Heads-up for 11 December 2010

Shrink Rap Radio
Creativity and The Brain with Shelly Carson
Harvard psychologist Shelley Carson PhD, is a researcher and instructor of creativity, psychopathology and resilience. She is the author of Your Creative Brain: Seven Steps to Maximize Imagination, Productivity and Innovation in Your Life (Jossey-Bass/Wiley). Based on scientific findings from studies involving brain imaging, brain injury cases, neuropsychological testing and interviews with hundreds of highly creative individuals, Dr. Carson has created a model of seven different brain states related to creative thought, which she calls the CREATES brainsets model. In her book she offers a route to greater creative productivity through a series of engaging exercises and problem sets (based on cognitive behavioral therapy methods) that enable us to strengthen our brainsets and switch among them with ease.
(review, feed)

The Economist
The return of the big three
Our correspondents discuss how Ford, Chrysler and GM are raising their sights, upgrading their models and moving into emerging markets
(review, feed)



Big Ideas
William R. Newman on Why Did Isaac Newton Believe in Alchemy
Indiana University professor of History and Philosophy of Science, William R. Newman presents his lecture, entitled Why Did Isaac Newton Believe in Alchemy? Through historical documents and experiments that demonstrate alchemical processes, this lecture explains why one of the most insightful scientists in history was convinced that alchemical transformations were scientifically plausible. It was delivered at the Perimeter Institute in Waterloo, Ontario, on October 6th, 2010.
(review, feed)

New Books In History
David Shearer, “Policing Stalin’s Socialism: Repression and Social Order in the Soviet Union, 1924-1953″
The question as to why the leaders of the Soviet Union murdered hundreds of thousands of Soviet citizens during the Great Purges is one of the most important of modern history, primarily because it shapes what we are likely to think about communism.
(review, feed)

Veertien Achttien
Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg en het koken van de soep (zondag 10 december 1916)
De morele standaard van rijkskanselier Von Bethmann Hollweg bezwijkt keer op keer onder nationalistische krachten. 'Ik ben mij bewust van mijn eigen beperkingen', zal hij zelf de slotsom opmaken.
(review, feed)