going to places where you don’t normally go

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An old joke says that if you torture the data long enough, it will confess. With enough work, you can distort data to make it say what you want it to say.

We all hold some beliefs, and that’s fine. It’s all part of being human. What’s not OK, though, is when we let those beliefs inadvertently come into the way we form our hypotheses.

We can see this tendency in our everyday lives. We often interpret new information in such a way that it becomes compatible with our own beliefs. We read the news on the site that conforms most closely to our beliefs. We talk to people who are like us and hold similar views. We don’t want to get disconcerting evidence because that might lead us to change our worldview, which we might be afraid to do.

One way to fight this bias is to critically examine all your beliefs and try to find disconcerting evidence about each of your theories. By that, I mean actively seeking out evidence by going to places where you don’t normally go, talking to people you don’t normally talk to, and generally keeping an open mind.

Rahul Agarwal writing in Built in

The qualities of creative people

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Some observers have been led to comment on a certain “childlike” or “primitive” quality in creative individuals. They are childlike and primitive in the sense that they have not been trapped by the learned rigidities that immobilize the rest of us. In their chosen field they do not have the brittle knowingness and sophistication of people who think they know all the answers. The advantage of this fluidity is that it permits all kinds of combinations and recombinations of experience with a minimum of rigidity.

One could list a number of other traits that have been ascribed to the creative individual by research workers. Almost all observer have noted a remarkable zeal or dive in creative individuals. They are wholly absorbed in their work.

Anne Roe, in her study of gifted scientists, found that one of their most striking traits was a willingness to work hard and for long hours. The energy they bring to their work is not only intense but sustained. Most of the great creative performances grow out of years of arduous application.

Other observers have commented on the confidence, self-assertiveness or, as one investigator put it, the “sense of destiny” in creative persons. They have faith in their capacity to do the things they want and need to do in the area of their chosen work.

John Gardner, Self-Renewal

Data Science articles - Jan 2021

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Exploring photonics instead of conventional electronics for artificial intelligence and neuromorphic computing in order to process data in a faster and more energy-efficient way

DARPA program Blackjack will be working on an orbital mesh network of low-orbit satellites that will create enough computing power to do machine learning in space

A new type of neural network (dubbed “liquid“) helps machine-learning adapt to the variability of data inputs found in real-world systems

Bayesian model averaging: a look at hierarchical modeling

Deep-learning based reverse image search from unstructured data to pull valuable insights for industrial applications 

Drones can now be equipped with cybersecurity powered by artificial intelligence   

Popular machine learning interview questions (with answers)  

New contract procedures to make it easier for small companies to bid on AI uses for the military as Pentagon aims to spread artificial intelligence across military services  

The incredible physics behind quantum computing—a simple video explanation  

A new IARPA research effort will monitor man-made and natural change with global-scale image processing and machine learning

What is semi-supervised machine learning?

New quantum algorithms finally crack nonlinear equations

The Caring Effect

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Patients with irritable bowel syndrome were told they'd be participating in a study of the benefits of a acupuncture—and one group, which received the treatment from a warm, friendly researcher who asked detailed questions about their lives, did report a marked reduction in symptoms, equivalent to what might result from any drug on the market. Unbeknokwnst to them, the researchers used trick needles that didn’t pierce the skin.

Now here’s the interesting part. The same sham treatment was given to another group of subjects—but performed brusquely, without conversation. The benefits largely disappeared. It was the empathetic exchange between paractictioner and patient. Kaptchuk concluded, that made the difference.

What Kaptchuk demonstrated is what some medical thinkers have begun to call the “care effect”—the idea that the opportunity for patients to feel heard and cared for can improve their health. Scientific or no, alternative practitioners tend to express empathy, to allow for unhurried silences, and to ask what the meaning patients make of their pain. Kaptchuk’s study was a breakthrough: It showed that randomized, controlled trials could measure the effect of caring.

