Methods I have used to acquire knowledge

1. Listening to others. As a teacher I have found that I have learnt a lot from my students and the questions that they ask. Such questions force me to dig deeper and in doing so I have acquired a more thorough understanding of the subject
2. I was sick a lot as a child and therefore spent much time by myself…reading and learning. Having supportive parents helped as well.
3. Rising to the challenge – I love teaching new courses which force me to broaden my horizons and increase my knowledge base. 
4. Magazines…… New Scientist, The Economist, BBC History Magazine, National Geographic, Time, World Football, Military History, Scientific American, Omni plus as a child Look and Learn and World of Knowledge
5. Watching Documentaries – You Tube is a great source for this.
6. Reading Reference Books – Guinness Book of Records, World Almanac, Pears Encyclopedia, Chronicle Series, World Book as a kid.
7. Reading Books in general – I normally have on the go 3-4 books that I read at a time.
8. The Internet …Its amazing how much knowledge is at your finger tips if you know where to find it.
9. Completing Quiz Books - The Isaac Asimov Super Quiz Series was great as was the British series Mastermind.
10. Schooling – Completing two science degrees plus an education degree has helped but it has not served to provide me with the bulk of my knowledge.
11. Experience…The Greatest teacher… this has no doubt served me well in both my engineering and teaching capacity. The key though is to reflect meaningfully on the experience

Western History 85: Who were some of the important figures in the Literature of the Renaissance?

Like other aspects of the Human Endeavor, Literature was impacted by the tremendous strides and reawakening of the Renaissance Period. Both the essay (Montaigne)  and the Spenserian stanza emerged as literary forms. Great writers included Machiavelli, Petrach, Spenser, Boccaccio, Melanchthon, Rabelais and later Shakespeare. Writing moved away from biblical themes to that of the vernacular and access to the public was driven by versions of Johannes Gutenberg’s Printing Press (first used in 1439).Humanist themes played a major role on both the continent and the British Isles.

In the English world the Oxford Reformers – William Grocyn, Thomas Linacre and John Colet – helped introduce European themes and styles from Italy and France to their homeland. Thomas More (in his Utopia) would benefit from this as did the later court movements of Sir Philip Sydney and Edmund Spenser.

However it was through the medium of the play that the English would shine  with the works of William Shakespeare and his three categories of Dramatic genre – the History (Henry V, Richard III), the Tragedy (Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello and King Lear) and the Comedy (Twelfth Night, Merry Wives of Windsor, Comedy of Errors).

20 Points to Ponder when analyzing News, Commentary or Reported Information

1. What is the bias of the source?

2. What is the bias of the writer (not necessarily the same as the publication)?
3. Why do I believe this to be true or false?
4. What are the assumptions behind the article?
5. What is the article saying?
6. What is the article not saying?
7. Do sources provide a clear path to the primary source?
8. Have quotes been deliberately decontextualized?
9.How does my Confirmation bias play into my appreciation of the article?
10. If I am rejecting the analysis...could I be in a state of cognitive dissonance?
11. Are sources circular ie. a references b which in turn references a?
12. How much of the report is wishful thinking?
13. Is the author making the necessary distinction between 'some' and 'all'?
14. How can this piece of writing be misinterpreted?
15. Are there any obvious logical fallacies in the reasoning?
16. How strong is the appeal to emotion?
17. What are the basic premises of the article?
18. Do the premises justify the conclusion?
19. Could it be otherwise interpreted?
20. What is the overall purpose of this article?

Muhammad Ali

Its been about two years since the death of Muhammad Ali. While there is no doubt that he was a tremendous athlete and iconic figure whose story translates itself well into the 60's narrative I have always found the superlative Great as used with the man to be somewhat misapplied.

For one he was not a great human being. Look no further to his treatment of arch-rival Joe Frazier before their third fight in Manila (the notorious thriller). His use of the ‘gorilla’ term to taunt his opponent on looks alone was classless at best as was his use of racist language to imply that Frazier (who was Black) was the White Man’s Champion but was essentially an Uncle Tom when juxtaposed against Ali himself.

Not only were these slurs cruel and unnecessary (and bothered Frazier for the rest of his life) they were especially vile as it was Frazier who gave Ali financial support during his ban from boxing and it was Frazier himself who lobbied hard to have Ali reinstated as a fighter.

