On hyper-links
I’ve been re-reading my way through some of the books on my bookshelf, and I picked up On the Internet by Hubert L. Dreyfus the other day. I think it was a required reading for a class at some point but it has been an interesting re-read. One of the first topics Dreyfus takes on is the practice of hyper-linking on the Internet.
I remember Nicholas Carr took to critiquing this practice not too long ago, claiming that hyper-links in articles caused more distractions than they provided substantive or important content (something I’m trying to work on in my own writing). Dreyfus considers hyper-linking practice on web pages and blogs to be similarly disorienting and distracting.
Dreyfus laments on the disjointed nature of hyper-links and an abundance of information that is available on the Internet without any measure of relevance and importance to the reader. He posits that the way to create true meaning out of hyper-links online is to somehow embody them, by connecting them to embodied experience. He is of the opinion that because the Internet exists completely outside the body, it can never carry the same relevance, risk and importance as embodied knowledge.
I found these assertions to be particularly curious given the reason why hyper-linking was first utilized during the nascent stages of the Internet. Tim Berners-Lee, one of the proposed inventors of the Internet as we know it today, developed and popularized the hyper-linking system to mimic the way he noticed people made memories, which was through building relationships between new pieces of information and information already situated in the psyche.
So although the argument Dreyfus makes stands, I find it peculiar when weighed against the intentions of hyper-linking, as it was first created. I suppose hardly anything ever pans out as it was first intended, but there is certainly some merit to the intention of hyper-links and certainly some doubt as to why in practice they have become so disjointed and distracting.
Experimental design in the Social Sciences
Here's a pretty cool piece from the City Journal by Jim Manzi from Summer 2010 talking about causal claims in the social sciences. He has a concise history of experiment design and methodology from the natural and biological sciences that plays well into the kinds of things the social sciences should be worrying about. I have always been wary of modeling the social sciences exactly after the natural sciences because there are obviously differences between the two that require attention, but for now, I think the natural science model of inquiry is a good one to aspire to.
None the less, Manzi talks about things like randomization:
In 1884, the brilliant but erratic American polymath C. S. Peirce hit upon a solution when he randomly assigned participants to the test and control groups. Random assignment permits a medical experimentalist to conclude reliably that differences in outcome are caused by differences in treatment. That’s because even causal differences among individuals of which the experimentalist is unaware—say, that genetic predisposition—should be roughly equally distributed between the test and control groups, and therefore not bias the result.
Generalizability, or external validity:
Even in classical therapeutic experiments, the assumption of uniform biological response is often a tolerable approximation that permits researchers to assert, say, that the polio vaccine that worked for a test population will also work for human beings beyond the test population. But we cannot safely assume that a literacy program that works in one school will work in all schools. Just as high causal densities in biology created the need for randomization, even higher causal densities in the social sciences create the need for even greater rigor when we try to generalize the results of an experiment.
At the end he has three take-aways that aren't exhaustive but worth keeping in mind:
First, few programs can be shown to work in properly randomized and replicated trials. Despite complex and impressive-sounding empirical arguments by advocates and analysts, we should be very skeptical of claims for the effectiveness of new, counterintuitive programs and policies, and we should be reluctant to trump the trial-and-error process of social evolution in matters of economics or social policy.
Second, within this universe of programs that are far more likely to fail than succeed, programs that try to change people are even more likely to fail than those that try to change incentives. A litany of program ideas designed to push welfare recipients into the workforce failed when tested in those randomized experiments of the welfare-reform era; only adding mandatory work requirements succeeded in moving people from welfare to work in a humane fashion. And mandatory work-requirement programs that emphasize just getting a job are far more effective than those that emphasize skills-building. Similarly, the list of failed attempts to change people to make them less likely to commit crimes is almost endless—prisoner counseling, transitional aid to prisoners, intensive probation, juvenile boot camps—but the only program concept that tentatively demonstrated reductions in crime rates in replicated RFTs was nuisance abatement, which changes the environment in which criminals operate. (This isn’t to say that direct behavior-improvement programs can never work; one well-known program that sends nurses to visit new or expectant mothers seems to have succeeded in improving various social outcomes in replicated independent RFTs.)
