There’s no switchThere’s no switch
“Ethical people are ethical at the core. That identifies who they are. Ethics cannot be engaged and disengaged at will.” – William C. Stewart, Jr., Subrogation Recovery: Principles and Practices
Author: Tetman Callis
Schooling the fishSchooling the fish
“Great pressure is brought to bear to make us undervalue ourselves. On the other hand, civilization teaches that each of us is an inestimable prize. There are, then, these two preparations: one for life and the other for death. Therefore we value and are ashamed to value ourselves, are hard-boiled. We are schooled in quietness and, if one of us takes his measure occasionally, he does so coolly, as if he were examining his fingernails, not his soul, frowning at the imperfections he finds as one would at a chip or a bit of dirt. Because, of course, we are called upon to accept the imposition of all kinds of wrongs, to wait in ranks under a hot sun, to run up a clattering beach, to be sentries, scouts or workingmen, to be those in the train when it is blown up, or those at the gates when they are locked, to be of no significance, to die. The result is that we learn to be unfeeling toward ourselves and incurious. Who can be the earnest huntsman of himself when he knows he is in turn a quarry? Or nothing so distinctive as quarry, but one of a shoal, driven toward the weirs.” – Saul Bellow, Dangling Man
Making the world go ’roundMaking the world go ’round
“Supply is supply, and demand is demand. They will be satisfied, be it with combs, fifes, rubber, whisky, tainted meat, canned peas, sex, or tobacco. For every need there is an entrepreneur, by a marvelous providence. You can find a man to bury your dog, rub your back, teach you Swahili, read your horoscope, murder your competitor. In the megalopolis, all this is possible. There was a Parisian cripple in the days of John Law, the Scottish speculator, who stood in the streets renting out his hump for a writing desk to people who had no convenient place to take their transactions.” – Saul Bellow, Dangling Man
Same as it ever wasSame as it ever was
“I started back, choosing unfamiliar streets. They turned out to be no different from the ones I knew.” – Saul Bellow, Dangling Man
Pain is how we know we’re not dead yetPain is how we know we’re not dead yet
“Trouble, like physical pain, makes us actively aware that we are living, and when there is little in the life we lead to hold and draw and stir us, we seek and cherish it.” – Saul Bellow, Dangling Man
Is this all?Is this all?
“The worlds we sought were never those we saw; the worlds we bargained for were never the worlds we got.” – Saul Bellow, Dangling Man
Point of viewPoint of view
“All comfort in life is based upon a regular occurrence of external phenomena. The changes of the day and night, of the seasons, of flowers and fruits, and all other recurring pleasures that come to us, that we may and should enjoy them—these are the mainsprings of our earthly life. The more open we are to these enjoyments, the happier we are; but if these changing phenomena unfold themselves and we take no interest in them, if we are insensible to such fair solicitations, then comes on the sorest evil, the heaviest disease—we regard life as a loathsome burden.” – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Poetry and Life
It’s not hardIt’s not hard
“The best of us will try to live by a few simple rules: do justly, love mercy, walk humbly with thy God, and never draw to an inside straight.” – Stephen Jay Gould, “The Streak of Streaks”
The sequelThe sequel
“It is a well known fact that, in spite of the attenuation of electromagnetic radiation produced by sea water, photosynthetic organisms thrive in the underwater ecosystem. But it is rather surprising that bacterial photosynthesis has been observed to take place deep within the Pacific Ocean, at depths in excess of 2,000 meters. This biological process is carried out by green-sulfur bacteria that are obligated photosynthetic organisms. That is, these organisms are required to conduct photosynthesis in order to survive. Even though at this depth the ocean is in total darkness to the human eye, the bacteria is able to efficiently absorb and process the dim light that comes from the sun or nearby hydrothermal vents. In a sense, the problem of highly efficient underwater photosensors has already been solved by nature through the evolution over millions of years of these underwater photosynthetic
organisms.
“Let us recall that photosynthetic organisms posses molecular antenna systems that capture solar light and transport the energy to a metabolically expensive reaction center where the biochemical processes of photosynthesis begins. For many years it was conjectured that the transport of energy to the reaction center was due to classical energy transport mechanisms.
“However, it has recently been observed that photosynthetic proteins appear to use quantum coherence to transport energy in an efficient manner (nearly perfect quantum efficiency of the photo collection capture and transport processes). Indeed, quantum effects in photosynthetic light harvesting systems have been experimentally observed at cryogenic and at room temperature. These experiments required of sophisticated setups requiring ultra fast optics and 2D spectrography to detect the characteristic quantum signatures. In addition, a variety of theoretical efforts have proposed viable physical mechanisms that explain how quantum phenomena can be relevant at room temperature.”
– Marco Lanzagorta, et al., “Quantum Sensing in the Maritime Environment”
It is and isn’tIt is and isn’t
“A state such as ∣ψ) is often referred as a qubit and corresponds to a unit of quantum information (in contrast to the bit, which is the unit of classical information). Clearly, bits and qubits are radically different. Bits can assume the value of 0 or 1, but once fixed, its value is unique, deterministic, and unambiguous. On the other hand, qubits can simultaneously take the value of 0 and 1 in a probabilistic mixture of complex amplitudes, and as a consequence, its value is not deterministic.” – Marco Lanzagorta, et al., “Quantum Sensing in the Maritime Environment”
Some would say impossibleSome would say impossible
“Take care not to alienate the heart by wrongs;
To win it back, when it has shied away, is hard.
When love is lost, this heart becomes
A broken glass that cannot be repaired.”
– The Arabian Nights (trans. Lyons, et al.)