Ali was arrogant, continually mocked ‘whitey’ but was never to high above the moral quandary to reject the money that came his way from a largely Caucasian audience. In fact it was white journalist such as Howard Cosell who played a huge role in creating the legend that was Ali as was his legendary trainer Angelo Dundee.

That he was a skilled fighter is a given but his record doesn’t standard head or shoulders above some of the other heavyweights of renowned fame. In fact one could argue that it was less impressive than some of the sport’s leading lights. He did not retire undefeated like Rocky Marciano (39-0) or have the knockout record of Foreman (76 wins 68 by knockout compared to Ali’s 56 wins 37 by knockout), nor did he come close to holding on to the title as long as Joe Louis who carried the belt for 12 years (that included 25 an unbelievable defenses).

He did win the Heavyweight title three times but that was largely a consequence of circumstance (the Don King Rumble Initiative and Leon Spink's suspect decision to avoid Ken Norton the #1 contender at the time and defend against Ali instead).

In fact a breakdown of Ali’s key fights shows a spurious win against Sonny Liston (Phantom Punch…likely a fix), controversial use of the rope-a-dope tactic (arguably illegal) in the Rumble, a wrong victory decision against Ken Norton in the Third Fight and a over hyped win over Frazier in Manila (when Ali’s corner were seconds away from throwing in the towel themselves).

While he was quick to talk the talk when it suited him Ali was too often caught up by his own hubris. He refused to retire with grace and was taken to task for his efforts by both Larry Holmes and the less than stellar Trevor Berbick.

Ali defined an era but had feats mired in hyperbole and for this he will be remembered. Boxing will forever be indebted to him but to call him the Great (or any fighter for that matter) simply overlooks the bigger picture that necessitates such a call to glory.

50 Questions for G-d

If I could ever interview G-d these are the types of questions I would ask the almighty

1. How old is the Universe?
2. Does the Universe have purpose?
3. Does life have purpose?
4. Is randomness the driving force behind evolution?
5. Did Jesus exist? Who was he?
6. Who shot Kennedy? Was there really a conspiracy?
7. Are ghosts real?
8. Is their order underneath quantum fuzziness?
9. Will humanity survive the century?
10. What percentage of intelligence on average is genetic?
11. Did you really communicate with Abraham, Issac and Jacob, Moses and the other prophets in the way the Bible states? Were these individuals even real?
12. Was the Torah really given on Mount Sinai?
13. How much truth is there to the Buddhist concept of Enlightenment?
14. Is Karma real?
15. What other figures throughout history have you communicated with?
16. Did Shakespeare really write all his plays? If not who is the unknown author? Johnson, Marlowe or Bacon?
17. Why didn't you prevent the holocaust?
18. What is the purpose of Evil?
19. What absolutes should one follow?
20. Why are human beings so weak?
21. Is knowledge finite?
22. Do angels exist?
23. What happens to us after we die?
24. What really is consciousness?
25. Why did Hitler not give the deciding order at Dunkirk?
26. Does extra-terrestrial life exist? If so is it intelligent life and will we make contact with it?
27. Will humanity colonize other planets?
28. Will Cancer be cured? How about AIDS?
29.Why have the Jews suffered throughout history?
30. Is ESP real?
31. Is Free Will an illusion?
32. Who built the Pyramids? Stonehenge? Easter Island Statues?
33. Was Atlantis ever real?
34. Who wrote the Bible? To what extent were they divinely inspired?
35. Is there any truth to reincarnation?
36. Is there any truth to Mind/Body Dualism?
37. Is Time Travel possible?
38. Do multiverses exist?
39. Will Islamismbe defeated?
40. How long will the State of Israel survive?
41. Will the Messiah ever come?
42. What diseases will be of historical significance only..... one hundred years hence?
43. How do you measure success?
44. Is the Speed of Light truly an upper limit?
45. Is Irreducible complexity in Biology a reality or an oversight?
46. What is the best type of test for intelligence?
47. What are the lower limits on the 100m, metric mile and marathon running times?
48. Will England ever win the World Cup again?
49. What advice should I give my children as a father?
50. How best can I overcome my weaknesses?

Personal Reflection XVI - Musing of the Mind

1. It is important to be a skeptic but at the same time never intolerant toward contradictory evidence.

2. I don’t pay much attention to political opinions originating from Hollywood. Anyone who does is engaging in mindless time wasting.

3. What the world needs is more intelligent generalists. What it has in abundance is a cacophony of half-witted specialists.

4. Canada for the most part is a nation of marginal significance its luxury (as an accident of history) though is that it can afford to be so.