And third, there is no magic. Those rare programs that do work usually lead to improvements that are quite modest, compared with the size of the problems they are meant to address or the dreams of advocates.
Also, in terms of randomized field trials, I would be remiss to not mention Banerjee and Duflo's Poor Economics, one of the best popular titles I've read coming out of economics and development literature. This Foreign Policy article is a great introduction if you don't have time to read the book.
August 4, 2010 the3six5
This post is cross-posted from The 3six5 posterous. Take a look around the blog, there are some really great entries and its based in Chicago, which is reason enough to love anything.Happy birthday, President Obama.
When I woke up this morning, birthdays weren’t on my mind. On my mind was the wonderful dinner I had with an old friend last night that left a sweet taste of memories from college and excitement for the future. On my mind was the fact that these are the last few weeks of my summer internship in Washington D.C. before I head back to Chicago for graduate school.
But thinking about birthdays, I can say, I’ve had some good ones in my life.
2010: Spent with new friends in Beirut, Lebanon while traveling in the Middle East as a student. Saw the sun rise over the Mediterranean and ate some of the best kanaffeh imaginable.
2009: I got a speeding ticket while driving to Columbia, Missouri to perform with my best friends as part of a college a cappella group.
2008: a huge surprise party organized by my mom in my house, featuring my closest friends from college and high school.
2000: I had chickenpox and was cooped up in the house so my Dad snuck me out while my mom set up a cake and some gifts (including more Calamine lotion for the itching).
1997: a pizza party at Nirulas in New Delhi. (For those unfamiliar with late-1990’s New Delhi, India, this place was the hot spot in town.) I felt very special as a nine-year-old, with the entire top floor for my friends and family.
1989: I can’t say I remember this birthday, as it was my first, but I have been told some great stories about my mom cooking for 200 people who partied on a rooftop and how my dad provided liquor for everyone even though we lived in a dry-state in India.
Birthdays are tricky, but I have learned that they’re akin to a lot of lived experience. You have to manage expectations and also be able to draw meaning in ways that work for you. Tracing back my birthday means more to me than just the March 14th’s throughout the years. They’re a testament to the person I was then, to the important people in my life which all has ultimately helped me become who I am today.
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About the author: Samarth Bhaskar is a student at the University of Chicago, a blogger, a tweeter, a speaker of languages and currently an intern in DC.
My 11 favorite ESPN 30 for 30s
I recently finished watching all 30 ESPN 30 for 30s and enjoyed them a lot more than I expected. The biggest thing I took away from them is that sports are quite closely tied to a lot of social phenomenon. The films, on their own, are also remarkable because each is made by a different film-maker, artist or athlete. Below is a list of my 11 favorite 30 for 30s with a short description or editorial comment on each. They aren't in ascending or descending order, just 11 favorites from the 30. A nod of the proverbial hat goes to my friend Darryl for recommending most of these as well.
1. Two Escobars
Pablo Escobar, arguably the world's most famous drug lord, had an unmatched passion for Columbian soccer and the soccer world had a conflicted relationship with him. The title can be taken to mean the two Escobars as in Andres Escobar, the star of the Columbian national team, or the two sides of Pablo Escobar: philanthropist and drug/war lord.
2. Once Brothers
Vlade Divac and Dražen Petrović had remarkable rises to fame in the NBA after playing together as teenagers in Yugoslavia. Political and ethnic tensions in their home country found their way into their once strong friendship. Petrovic died an untimely death in a car-accident and Divac retraces the roots of their friendship in this documentary.
3. Pony Excess
Many have complained about college athletics taking attention away from academics or being tainted with poor ethics through bribery or monetary incentives for college athletes. This documentary takes Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas as a case study to explore college football's excesses.
