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Archive for the ‘Education’ Category

Well Worth Repeating

Posted in Education, Environment, Philosophy, Politics, Quotes, tagged Agriculture, Carl Sagan, Communications, Education, Entertainment, Environment, Global Civilization, Ignorance, Medicine, Philosophy, Politics, Power, Quotes, Science, Technology, Transportation, Voting on May 12, 2026| Leave a Comment »

We’ve arranged a global civilization in which the most crucial elements — transportation, communications, and all other industries; agriculture, medicine, education, entertainment, protecting the environment; and even the key democratic institution of voting, profoundly depend on science and technology. We have also arranged things so that almost no one understands science and technology. This is a prescription for disaster. We might get away with it for a while, but sooner or later this combustible mixture of ignorance and power is going to blow up in our faces.

— Carl Sagan

[Yes, I’ve used this quote before. Somehow, it just feels like an appropriate time to repeat it… — kmab]

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Click here (12 May) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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God Is Great!

Posted in Faith, Philosophy, Quotes, Science and Learning, tagged Carl Sagan, Faith, Philosophy, Quotes, Religion, Science, Universe on May 10, 2026| Leave a Comment »

In some respects, science has far surpassed religion in delivering awe. How is it that hardly any major religion has looked at science and concluded, “This is better than we thought! The Universe is much bigger than our prophets said, grander, more subtle, more elegant. God must be even greater than we dreamed“? Instead they say, “No, no, no! My god is a little god, and I want him to stay that way.“

— Carl Sagan

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Click here (10 May) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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And, If Necessary, By Yourself

Posted in Education, Philosophy, Quotes, Science and Learning, tagged Learning, Listening, Malcolm X, Philosophy, Quotes, Seeing, Thinking on May 9, 2026| Leave a Comment »

Learn to see, listen, and think for yourself.

— Malcolm X

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Click here (9 May) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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A Humble But Worthy Goal

Posted in Philosophy, Quotes, Science and Learning, tagged Carl Sagan, Cosmic Purpose, Goals, Home, Humility, Lessons, Passengers, Philosophy, Quotes, Science, Unknown, Voyage on May 8, 2026| 2 Comments »

Modern science has been a voyage into the unknown, with a lesson in humility waiting at every stop. Many passengers would rather have stayed home.

If we crave some cosmic purpose, then let us find ourselves a worthy goal.

— Carl Sagan

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Click here (8 May) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Over Time No Views Does The Same For Most Bloggers

Posted in Education, Philosophy, Quotes, tagged Education, Humor, Opinion, Philosophy, Quotes, Universities, Writers on May 5, 2026| 2 Comments »

Everywhere I go, I’m asked if the universities stifle writers. My opinion is that they don’t stifle enough of them.

– Flannery O’Connor

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Click here (5 May) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Searching For Patterns

Posted in Philosophy, Quotes, Science and Learning, tagged Carl Sagan, Critical Analysis, Knowledge, Patterns, Philosophy, Quotes, Rigid Skepticism, Science on May 2, 2026| Leave a Comment »

The search for patterns without critical analysis, and rigid skepticism without a search for patterns, are the antipodes of incomplete science. The effective pursuit of knowledge requires both functions.

— Carl Sagan

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Click here (2 May) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Programming Not Behavior

Posted in Diets, Health, Philosophy, Quotes, Science and Learning, tagged Diet, Dr. Robert Lustig, Fat Chance: The Hidden Truth About Sugar, Health, Metabolic Syndrome, Obesity, Obesity And Disease, Philosophy, Quotes, Science on March 26, 2026| Leave a Comment »

To blame obesity on the obese is the easy answer, but it is the wrong answer. The current formulation of gluttony and sloth, diet and exercise, while accepted by virtually everyone, is based on faulty premises and myths that have taken hold in the world’s consciousness. Obesity is not a behavioral aberration, a character flaw, or an error of commission. When we think about the ravages of obesity, our minds often go first to adults. But what about kids? One quarter of U.S. children are now obese; even infants are tipping the scales! Once you understand the science, you realize what applies to children also applies to grown-ups. I know what you’re thinking: adults are responsible for their own choices and for the food they give their children. But are they?
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Obesity and metabolic syndrome overlap, but they are different. Obesity doesn’t kill. Metabolic syndrome kills. Although they travel together, one doesn’t cause the other. But then, what causes obesity? And what causes metabolic syndrome? And what can you do about each?

