I called him Chippy. I’m sure he had a family…don’t all rodents? Do they celebrate Father’s Day? Do they hold tearful memorials for their crushed brethren while Alvin sings Amazing Grace a cappella? Is there a rodentia heaven? These are just some of the existential questions I asked myself following the tragic incident described below. [...]
Monthly Archives: June 2009
Who ate my muffin?
How long would a platter of chocolate chip muffins last in your office fridge? Well, according to research by Dan Ariely, not long. Ariely’s research inspired my May 26 column. After he published his book, Predictably Irrational, much of the discussion surrounded some of the more sensational white collar crimes like the Enron fiasco or [...]
The power of beliefs
A few months ago I was listening to a radio program where an anthropologist was interviewed about a West African village where children were killed on a regular basis. These kids were believed to be inhabited by evil spirits. One had been born with a withered arm. Another was a child whose mother died during [...]
