Wes Phillips

When Philip Pullman wrote His Dark Materials, he thought he might have written a story that would appeal to a "a few clever kids and a few intelligent adults." The series has been translated into 40 languages and has sold 15 million copies. If he was that wrong about that, he's probably wrong about what it's about, too.

Descartes is sitting in a bar, having a drink. The bartender asks him if he would like another. "I think not," he says and vanishes in a puff of logic.

Steven Pinker has some interesting thoughts about language and the brain, but 'm linking to this article mostly because I can't resist its headline.

Bagheera wonders when she developed four eyes. Correctly, she blames me, course.

"Centuries from now, scientists may point to this as the moment in time when the pickiness gene became dominant. In the end, it will come down to one really old, lonely guy and his list.

Remember all that furor over research results indicating women's brains are hard-wired to prefer pink? Well, you needn't.

How could I have missed this Charles Rosen article? It was even published on my birthday. Aww, he shouldn't have.