— Dr. Robert Lustig
From his book: “Fat Chance: The Hidden Truth About Sugar, Obesity And Disease“

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Click here (26 March) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Be Someone’s Starter

Posted in Education, Philosophy, Quotes, Science and Learning, tagged Education, Flame, Kindling, Philosophy, Quotes, Socrates, Vessel on March 23, 2026| Leave a Comment »

Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel.

— Socrates

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Click here (23 March) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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“Fat Chance: The Hidden Truth About Sugar, Obesity and Disease” (2012©) — book review

Posted in 2026 Book Review, Book Review, Diets, Disclaimer, General Comments, Health, Juice/Blend Fasting, Politics, Reviews, Science and Learning, tagged 2026 Book Review, Diets, Disclaimer, Dr. Robert Lustig, Fat Chance: The Hidden Truth About Sugar Obesity and Disease (2012©) — book review, Fructose, General Comments, Health, Metabolic Disease Syndrome, Science, Sugar on March 15, 2026| 2 Comments »

Last night I completed “Fat Chance: The Hidden Truth About Sugar, Obesity and Disease,” (2012©) written by pediatric endocrinologist Dr. Robert Lustig. This is a book I’ve been meaning to get to for about three years. It was given to me by my sister who is a (mostly) vegetarian because I do (did) frequent “swamp juice” diets / fasts. Like the author, my sister is one of “those” voices warning about sugar and processed foods and has been since long before “ultra‑processed” became a buzzword. I finally got around to opening it up…

So, what’s the book about? It’s about the metabolic consequences of modern food, particularly the way fructose, insulin, and leptin interact to create obesity, diabetes, and a host of chronic diseases typically falling under the umbrella of “Metabolic Disease Syndrome“. Dr. Lustig walks through the biochemistry of how the liver processes sugar, why “calories‑in / calories‑out” is not accurate (a half‑truth at best), and how the food industry (aided by the government) has engineered products that bypass normal satiety signals. The book mixes biology science, public‑health history, and a fair amount of policy critique. It’s part biology lesson, part food industry / government regulation indictment, and part call to action.

The book is strongest when Dr. Lustig explains mechanisms — how fructose is metabolized like alcohol, how insulin resistance develops, why leptin signaling breaks down, and why “just eat less” is a near completely useless recommendation for most people. He’s a clinician, so he’s seen the consequences firsthand in his own practice. He also does a good job showing how the food industry has used marketing, subsidies, and “bliss point” engineering to push sugar into almost everything. If you’ve ever wondered why a loaf of bread needs added sugar, Dr. Lustig explains it simply.

Where the book is weaker is in the solutions section. Dr. Lustig offers general proposals: reduce sugar consumption, regulate the food industry, improve school lunches, tax sugary beverages, teach people to cook, and so on. All reasonable. All theoretically possible. And all, unfortunately, “wave your hand and make it so” ideas without much discussion of how to get any of it passed into law or implemented in a society that can’t agree on what day it is. He also doesn’t fully address the economic and political forces that make processed food cheaper and more accessible than whole food. The science (as explained) appears solid; the policy roadmap is vague.

Another limitation: the book is now over a decade old. Some of the science has advanced, and some (too few) of the policy battles have shifted. But the core message: “sugar and processed food are driving metabolic disease” has continued to prove true. If anything, the situation is worse. Dr. Lustig was earlier than many, but he has not been shown wrong.

Bottom line: This book is an easy‑to‑follow explanation of why obesity and metabolic disease are not simply failures of willpower but failures of biology, economics, and public policy. It’s informative, occasionally infuriating, and very readable. But it doesn’t offer much in the way of practical procedures or steps for how an individual or a society can realistically fix the problem. It’s more diagnosis than treatment. (I understand there is a follow book of appropriate meal menus / recipes.)

Practical advice: When shopping for food: Don’t shop while hungry. Stick to the outside of your supermarket / don’t go up the isles. If it has an ingredients label, it’s almost certainly (ultra) processed – don’t buy it. Don’t eat it. Avoid sugar (fructose) in all forms. Try to have protein (in some form) with every meal. Don’t eat four hours before going to bed. Get lots of sleep. Drink water or milk; never drink soda, rarely (if ever) drink juice. (Eat the fruit; don’t drink it!)

Final recommendation: Very high recommendation! If you’ve lived under a rock for the last twenty years, or if you’ve been getting your nutrition advice from food‑industry marketing, this book will be eye‑opening. If you’ve already been following the science of insulin resistance, leptin, and processed food, there’s not a lot that’s new here, but Lustig puts it all in one place and explains it clearly. Its value is in the clarity of the mechanisms and the urgency of the message. This is one of the best written and most easily readable books on the science of eating disorder and the corresponding cause (processed food) which I’ve ever read.

