This is a follow-up to my Remarkable Medical Statistic post of February 13, which referenced a study that found that 88% of those who sought a second medical opinion received a refined or new diagnosis. (Tony White commented on that post and identified a flaw: Because the study consisted of people seeking a second opinion…
Author: Carl Barney
Reality
(This post is for Objectivists only.) I had partied too much the night before, and I woke up feeling sluggish and a little hungover. As I opened my eyes, I said “Ugh! Reality… where the hell did that come from?” My romantic partner looked at me and said, “Ayn Rand invented it!” I laughed out…
Movie: We the Living
(This post is only for Objectivists.) I received an email from the producer of We the Living, Duncan Scott. He is an Emmy Award-winning filmmaker who, along with associate producer, Barbara Scott, spent two years meticulously restoring and rejuvenating the 80-year-old movie, frame-by-frame. The result, We the Living: The 80th Anniversary Restoration, was premiered at…
Living Long and Well
I want to recommend, again, Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity by Peter Attia, MD. It is an extraordinary book that could, and should, revolutionize the practice of living long and living well. A brief quote: Exercise is by far the most potent longevity “drug.” No other intervention does nearly as much to prolong…
Life-Supporting Abundance
We’re constantly hearing from doomsayers like Paul Ehrlichman who tell us that we’re going to run out of resources, that the planet is going to burn up, and that we’re all going to die. So, it was refreshing to read “We Will Never Run Out of Resources” by Marian L. Tupy and David Deutsch, published…
A Philosophy for Freedom and Flourishing
The LevelUp 2023 conference, produced and directed by Craig and Sarah Biddle, was a fabulous success. Nearly 600 young people from around the world descended on Phoenix, AZ to attend lectures and breakout sessions on topics ranging from personal growth to politics to education to the arts. In my estimate, LevelUp lived up to its…
Side Effects
Whenever a doctor recommends a medication or supplement, I ask Dr. Google about side effects before taking them. Usually, there’s a long and frightening list. Side effects are tricky…. Some things have horrible side effects, such as partying and overindulging in food and booze that leads to a hangover the next day. Overeating—we eat the…
An Education Revolution
I was having dinner with Peter Diamandis, the founder of XPrize (an exciting organization—Google it), and I asked him what his next big moonshots were. He said: education and healthcare. “So, you want to reform education in America?” I asked. “No,” he said, “I want to crush it and replace it.” I asked him how…
Stunning Statistics
This year marks the 300th anniversary of the birth of Adam Smith, author of The Wealth of Nations. At the time that book was published, capitalism was just beginning. At that point in time, approximately 90% of the global population lived in extreme poverty. Approximately 20% of the English and French weren’t able to work…
Progress and Good News for Objectivism
Prometheus Foundation (PF) had a remarkable year, awarding nearly $3 million to organizations and individuals promoting Ayn Rand’s ideas all over the world. Here are some highlights. Students For Liberty (SFL) After years of planning with SFL to popularize Rand’s ideas, we launched the Prometheus Fellowship program and awarded more than 70 fellowships, bringing students…