Know your mind?

Our reactions to the crimes committed by others is influenced by our (non) understanding of the brain. While we might have some levels of leniency built in for those who are certifiably ill, we are nowhere close to resolving the conflict in the case of those who are (probably) suffering from equally complex mental instability, but only at a point in time.

The Bier Library

Unlike many other microbreweries we have been to in the recent past, the beer was actually good. The food too, except for a couple of misses. As long as you aren’t too finicky about them sticking to the name and offering a library ambiance, and have strong eardrums, you should be fine. When in Koramangala, definitely worth dropping in.

Enlightenment Now

The book makes a case for reason, science, humanism and progress. You might wonder if it really needs to be made, but 450 pages have been devoted to address the rebuttal for the author’s earlier work on a similar subject! While that is done eloquently, my skepticism arises from the definition of progress and how it manifests in the specific human condition. We are better off when we measure ourselves based on past societal indices, but I am not sure the indices of the future will tell the same story.

Enough / Efficiency

We’ve gone a long way since Keynes predicted in the 1930s that we will have a 15 hour work week in a few decades. When I started thinking about why we (the majority) never really got around to that, I realised that many parts of our lives are increasingly being optimised for efficiency, and that too for its own sake. When do we say ‘enough’?