Final note: This book was “current” as of 2012. It probably is not any longer. The food industry has doubled down on ultra‑processed products, metabolic disease has continued to increase (sky-rocket), and public‑health policy has mostly gone in the opposite direction of Dr. Lustig’s recommendations. Still, the book remains a solid primer on how we got here — and why getting out won’t be easy. As with most of today’s intractable problems: “Follow the money!!“

Full Disclosure: This review was “drafted” by AI using my prior book reviews as samples of writing style, content and format. All personal comments, asides and the final recommendation are my own. I have received no compensation for this review.

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Click here (15 March) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Making America Great Again

Posted in Education, General Comments, Health, Philosophy, Politics, Quotes, tagged Affordable Housing, American Politics, Ease, Education, General Comments, Healthcare, Improving, Internet Access, Mandatory National Service, Meals, Noble, Philosophy, Quotes, Socrates, War on March 8, 2026| Leave a Comment »

The easiest and noblest way is not to be crushing others, but to be improving yourselves.

― Socrates

[Let’s start with: No wars, national single-source healthcare, life time education (including trades, internships and apprenticeships) with meals for all registered students while the “school / university / facility” is open, national access to high-speed internet, affordable housing tied to eventual housing ownership, three years of mandatory national service (civilian or military). — kmab]

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Click here (8 March) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Still Trying To Feel It

Posted in Education, Philosophy, Quotes, Science and Learning, tagged Education, Life-Long Learning, Mark Twain, Philosophy, Quotes on February 27, 2026| 2 Comments »

I was educated once — it took me years to get over it.

— Mark Twain

[When I was young I thought when I finally got my college degree that I’d feel educated. I got the degree, but I didn’t and still don’t feel “educated”. All I really learned is that “education” is a life-long process. — kmab]

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Click here (27 February) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Coming To Our Senses

Posted in Education, Philosophy, Politics, Quotes, tagged American Politics, Democracy, Education, Independence, Mohandas K. Gandhi, Oneness, Philosophy, Quotes, Self-Respect on February 12, 2026| Leave a Comment »

To safeguard democracy the people must have a keen sense of independence, self-respect, and their oneness.

— Mohandas K. Gandhi

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Click here (12 February) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Get Ready For It

Posted in Education, Philosophy, Quotes, tagged Education, Future, Malcolm X, Passport, Philosophy, Preparation, Quotes, Tomorrow on February 5, 2026| Leave a Comment »

Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.

— Malcolm X

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Click here (5 February) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Far More Compelling And Exciting

Posted in Philosophy, Quotes, Science and Learning, tagged Bacchus, Carl Sagan, Heraclitus, Philosophy, Pseudoscience, Quotes, Science, Sense of Wonder, The Universe, Truth on January 29, 2026| Leave a Comment »

I believe that even a smattering of such findings in modern science and mathematics is far more compelling and exciting than most of the doctrines of pseudoscience, whose practitioners were condemned as early as the fifth century B.C. by the Ionian philosopher Heraclitus as “nightwalkers, magicians, priests of Bacchus, priestesses of the wine-vat, mystery-mongers.” But science is more intricate and subtle, reveals a much richer universe, and powerfully evokes our sense of wonder. And it has the additional and important virtue — to whatever extent the word has any meaning — of being true.

— Carl Sagan

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Click here (29 January) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Advancement Requires Tempered Openness

Posted in Education, Faith, Philosophy, Politics, Quotes, Science and Learning, tagged American Politics, Carl Sagan, Churches, Education, Faith, Governments, Hard Questions, Knowledge, Philosophy, Public Credulity, Quality, Quotes, Science, Skepticism, Vulnerability on January 28, 2026| Leave a Comment »

But our openness to the dazzling possibilities presented by modern science must be tempered by some hard-nosed skepticism. Many interesting possibilities simply turn out to be wrong. An openness to new possibilities and a willingness to ask hard questions are both required to advance our knowledge. And the asking of tough questions has an ancillary benefit: political and religious life in America, especially in the last decade and a half, has been marked by an excessive public credulity, an unwillingness to ask difficult questions, which has produced a demonstrable impairment in our national health. Consumer skepticism makes quality products. This may be why governments and churches and school systems do not exhibit unseemly zeal in encouraging critical thought. They know they themselves are vulnerable.

— Carl Sagan

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Click here (28 January) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.