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Essays, Opinion & Advice Posts

Climate Change and the Nature of Scientific Certainty, Part III

[Please read Part I of this post first] Part III: What now of Popper? Maybe, Popper was a philosophical dead end. Maybe, falsifiability was never central or important for demarcating science.  Might falsifiability have been naught but its own bold conjecture, since superseded? For those who follow Popper, scientists should never…

Climate Change and the Nature of Scientific Certainty, Part II

[Please read Part I of this post first] Part II: The Science of Climate Change From this point, it becomes too vague to refer to “climate change.” There are several knowledge claims at issue, and the availability of evidence, and the caliber of this evidence, differs across claims. For instance, there’s…

Privilege or Advantage?

As college freshmen arrive on campus, they will be taught about privilege. Depending on how elite the institution, this teaching may be more or less heavy handed. At the extreme–the most elite institutions, attended by the most socio-economically well-endowed students–the message may be loud: “You are the privileged. Recognize your…

Reflections on Social Class and College Admissions, Part V

The Allocation Problem Congratulations if you’ve made it to Part V (the beginning is here). The allocation problem is easily stated: in America today there are a relatively small number of well-paid career tracks that are also highly satisfying and personally rewarding.  I’ve named them as doctor, lawyer, professor, engineer,…

Reflections on Social Class and College Admissions, Part IV

Social Mobility, College Admissions, and that Biased SAT [please read this essay from the beginning, or at least, read Part III before this one] My examples of elite occupations have been engineer, professor, doctor, lawyer, MBA, scientist. Besides good pay, satisfying work, and social esteem, these professions all share one feature:…