4. No Crossover: The Trial of Allen Iverson
A racially charged story about Allen Iverson's involvement in a 1993 bowling alley brawl. Made by a resident of Hampton, Virginia where Iverson, Michael Vick and Lawrence Taylor are from.
5. Winning Time: Reggie Miller vs. The New York Knicks
This was probably the most entertaining documentary of them all. Reggie Miller's antics on the court, Spike Lee's antics on the sideline and the drama that unfolded over multiple playoff series all make for a great story.
6. Straight Outta L.A.
The co-evolution of the L.A. raiders and gangster rap in L.A. The focus on the Raider logo and merchandise was especially interesting. Design and PR folks could probably draw one example after another out of this documentary.
7. Without Bias
I didn't know much about Len Bias before watching this documentary. His career as a high school phenomenon, college star and first-round draft into the NBA all came to an end at his death following his cocaine use. The scenes featuring his mother and father were especially powerful.
8. The U
Usually, unbridled showboating and bragging are a turn off. I've always associated Miami with this kind of behavior. This documentary didn't change my judgment about that, but it did contextualize their success in some really interesting ways, not the least of which was the racial makeup of South Florida in the 70s, 80s and 90s.
9. The House of Steinbrenner
New Yorkers like to win. The Yankees win, a lot. This documentary is about winning, but it also humanizes the organization and especially George Steinbrenner. It also features the most crying out of any of the documentaries.
10. Run Ricky Run
On some level, this was the most interesting documentary for me. This profile of Ricky Williams, one of the NFLs most talented and promising running backs, shows a man battling with himself in so many ways. At one point, one of Williams' family friends says something that really hit home for me and made sense of all of Williams' troubles -
Ricky's identity formation was flawed, it became tightly linked to what he was supposed to be, to his achievements. He needed it to be rooted in sweet acceptance, so he could love himself. Ricky longed for that.
11. One Night in Vegas
This documentary is filmed as a graphic novel. It explores the relationship that Mike Tyson and Tupac Shakur had around the time of Tupac's death (the night of a Tyson fight in Vegas). It also features some really great spoken word poetry that hits home the comparisons between Tyson at his prime as a boxer and Tupac at his prime as a rapper.
It would be pretty awesome to give this treatment to some other topics. For me, political science, social science, economics, international relations, the presidency, fiscal policy and things of that sort come to mind. But really, any worthwhile topic would be interesting to ask 30 people to make hour-long documentaries about. Its not exhaustive by any means, but it would be fun.
Why I loved Inception (spoilers within)
“I think when Nolan left the labyrinth, he threw away the map.” – Roger Ebert on Inception
Christopher Nolan’s latest Inception was released on Friday, July 16. I have been a fan of his work for a while and had been looking forward to this film as the summer hit. I hope by the time I finish this post, I will make it abundantly clear that this film did not disappoint in living up to my high expectations.
There were many things that impressed me about this film but I have chosen to mention just a few below.
Exploration of dreams and the subconscious: Christopher Nolan’s commitment to exploring this aspect of people’s subjective experience was immensely impressive. It is rumored that Nolan spent 10 years writing this script, which means he spent at least a good portion of that time analyzing his own dreaming experience. The way he captured such a surreal entity but grounded it in realism was noteworthy in itself. Nolan’s previous works, including Batman Begins and The Dark Knight are also impressive for their ability to explore out-of-this-world concepts while still remaining grounded in realism.
