Issues

Volume 3, Issue 4

February 14, 2018

Critical Essays

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A View from the Bridge

Natalie Paquette

[short_description] Einstein expressed general relativity using tools created by Riemann. Mathematicians discovered group theory long before physicists. Natalie Paquette explores correlations between physics and math.

Review Essays

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Physics

Time Travelers

Alasdair Richmond

[short_description] Within Kurt Gödel’s rotating universes, it is possible to revisit the past. Alasdair Richmond examines the unusual implications of Gödel’s solution of the Einstein field equations.

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Biology

The Origins of Behavior

Ruichen Sun

[short_description] It is very natural, Ruichen Sun observes, to suppose that animal behavior is under some form of algorithmic control. Simple rules often offer a compelling account of complex behavior.

Book Reviews

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Economics

Lo and Behold

Charles Goodhart

[short_description] Is macro-economics in need of a blood transfusion from evolutionary theories in biology? Charles Goodhart reviews Andrew Lo’s Adaptive Markets: Financial Evolution at the Speed of Thought.

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Zoology

The Smart Set

Ludwig Huber

[short_description] Ludwig Huber, a cognitive biologist and professor at the Messerli Research Institute in Vienna, reviews Are We Smart Enough to Know How Smart Animals Are? by Frans de Waal.

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Political Science

Godzooks

David Berlinski

[short_description] David Berlinski reviews Yuval Noah Harari’s Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow. To the question of whether human beings are shortly to become like gods, Berlinski answers not any time soon.

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Biology

Behavior

David Lahti

[short_description] David Lahti reviews a recent book on how and to what extent genes determine behavior by philosopher of science Kenneth Schaffner: Behaving–What’s Genetic, What’s Not, and Why Should We Care?

Biographies

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Geology

An Indian Geophysicist Reflects

Kusala Rajendran

[short_description] Kusala Rajendran, a distinguished geophysicist and professor at the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore, reflects on the influences and forces that shaped her career and professional development.

Letters to the Editors

######### Card Letter *XXX* ######### On Nuclear Deterrence and Risk

Martin Hellman

[short_description] If mutually assured destruction (MAD) requires madmen to fail, Jean-Pierre Dupuy explains, it also requires madmen to succeed. When it comes to nuclear strategy, madmen are needed all around.

######### Card Letter *XXX* ######### The Logic of MAD

Ward Wilson

[short_description] Acting crazy can incite crazy actions in return. As a nuclear strategy, the madman theory fails because acting like a madman could lead to your adversary losing his head.

######### Card Letter *XXX* ######### Pushing Buttons

Thierry Simonelli

[short_description] There is a profound difference between Richard Nixon’s strategic madness and Donald Trump’s factual madness. To be mad is to be capable of doing anything to stop, or in this case start, a war.

######### Card Letter *XXX* ######### The Rhythm of Handwriting

Maria Teresa Guasti & Natale Stucchi & Elena Pagliarini

[short_description] The handwriting of Italian children follows two rhythmic principles: isochrony and homothety. Unlike oral rhythm, which varies across languages, the rhythm of handwriting remains consistent.

######### Card Letter *XXX* ######### On Japanese Handwriting

Goro Murahata

[short_description] Any attempt to determine whether handwriting is governed by innate constraints must include an examination of systems outside of alphabetic writing, such as the Japanese writing system.

ISSN #2576–4403