5. String Theory is the fly in the ointment of modern physics…..Cleaning up its overriding presence will be the great task of 21st century thinkers in the Queen of All Sciences.

6. I endeavour to constantly challenge my beliefs…Not a day goes by when I don’t drag my assumptions through the ringer. This is both a curse and a blessing.

7. I am a complex person. Sometimes this complexity paralyzes me.

8. It is not my intention to sound arrogant in my writing but it definitely ill affords me to be insincere and to censor myself as well.

9. Classical and Romantic poetry tantalizes me. I have written some poetry myself but looking back at it now these are most streams of consciousness than anything else. A lack of cadence negates the poetic volume. The ideas and richness of thought are however very much present.

10. Humanity is not a great species. Our folly as thinkers is that too often we choose to ignore this truism.

11. Ten Individuals from history that I most admire (not in order are): Winston Churchill, Maimonides, Blaise Pascal, Albert Einstein, Michael Faraday, Isaac Newton (despite the fact that he was not a likeable person), Marie Curie, Joseph Lister, Abraham Lincoln and Menachem Begin.

12. I was born and spent all of my childhood in South Africa (I immigrated to Canada in 1987 at age 18). Africa as a continent has a special place in my heart and I have a strong inclination towards understanding its politics, people, successes and failures. Sub-Sahara’s five most successful countries are:
South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Mozambique (in the last fifteen years) and Kenya. Its ten most dismal failures are: Sierre Leone, Liberia, Somalia, Rwanda, Burundi, Zimbabwe (under Mugabe), Sudan, Congo (formerly Zaire), Angola (under orthodox Marxist Rule) and Uganda (under Obote and Amin).

13. Asia’s (not including the Middle East) nine greatest success stories are: Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, India (in the last ten to fifteen years), Thailand, Malaysia and China (economically but definitely not politically). Asia’s list of failed states include: Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Iran, Cambodia, Myanmar, Phillippines (for much of its history), Sri Lanka, Laos and North Korea.

14. Above anything else I value my role as a father.

15. Modern Leftism and the anti-intellectualism that suffuses its being nauseates me. Unfortunately all too many in Canada and Western Europe have bought into the false dreams that Leftism alludes to. In doing so they often tend to short circuit reasoning at the expense of ill-thought out idealism.

16. If I was an American I would have voted for: Truman (48), Eisenhower (52), Stevenson (56), Kennedy (60), Johnson (64), Nixon (68 and 72), Ford (76), Reagan (80 and 84), Bush Snr (88), Clinton (92 and 96), Gore (00) and Dubya (04). Having said that of all the candidates listed the only three that I truly admire are: Truman, Kennedy (even if he is a bit overrated) and Reagan.

17. In Canadian politics I have voted once for the Liberals (Jean Chretien in 93 – my first election vote in Canada). All other times I have backed either the Progressive Conservatives or their later incarnation the Conservative Party of Canada. I regret voting for Chretien and consider him to be one of the worst Prime Ministers in Canadian history. Despite my opinion on this issue I am no fan of Brian Mulroney either but would have voted for him as the ‘greater’ of a bunch of lessers in 84 and 88.

18. I have diverse movie tastes that span the continuum from foreign films to black comedy to political intrigue to biography. I have even been known to enjoy the occasional ‘chick flick’ or two. A trip to the video store often results in an unpredictable array of movies. On average 30% are gems, 40% mediocrities and the remainder duds. My wife sees this as being part of the crapshoot of marriage with me.

19. Britain’s three best prime ministers of the 20th century were Churchill, Lloyd George and Thatcher in that very order. Baldwin, Blair, MacDonald, Macmillan, Campbell-Bannerman, Asquith and Wilson were average while Chamberlain, Callaghan, Atlee, Major, Heath, Eden were sub-par. The rest – Hume, Balfour, and Bonar Law (who was Canadian-born) weren’t in power long enough to register an impact on the political Richter Scale.

20. I can think of only two French politicians in the 20th century whom I believe to be admirable. These were Georges Clemenceau and Leon Blum.
De Gaulle was malicious and arrogant, Mitterand and D’Estaing inconsistent, Daladier ineffectual and Chirac both useless and dangerous. Pompidou was a competent president but nothing special. I will not waste my time analyzing the leaders of the Failed Fourth Republic. I am hoping that Sarkozy brings a fresh outlook to French Policy (a movement away from short-sighted Anti-Americanism would be a start) but the jury is very much out on this one.