Dana Stevens of Slate Magazine did not feel the same way, saying that “though Nolan is a prodigious architect of detailed dream worlds, he's too controlled and controlling a filmmaker to give himself over fully to the chaotic logic of dreams.” I would disagree with this estimation of Nolan’s interpretation on dreaming because this is what separates him from Kubric. If I wanted a disjointed, fantasy like interpretation of dreaming, I’d go re-watch Eyes Wide Shut. (Nolan, while separating himself from Kubric, still paid homage to the director, which is admirable in itself)
People’s subjective construction of reality: although this is a concept that may seem absolutely basic and remedial to some, I think it bears pointing out. Nolan was adamant in creating a framework that emphasized the difference in the conscious and subconscious minds of different individuals. In the film, one of the major plot themes is the fact that Cobb’s (Leonardo DiCaprio) reality is heavily affected by his memories and troubled past with his wife (that Ariadne, whose namesake is the Greek goddess who helped Theseus escape from the Minotaur's labyrinth, helps him work through). This concept can be readily applied to our realities as individuals who inhabit an aggregated world. I think its vital to never forget that people’s realities are constructed based on their own subjective experiences, and that even a communal reality is constructed socially.
Totem concept: to separate the dream-state from consciousness, Nolan developed the concept of a Totem, an object that only the dreamer is familiar with and that can be used to verify the end of a dream and the beginning of reality. I thought this was a clever device used by Nolan that has some grounding in recent neuro-scientific research. Known within psychology as embodied cognition, this concept basically claims that our sensual experience of touching and feeling has an effect on our judgment and decision making processes.
The last shot of the movie involves the totem concept, and leaves the viewer questioning whether Cobb was still dreaming or had finally concurred his subconscious and made it back home in reality. Some have said that Cobb was still dreaming because the top did not fall, while some have cursed Nolan for not answering the question more directly. In my opinion, I think Cobb had successfully made it to reality and the reason Nolan left the question unanswered was to make the point that our realities and dreams are not as bifurcated as we would imagine.
All in all, after 2 viewings, I am still finding myself thinking about some of the concepts in the film. I would not go as far as to say it is Nolan’s best work, but I certainly think it lived up to and surpassed the expectations I had for it. I’m happy to be experiencing Nolan’s rise to one of the best film-makers of our time first hand.
On Transitions
I was listening to this week’s episode of This American Life, on the topic of Road-trips (a topic after my own heart), and it brought me to some thoughts that I’ve been having for a while, but could not exactly verbalize until hearing what some of the contributors to this week’s show had to say. All of the whirlwind changes I’ve been having the last few months really put me front and center into processes of transition that paralleled some of the most important transitions I have ever made in my life.
Transitioning to DC has been relatively successful for me so far. I started working for a new company, have a new place to live and a whole new city and surroundings to explore. I am very impressed with DC thus far. It has a sense of pride all its own and a character that I cannot yet describe but can certainly identify.
I think transitions are interesting because they include a sense of reflecting on the past and hopefulness for the future. Bringing in the connection to This American Life, one of the contributors this week mentioned that he felt like taking road-trips presented an opportunity for change and growth and epiphanies, etc. And Ira Glass responded by capturing in a few words what road-trips, and in a larger context transitions, encompass -
“ . . . [w]hat a road trip stands for is hope, hope, that somewhere, anywhere is better than here. Somewhere on the road I’ll turn into the person I want to be, I could to be, the person I am.”
I was on a run while listening to this, and I found myself boosted with a sense of newfound energy because what he had just said captured exactly what I have been feeling recently. I think this transition to DC, to a new company and to a new chapter in my life is another chance for me to develop the person I will be in the future. That may sound really obvious, but I find it to be an important thing to take into consideration at the beginning of a new endeavor, and to remind myself of throughout the endeavor.
I have also been using the Metro system a lot, to commute to work, to make my way around the city and because I love public transportation on its own merit. While on the metro I have been consuming a lot of great media, so I think I’d like to share some of the highlights in case any readers are interested. Here are a few top picks from this last week –
This American Life – Road Trips
Radiolab – Famous Tumors and Deception
Starley Kine’s Moth Podcast appearance
The Tallest Man on Earth’s The Wild Hunt
I'll probably start making a habit of putting up some highlights of what I've been listening to throughout this summer. A couple of hours a day on the Metro can really make great time for listening, absorbing and thinking.
