Thought this tied in, if obliquely, with a fascinating discussion that Euan Semple’s kicked off.

In November, Abbas Raza over at 3quarksdaily wrote a great piece called “Re-examining Religion”. Very briefly, the idea that is that

religious belief [is not] a corruption of rationality, but rather as an over-extension of some of the very mental mechanisms that underlie and make rationality possible. In other words, rather than religion having emerged to serve a social or other purpose, in this view it is seen as an evolutionary accident”

In other words, being religious is, on a mental level, no different from being color-blind (?).

read on »

“Men, it has been well said, think in herds; it will be seen that they go mad in herds, while they only recover their senses slowly, and one by one.”

Extraordinary Popular Delusions And The Madness Of Crowds — Chapter 1

A couple of curiosities have come up recently concerning national identity and how it distorts (rightly or wrongly) one’s view of things.

First was a map of national stereotypes based on Google searches for e.g. “what the English are known for“. [via Mike]

Not sure what “aristocratic kitchens” are - kitchens that the owners never enter? - and I really didn’t know the Swedes still carve Viking longboats at the weekend. Anyway, thought it was interesting as an emergent view of national stereotypes, and how easy it is to recognize rather than agree with them.

Second (and loosely connected) was a letter to the Times published last Friday title “Truth Exchange”. Commenting on an initiative between Agincourt and an English school, one Dr Kerry Bluglass of Warwick wrote

Not long ago, a charming French acquaintance of mine asked me, in all seriousness, about the British habit of naming landmarks after French victories.

“Which ones?”, I inquired.

“Trafalgar Square and Waterloo Station,” he replied. I was completely unable to convince him of the true outcome of these battles, and I later discovered that this view is not unusual in France.”

Popular history, it would seem, might not written by the victors (be they French or British). It could be written by the group you’re in. And that’s a little terrifying.

January 13th 2006 | Comments(1) | Asides on groups, History, maps, networks, prejudice, stereotypes truth

Apparently the new moon on New Year’s Eve meant that resolutions would hold fast.

Pathetically, I have already broken one.

That’s one in the eye for astrology, eh? Better luck with yours if you have them.

January 04th 2006 | Comments(2) | Life on will of iron