Nathanael Johnson, Writing in Wired magazine

Articles of interest about higher ed - Jan 29

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***COVID

The five-step process that brings vaccines from the manufacturing line into your arm 

How the Coronavirus Turns the Body Against Itself ($)  

New HBO documentary alleges Chinese coverup of virus ($)  

4 reasons we’re seeing these worrying coronavirus variants now

***HIGHER ED & COVID

Stanford study: nearly 50% of colleges saw a spike in COVID cases within two weeks of the start of the fall semester  

Biden Orders Up More COVID Guidance for Colleges

***COVID AT SPECIFIC SCHOOLS

University of Michigan in Ann Arbor issues stay-home recommendation due to COVID-19 variant 

University of North Carolina students are reporting alleged COVID violations on Instagram

***COLLEGE CUTS 

Marquette lays off 39 staffers  

This Central Ohio college has cut costs, jobs in order to deal with financial impact of Covid-19

N.J. University Could Cut 26% of Full-Time Faculty Amid Budget Woes

Citing COVID-19, Kansas's state governing board makes it much easier for institutions to suspend or terminate even tenured faculty members.

***COLLEGE FINANCES 

The  Heavy Cost of an Empty Campus ($) 

Colleges and universities won't easily shrug off pandemic's impact (opinion)

 ***HIGHER ED  

DoD's hacking for defense taps college brainpower  

What Some Colleges learned from their Revamped Academic Calendar ($)

Biden's Education Department looks to ditch accreditor of seemingly fake school

New Ranking System: Swarthmore, Amherst Top The 50 Best Liberal Arts Colleges

***APPLICATIONS

Colgate University sees applications soar more than 100%, setting new record

UC schools experience a record number of applications

***HIGHER ED IN COURT 

Student in Viral Zoom Bathroom Video Loses Bid to Sue University

Student Lawsuits in the Wake of COVID-19 – A Recent Victory for One College

***TEACHING

Want Smarter Kids? Teach Music, Not Coding, According to MIT

10 Ways to Tackle Linguistic Bias in Our Classrooms

Survey: How bad was the fall semester on teaching?

When your professor is dead, but teaches anyway  

*** CHEATING   

University will stop using controversial remote-testing software following student outcry

University of Oregon Students cheat with online learning service, professors hope to identify users

This $12 Billion Company Is Getting Rich Off Students Cheating

***ACADEMIC LIFE  

Facebook bans Christian prof. from platform for opposing Biden’s transgender military policy

Study: For Full-Time College Faculty, Inflation-Adjusted Salaries Up Only 9.5% Since 1970

Is This Law Professor Really a Homicidal Threat? ($) 

***ACADEMICS RETIRING

Report: The University of North Carolina at Greensboro theater professor retires amid misconduct allegations

Penn professor retires after controversy over Nazi rhetoric, Nazi salute used at virtual conference

Now-Retired Law Professor John Eastman Says His Words at Trump’s ‘Save America’ Rally Did Not Incite U.S. Capitol Siege

***ACADEMICS IN COURT 

A North Texas professor sues for defamation, challenging claims of racism in music theory

Second professor from DePaul’s College of Communication files racial discrimination lawsuit 

***ADMINISTRATORS

Congressman & Texas Christian University trustee faces faculty vote over objection to Biden’s win   

North Idaho College Board Chair Asked to Resign Over Alleged Abusive Behavior

***CHRISTIAN SCHOOLS  

Another institution in the Lutheran college system to close: Concordia New York  

Teaching the Holocaust at a Christian College

Lee University To Inaugurate 17th President 

Baylor recurring lecturer tweets controversial message

***RESEARCH 

Journal editor suspects paper mills behind rash of withdrawn manuscripts 

Publisher retracting 68 articles 

Overburdening of peer reviewer

***STUDENT LIFE 

Online students’ mental health more likely to suffer

Survey: Most Students Willing to Be Vaccinated  

Recent Grads Are Being Lured Into ‘Indentured Servitude’ by a Coding Bootcamp

UC Santa Cruz grad student sues university, saying she was clubbed by police during protest 

