is facing margin and growth pressures, and business as usual no longer works, the choice is stark. Typically, the mature business or business line is cut loose, but decline and eventual failure isn’t the only option. The other choice to commit to […]
Amy Elizabeth Smith teaches writing and literature at the University of the Pacific in Stockton, California. Her book, <em>All Roads Lead to Austen: A Year Long Journey with Jane</em> was published by Sourcebooks. <em>Booklist</em> called the book, “a fun twist on the fascination with all things Jane.” A lifetime member of JASNA (The Jane Austen Society of North America), she has been publishing scholarly articles for years, but this is her first venture into travel writing.
Kent Redford has been a practicing conservationist for thirty years, and currently is Principal at Archipelago Consulting in Portland, Maine. After receiving his PhD in biology from Harvard University, Kent started at the University of Florida, where he had faculty appointments in the Center for Latin American Studies and the Department of Wildlife Conservation. His […]
Richard Schmalensee is the Chairman of Market Platform Dynamics, He is also a principal at Global Economics group and is the Howard W. Johnson Professor of Economics and Management, Emeritus at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Professor of Economics, Emeritus, Dean Emeritus, and Director of the MIT Center for Energy and Environmental Policy Research at […]
A consultant and educator, Bill Welter helps organizations succeed by helping managers excel and prepare for their tomorrows. He connects Louis Pasteur’s quote of “Chance favors the prepared mind” with today’s business realities. His workshops have been conducted for McDonaldâs, Walgreenâs, Starbucks, the Institute for Management Studies, DraftFCB and others. He is the lead co-author […]