No, it isn’tNo, it isn’t
“The world is all swagger and deceit.” – The Arabian Nights (trans. Lyons, et al.)
MonochromitisMonochromitis
“Whoever thinks that all women are alike is suffering from a disease of madness for which there is no cure.” – The Arabian Nights (trans. Lyons, et al.)
Learned helplessnessLearned helplessness
“It takes patience to associate with women and whoever loves them needs to be magnanimous. They are always picking quarrels with men and annoying them, as they are proud of being the fair sex, boasting of their own superiority and despising men. This is particularly true when they see that their husbands love them, and they respond to this with pride, coquetry and misdeeds of every kind. If a man becomes angry when he sees his wife doing something that he dislikes, there can be no association between the two of them, for the only men whom women find acceptable are the magnanimous and long-suffering. If a man is not prepared to put up with his wife and to overlook her evil deeds, then he cannot successfully associate with her. It is said that were women up in the sky, men would crane their necks to look at them.” – The Arabian Nights (trans. Lyons, et al.)
Keeping things balancedKeeping things balanced
“When you read what fate inscribes
On Time’s forehead, you would shed tears of blood.
If Time’s right hand preserves a man from harm,
Its left will pour him out a cup of doom.”
– The Arabian Nights (trans. Lyons, et al.)
With friends like that . . .With friends like that . . .
“When glory and good luck befriend a man,
Disasters and misfortunes keep away.
Friends come as uninvited parasites,
And even supposed guardians act as pimps.
He farts and people take it as a song,
While any smell he makes is sweet perfume.”
– The Arabian Nights (trans. Lyons, et al.)
Such is the way of dogsSuch is the way of dogs
“On his way the poor man finds all things against him;
The earth itself closes its doors to him.
You find him hated, though he does no wrong;
You see hostility but not its cause.
At the sight of a rich man you find the dogs
Turning towards him, as they wag their tails,
But if it is a poor wretch whom they see
They come to bark at him and bare their teeth.”
– The Arabian Nights (trans. Lyons, et al.)
Homeless and forlornHomeless and forlorn
“Poverty is exile in one’s native land,
While wealth will make a stranger feel at home.”
– The Arabian Nights (trans. Lyons, et al.)
Pick a recent examplePick a recent example
“What are the three things whose ugliness cannot be set aside? Stupidity, a mean nature, and lying.” – The Arabian Nights (trans. Lyons, et al.)
As for the others . . .As for the others . . .
“A king cannot be called a king unless he is bountiful and just, a good and generous ruler, who treats his subjects well, maintaining the laws and customs with which they are familiar. He should establish justice among them, avoiding bloodshed and protecting them from harm. He should be marked out by his constant attention to the poor; he should aid both high and low alike, giving them their rightful dues, so that they may call down blessings upon him and obey his commands. There can be no doubt that a king like this will be beloved by his subjects.” – The Arabian Nights (trans. Lyons, et al.)
No alternativeNo alternative
“While facts can be verified or refuted—and we should do so expeditiously and relentlessly—we must also recognize the possibility that more complex truths are often in the eyes of the beholder. This fact of human cognition doesn’t necessarily imply that relativism is correct or desirable; not all truths are equally valid. But because the particular narrative that one adopts can color and influence the subsequent course of inquiry and debate, we should strive at the outset to entertain as many interpretations of the same set of objective facts as we can.” – Andrew W. Lo, “Reading About the Financial Crisis: A 21-Book Review”
Go thereGo there
Corpses float on the surface of the sea,
While in the lowest depths are found the pearls.
– The Arabian Nights (trans. Lyons, et al.)
Get a move onGet a move on
“Sorrow follows whoever thinks of himself as Time’s favorite.” – The Arabian Nights (trans. Lyons, et al.)
Finders keepersFinders keepers
God has produced no finer sight than that
Which shows two lovers on a single bed,
Embracing one another in content,
Pillowing each other with their wrists and arms.
For when hearts are united in their love,
It is cold iron on which their critics strike.
You who blame the lovers for their love,
Have you the power to mend an ailing heart?
If in your lifetime you find one true friend
How good this is! Live for this friend alone.
– The Arabian Nights (trans. Lyons, et al.)
Power potionPower potion
“Wine has many uses. It helps you to digest food, dispels care, cures wind, purifies the blood, clears the complexion and restores the body. It emboldens cowards and encourages copulation.” – The Arabian Nights (trans. Lyons, et al.)
GhostsGhosts
“If you look at the moon, you’ll dream of the animals, and they’ll tell you they’re sorry they died, and they miss you.” – Liam, Facebook, May 29, 2017
Hot off the pressesHot off the presses
“Implying that actual news is synonymous with truth is bound to be erroneous: In reality, journalism is the first, not final, draft of history—provisional, revisable, susceptible to mistakes and at times falsehoods, despite the efforts of even the most scrupulous reporters.” – Sam Tanenhaus, “Who Stopped McCarthy?”
Take me to the limitTake me to the limit
The Limits to Human Survival: The Four Threes
1. Three minutes without oxygen.
2. Three days without water.
3. Three weeks without food.
4. Three months without companionship.
– from Christy Gutowski, “7 Days Lost”
A remarkable coinkydinkA remarkable coinkydink
“You know ‘journalist’ and ‘justice’ both begin with the same letter?” – Mister Caution, Alphaville
The default settingThe default setting
“When people do not understand something, they tend to take a negative view of it and assume the worst.” – Justice Michael B. Hyman, Wing v. Chicago Transit Authority, 2016 IL App (1st) 153517 (Dec. 29, 2016)