Students at Queen’s University are buying degrees that they aren’t earning

***STUDENT MEDIA

How student newsrooms can set a framework for requests to update old stories 

Baylor newspaper apologizes after calling professor's criticism of Biden's LGBT order 'transphobic' 

Coach K calls Duke student reporter and apologizes after tense exchange in press conference

Canadian student journalist fired for Catholic views charges discrimination

***SEXUAL ASSAULT & DISCRIMINATION 

College Students Are Filing Record Number of Lawsuits to Fight Sex Discrimination in Athletics 

Improving how colleges respond to sexual assault on campus is one of President Biden's top priorities

***RACIAL ISSUES ON CAMPUS 

When Anti-racist Manifestos Become Anti-racist Wrecking Balls

Islamic group files appeal to decision to dismiss case against Scottsdale professor

Johns Hopkins University investigates TA’s tweet about failing a Zionist student    

More Colleges Remove Offensive Names, Symbols

Texas A&M officials say moving Sul Ross statue is no longer an option, but students say the university never made that clear 

Proposed Dixie State University name change evokes emotional debate

Loving too much

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It is probably impossible to love any human being simply 'too much.'  We may love him too much in proportion to our love for God; but it is the smallness of our love for God, not the greatness of our love for the man, that constitutes the inordinacy.

But even this must be refined upon. Otherwise we shall trouble some who are very much on the right road but alarmed because they cannot feel towards God so warm a sensible emotion as they feel for the earthly Beloved. It is much to be wished--at least I think so--that we all, at all times, could. We must pray that this gift should be given us. But the question whether we are loving God or the earthly Beloved "more" is not, so far as concerns our Christian duty, a question about the comparative intensity of the two feelings. The real question is, which (when the alternative comes) do you serve, or choose, to put first? To which claim does your will, in the last resort, yield?

CS Lewis, The Four Loves

Articles of interest about journalism, fakes, social media & more - Jan 27

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***COVID-19

What to Say if Someone Wrongly Claims ‘99% of People Survive COVID’

An estimated 10% of COVID-19 patients in the U.S. have developed lasting symptoms nearly a year later

Coronavirus: Should I be wearing double masks?

***JOURNALISM 

After the Capitol Riot, Journalists Contend with Rage against the Media 

Is unpublishing old crime stories Orwellian or empathetic?  

Trust in media hits new crisis low

Ethical practices are changing as a result of the increase in threats to journalists 

How a project is training incarcerated people to become journalists

***REPORTING TOOLS  

How to vet social media real quick

Trump era sets FOIA record 

Can a video journalist be successful with just a smartphone? 

***THE BUSINESS OF JOURNALISM 

Six tips for independent journalists before deciding to go solo  

An Idaho newspaper editor struggled to get Excel access for staff. After tweeting about it, she was fired  

Axios promises it will never have an opinion section, and more, in an “audience Bill of Rights” 

***FAKES, FRAUDS & SCAMS

We Asked People Who Run 'Fake' News Websites: Why

Got a package you didn't order? It could be a scam

Far-right groups move to messaging apps as tech companies crack down on extremist social media

A big chunk of Trump’s 1776 report appears lifted from an author’s prior work

The Most Dangerous Conspiracy Theory in the World

Ken Burns Says U.S. Has 3 Viruses: COVID-19, White Supremacy And Misinformation 

Covid misinformation takes its toll on British doctors, teachers 

PPP loans were given to anti-vaccine groups ($)

***QANON NONSENSE  

Marjorie Taylor Greene Believes in Frazzledrip, QAnon’s Wildest Conspiracy Theory  

QAnon Thinks Trump Will Become President Again On March 4

Lacking a leader, QAnon believers find ways to carry on ($) 

‘Are you QAnon?’: One Trump official’s brush with an internet cult gone horribly wrong 

There are Qanon believers in Congress

With Trump gone, where will QAnon supporters go for inspiration?