To New Beginnings
After writing my last post about looking forward to many different new adventures coming up shortly for me, I suppose it would only be appropriate to start the newest of these adventures off with a post.
On Monday I will be starting my summer internship with Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research in Washington D.C. Although I have yet to be introduced to my co-workers and the office, I am really looking forward to working in a dynamic and progressive office during midterm season. I foresee my time there going by very fast, but I also hope to get some valuable insights into an industry that I have been training myself for, for quite some time now.
I will be living with a family friend in Bethesda, MD and commuting into metro DC for work every day. Besides the work itself, which will obviously be occupying most of my time, I am excited to spend evenings and weekends exploring the city of Washington DC and the surrounding areas. I also hope to do a little traveling around the East Coast, time and money permitting.
Although I am clearly excited to be spending the summer in DC with a great new professional opportunity, there is a part of me that will miss home more than I realized I would. Perhaps because I was more than ready to leave for Dubai in January, perhaps because this new adventures comes at the heels of another incredible one or perhaps because I found new reasons to like Bloomington, whatever the reason, there is a part of me that will miss Bloomington more this time around. In all honesty, I never thought I would be saying that. But as I have learned throughout this year – never say never. At the end of the day, this makes me realize once again, that beginnings do not require new locations, new adventures, leaving home or any of these things, they can happen at any time if you are willing to let them.
Some thoughts on endings
I recently finished my semester in Dubai, and returned home to Bloomington-Normal, Illinois. I have had some time to reflect on my semester abroad, all of my wonderful experiences, finishing my undergraduate career and endings, in general.
During the last week or so of my time in Dubai, a lot of my friends (in Dubai and here at home) asked me in one form or another if I was sad about ending my time abroad and going back home. My gut instinct, and how I truly feel, was that I really was not sad at all, but I was asked so many times that I eventually had to come up with reasons why I wasn’t sad. I ultimately figured out that it was because I have a lot of really exciting things coming up in my future, not the least of which is the graduate program I will be entering into this fall at the University of Chicago. That helped bring some excitement to the prospect of ending an otherwise amazing experience.
In addition to what is to come, I also couldn’t get myself to be sad about my time in Dubai ending because I had such an amazing experience. I know common logic would say that if I enjoyed everything so much, shouldn’t I be sad that there is no possibility of more such amazing things happening, on account of my time there ending. Although that is certainly true, I am more interested in reflecting positively on time well-spent than ruminating on what could have been.
My time in Dubai is not the only important “ending” that has been on my mind as of late. I will also be graduating from the University of Illinois in a couple of weeks. Traditionally, the graduation ceremonies are called commencement ceremonies, and that is how I prefer to think of them. Starting a graduate program after graduation, moving to a new city and looking forward to new adventures is really the proper way to cap up my time at U of I. I think it is the best way for me to pay homage to all the people and organizations that have had a profound impact on my time spent as an undergraduate there. All the enriching experiences I have had as an undergraduate have shaped what is to come for me in the future and my future is the best way for me to make the most of my past.
I stumbled upon a bag of cards while cleaning my room yesterday. It happened to be full of cards I received when I graduated high school in 2006. Most of them reminded me how close I was with my friends in high school; I was truly blessed in that sense. And then I happened to open a card from a friend who passed away last winter in a car crash and it suddenly sobered all of these elated emotions I’ve been feeling. Seeing his message, reading his hand-writing and seeing his name really put all of these experiences into perspective. I truly believe that the impermanence of life is what makes it so valuable. As in the Epic of Gilgamesh, when the Goddess Siduri tells the protagonist this is it, we only get one life (after he has harrowed many adventures to reach heaven and ask about the true meaning of life). She says "love the child who holds you by the hand, and give your wife pleasure in your embrace," I hope to embrace the past that I have been given and work for the future that I am not guaranteed.