Author Archives: David Hume

Conservative Unitarian Presidents?

Posted on December 15, 2008 by David Hume

I just realized something strange the other day. Here are the American presidents who were affiliated officially as Unitarians: John Adams John Quincy Adams Millard Fillmore William Howard Taft   The first Adams, Fillmore and Taft were undeniably conservatives in … Continue reading →

Posted in culture, politics | Tagged , , | 13 Comments

Acceptance of Evolution & belief in God

Posted on December 13, 2008 by David Hume

The question as to the relationship on a socio-cultural scale about the relationship of acceptance of evolution and belief in God is often mooted.  In The Blind Watchmaker Richard Dawkins famously contended that the theory of Darwinian evolution allowed one … Continue reading →

Posted in culture, science | Tagged , , , , , | 50 Comments

Mind bending assumptions

Posted on December 13, 2008 by David Hume

A minor follow up, just so that readers of this weblog know where I’m “coming from.” I accept the contentions that:  Most cognition is implicit. That is, we do not have access to it to so that it is amenable … Continue reading →

Posted in culture, science | Tagged , , , | 29 Comments

The arational conservative

Posted on December 13, 2008 by David Hume

Yale Brought Me to Conservatism: I can only describe the moment as an epiphany, with all that that implies. “An age of prudence” was my own age of rationalism. There was no reason to exist. But I did: not because … Continue reading →

Posted in culture, history | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

2008 Presidential election, votes by income & education

Posted on December 12, 2008 by David Hume

How the Rich Are Different From You and Me: Places that went for Obama are richer and smarter than places that went for McCain. The subhead is critical here: And it isn’t just about politics. The division is also between … Continue reading →

Posted in culture, data, politics | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

Knowledge & the Second Bank of the United States

Posted on December 12, 2008 by David Hume

Reading about the controversy surrounding the Second Bank of the United States, I get the sense that we know more about how economics operates today than we did 180 years ago. But how much more? Enough to matter? I assume … Continue reading →

Posted in culture, economics, history | Tagged , , , | 15 Comments

Catholics lead interesting lives?

Posted on December 12, 2008 by David Hume

Ross Douthat responds to a post by Bradlaugh on various beliefs in the supernatural: But even extraordinary happenings aren’t, well, all that extraordinary. Religious belief exists and persists in part because religious experiences exist and persist – even if they’re … Continue reading →

Posted in data | Tagged , , | 20 Comments

The many faces of human nature

Posted on December 11, 2008 by David Hume

Ivan Kenneally and Larry Arnhart continue their dialogue over Darwinian Conservatism. Ivan says: …In the spirit of a “comprehensive science” as described by Leo Strauss, Arnhart recommends a more monistic approach that captures not only our natural inclinations but those … Continue reading →

Posted in science | Tagged , , , , , | 14 Comments

Your genes on cuisine

Posted on December 11, 2008 by David Hume

A year ago there was a paper on the effect of diet on enzyme production, Diet and the evolution of human amylase gene copy number variation. That human evolution skeptic, P. Z. Myers, has just noticed the paper, and says: This … Continue reading →

Posted in culture, science | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

The tasty drug

Posted on December 11, 2008 by David Hume

Sugar Can Be Addictive: Animal Studies Show Sugar Dependence: A Princeton University scientist will present new evidence today demonstrating that sugar can be an addictive substance, wielding its power over the brains of lab animals in a manner similar to … Continue reading →

Posted in culture, science | Tagged | 5 Comments