Trump’s exit leaves QAnon faithful grappling with doubt

***SOCIAL MEDIA 

Alternative Social Media Platforms Become Popular Among Some Trump Supporters

The podcast business is booming, but few are making money  

TikTok Surpasses Facebook as Most Time-Consuming Social Media App of 2020

Signal aims to tempt WhatsApp users by borrowing some of its best features

How to use Signal: Everything you need to know 

Parler shows signs of life

***PRIVACY & SECURITY 

Intelligence Analysts Use U.S. Smartphone Location Data Without Warrants, Memo Says 

TikTok Is Watching You – Even If You Don't Have an Account 

***WRITING & READING 

Digital reading has exploded during the pandemic

In Defense of Writing Books That May Never Be Read

***POETRY

How a 22-year-old L.A. native became Biden's inauguration poet ($) 

Amanda Gorman Delivers Breathtaking Poem At Inauguration

Who Is Amanda Gorman, the Youngest Poet Laureate to Perform at an Inauguration?

Articles of interest about religion - Jan 25

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***COVID-19

UNC helps find a new way to prevent COVID-19 outbreaks

What 'vaccine passports' mean for your summer vacation 

The face mask that could end the pandemic

Facemask Sensor Being Developed at UCSD Could Help Detect COVID-19

***RELIGION & THE VIRUS

Hundreds attend largely maskless El Cajon concert by controversial religious figure Sean Feucht

***RELIGION 

Fringe groups raise funds on Christian site

Five myths about evangelicals ($) 

***RELIGION AND POLITICS

U.S. Government Sees Wave Of Catholic Leaders

Biden Invokes Augustine in Call for American Unity

Biden is only the second Catholic president, but nearly all have been Christians

Militant Christian Nationalists Remain A Potent Force, Even After The Capitol Riot

Trump ignites a war within evangelical Christianity (opinion)

Some Christians Feel It's A God-Given Mission To Fight On Trump's Behalf

***RELIGION & THE LAW 

Supreme Court won’t hear Nevada church’s COVID-19 case

Should Christians Worry that Free Speech Is Eroding? (podcast)  

Federal appeals court denies a SoCal church’s request to overturn state’s coronavirus restrictions

***SOUTHERN BAPTISTS

SBC president’s church announces review of pastor accused of mishandling sex abuse cases

Southern Baptist Dwight McKissic to leave Texas group over critical race theory stance 

Some Black Southern Baptists feel shut out by white leaders 

***MEGACHURCHES

A Tampa megachurch pastor held a giant, maskless indoor service  

Charlotte megachurch draws criticism from health director for large, maskless worship performance

Megachurch pastor Ed Young mourns death of daughter aged 34

Syracuse megachurch pastor’s emotional message after Capitol riot: ‘We have crossed the line’ 

***DAVE RAMSEY 

Is the empire of Christian Financial Guru Dave Ramsey the ‘best place to work in America’?

Dave Ramsey, the Good Ole Boy Network & the Evangelical Industrial Complex (opinion) 

***RELIGION & LGBTQ ISSUES

Tensions rise over California church’s anti-LGBTQ message

Authorities Investigate Blast at Anti-Gay California Church

***MUSLIMS

Barred From U.S. Under Trump, Muslims Exult in Biden’s Open Door ($) 

Video shows man threatening to kill gas station worker in anti-Muslim attack

What’s behind Anger

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According to Albert Ellis, the most common irrational ideas behind anger are the following:

1. I must do well and win the approval of others for my performances, or else I will rate as a rotten person.

2. Others must treat me considerately and kindly and in precisely the way I want them to treat me.

3. The world (and the people in it) must arrange conditions under which I live, so that I get everything that I want when I want it.

Mark Cosgrove, Counseling for Anger

The persecuted victim

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Conspiracy theorists perceive and present themselves as the victim of organized persecution. At the same time, they see themselves as brave antagonists taking on the villainous conspirators. Conspiratorial thinking involves a self-perception of simultaneously being a victim and a hero.

Stephan Lewandowsky & John Cook, The Conspiracy Theory Handbook