Author Archives: Chris

How much would an exercise pill be worth?

I recently went to a talk at Stanford by Kenneth Walsh of the Boston University School of Medicine, in which he spoke about his research on the molecular basis of obesity-linked cardiovascular disease. He did some fascinating experiments in which … Continue reading

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The myth of intrinsic and extrinsic rewards

I have been doing a lot of reading recently about what motivates us to do what we do, and I am amazed that there are so many different theories still in operation out there and that a lot of it … Continue reading

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The “Aha!” moment, memory, intelligence and humor

Interesting news from the Weizmann Institute about how “aha” moments, when we suddenly see how something makes sense, stick in the memory better than things we study to remember. That flash of insight is worth more than an hour of … Continue reading

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Traditional Publishers are not dead

This is a follow-up to my previous post, in which I made the argument that traditional publishing is dead, due to the lack of value that they add to the process and the higher cost of printing when most people … Continue reading

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Whither Bookstores?

Are bookstores dying? This was a subject that really started taking off last year (although has been in discussion for far longer), and the question only gets more fraught now. Let me be clear–I love bookstores. I practically grew up … Continue reading

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The New York Times pay scheme: it might actually work

The New York Times has come out with one more scheme to get readers to pay for content, an effort which is only the latest in a long line of failed schemes. But this one might actually work because it … Continue reading

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Traditional Publishing is Dead

Well, maybe not dead now, but more like Dead Man Walking dead. I say this because the sales of e-readers like the Kindle are taking off in an explosive, exponential fashion. Very shortly, faster than almost anyone is realizing now, … Continue reading

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Fountain of Youth

I just went to a talk by Amy Wagers, who is a researcher at Harvard now but used to be at Stanford. She talked about work that she did with Stanford’s Tom Rando, putting young and old mice together so … Continue reading

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In the Bloginning …

Very late to the game, I am starting a blog. Although I have often felt that I don’t have the time to write in a blog, in addition to all the other writing I do, I have started to see … Continue reading

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