In the New Yorker...

[Front-Ranger]

Interesting...In the article "Groupthink" by Jonah Lehrer, he throws out the counter theory that it is the process of debating and discussing ideas generated by a group that produces even more ideas. Without the debate, people are more creative on their own.

[serious crayons]

Interesting...In the article "Groupthink" by Jonah Lehrer, he throws out the counter theory that it is the process of debating and discussing ideas generated by a group that produces even more ideas. Without the debate, people are more creative on their own.

Looking forward to that! Jonah Lehrer is a writer I like. He's really good at exploring psychology topics in clear, entertaining ways. He appears to be about 23.

[Jeff Wrangler]

I enjoyed Ariel Levy's article on Callista Gingrich in the Jan. 23 issue (I always enjoy Levy's articles). I especially liked the part where the guy in Iowa took the Newt by the hand and called him an asshole to his face. 

Levy says that the Newt converted to Roman Catholicism to please Callista. One assumes that Callista was raised Catholic, but Levy doesn't say so. Yet she attended a Lutheran church-affiliated college. This puzzles me.

I just don't associate in my mind someone for whom being Roman Catholic is an important part of who they are (Levy directly quotes Callista saying, "When Newt became a Catholic, it was one of the happiest moments of my life") attending a Lutheran-affiliated school. Perhaps Callista's religion became more important to her as she got older. Or maybe she got a good scholarship deal (the reason I went to a college affiliated with the Church of the Brethren) (Levy says money was always tight in Callista's family). Levy doesn't address this, so I guess I'll remain puzzled.

[serious crayons]

Did everyone notice that the latest New Yorker has an article about Tyler Clementi, the Rutgers student who killed himself after his roommate videotaped him? I haven't read it yet, but am looking forward to seeing what the reporter found out about that sad, mysterious case.

[Jeff Wrangler]

Did everyone notice that the latest New Yorker has an article about Tyler Clementi, the Rutgers student who killed himself after his roommate videotaped him? I haven't read it yet, but am looking forward to seeing what the reporter found out about that sad, mysterious case.

Is that the issue with the President watching "the Big Game" on the cover? As of yesterday's mail, my copy hasn't arrived yet.

[Front-Ranger]

Mine has arrived and I've read half the article already. There are misconceptions concerning the case. Loved the cover!!

[serious crayons]

Is that the issue with the President watching "the Big Game" on the cover? As of yesterday's mail, my copy hasn't arrived yet.

Yes.

Mine has arrived and I've read half the article already. There are misconceptions concerning the case. Loved the cover!!

You mean there are misconceptions in the article, or the article exposes misconceptions by the public?

[Jeff Wrangler]

That issue arrived in today's mail. I began reading the article over dinner tonight. I'll probably comment on it on my blog. ... 

[Jeff Wrangler]

Interesting...In the article "Groupthink" by Jonah Lehrer, he throws out the counter theory that it is the process of debating and discussing ideas generated by a group that produces even more ideas. Without the debate, people are more creative on their own.

I finished this over lunch today. The part I liked best was the history of Building 20 at M.I.T. I'd never heard any of that before.

[Jeff Wrangler]

I have received the annual anniversary issue, the one with Eustace Tilley on the cover.  

I immediately read Jonathan Franzen's article on Edith Wharton, who is an author I'm more interested in reading about than reading.    

I managed to get through high school and college without reading Ethan Frome. The closest I've come to Edith Wharton was the movie of The Age of Innocence, with Daniel Day-Lewis and Michelle Pfeifer, some scenes of which were filmed at the venerable Academy of Music here in Philadelphia.

Though I must say, after reading Franzen's article, I am a bit curious about a book whose main character is named Undine Spragg.