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Academic Mug Shot

Those who need to know what this means will know what it means.

Michael Chabon on True Novelists versus “Rebel Angels”

From Wikipedia: In a 2012 interview with Guy Raz of Weekend All Things Considered Chabon said that he writes from 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. each day, Sunday through Thursday. He tries to write 1,000 words a day. Commenting on the rigidity of his routine, Chabon said, "There have been plenty of self-destructive rebel-angel ...

The Importance of Perception to Productivity Work

People carrying a backpack or other weight typically estimate hills to be much longer and steeper than they really are, to a greater degree than unencumbered people. It also turns out, however, that if someone puts a backpack on your avatar you will experience virtual "hills" as being longer and ...

For Kids: Fern’s Writers Block (from Arthur)

Note Fern's situational perfectionism, caused by: *being told her story will be the "main event" at the next day's Fiction Forum *being told a famous author will be there *being labeled as "creative." Stanford psychologist Carol Dweck says that when you praise kids for attributes--by calling them, for instance, "smart" ...

On the Other Hand, This Little Duck Seems Plenty Empowered

Starting tomorrow, we'll resume our normal non-duck-centric programming.

“Mean” Duck Mom and Unhelpful Bystanders!

So...check out this video of a mother duck forcing her ducklings to jump down a high ledge onto a concrete walkway: Ouch! I found it painful to watch. The Mom Duck is just doing her thing, but I've seen similar videos where a kindly bystander finds a plank or other ...

Tiger Moms Don’t Just Suck, They Don’t Even Exist as a Category

Slate writes up the study by University of Texas psychology professor Su Yeong Kim analyzing children of so-called Tiger Moms. Yes, "tiger parenting" stinks: "Authoritarian parenting combines coercion with less responsiveness, and leads to higher depressive symptoms and lower self-esteem.... [they] produced kids who felt more alienated from their parents ...

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