Commonplace of a Magpie: April 2014

What Happens Before? A Field Experiment Exploring How Pay and Representation Differentially Shape Bias on the Pathway into Organizations by Katherine L. Milkman, Modupe Akinola, and Dolly Chugh

Taking Religion Seriously by Charles Murray

Taking Religion Seriously by Charles Murray

The Racism and Sexism of College Faculty by Robert VerBruggen

The Racism and Sexism of College Faculty by Robert VerBruggen

An Apple a Day, and Other Myths by George Johnson

An Apple a Day, and Other Myths by George Johnson

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Recidivism Of Prisoners Released In 30 States In 2005: Patterns From 2005 To 2010 by Alexia D. Cooper, Matthew R. Durose, and Howard N. Snyder

Recidivism Of Prisoners Released In 30 States In 2005: Patterns From 2005 To 2010 by Alexia D. Cooper, Matthew R. Durose, and Howard N. Snyder

‘College and career ready’ sounds great. But what about the kids who are neither? by Michael J. Petrilli

‘College and career ready’ sounds great. But what about the kids who are neither? by Michael J. Petrilli

The Top 12 Government Programs Ever by Peter H. Schuck

The Top 12 Government Programs Ever by Peter H. Schuck

My Mother and Me: Why Tiger Mothers Motivate Asian Americans But Not European Americans by Alyssa S. Fu and Hazel Rose Markus

My Mother and Me: Why Tiger Mothers Motivate Asian Americans But Not European Americans by Alyssa S. Fu and Hazel Rose Markus

What Bad Students Know that Good Economists Don't by Bryan Caplan

What Bad Students Know that Good Economists Don't by Bryan Caplan

Culture Is Not About Esthetics by Gwern

Culture Is Not About Esthetics by Gwern

Children of divorce in a Scandinavian welfare state: are they less affected than US children? by K. Breivik and D. Olweus

Children of divorce in a Scandinavian welfare state: are they less affected than US children? by K. Breivik and D. Olweus

Piketty's Tax Hikes Won't Help the Middle Class by Megan McArdle

Piketty's Tax Hikes Won't Help the Middle Class by Megan McArdle

50 Years Into the War on Poverty, Hardship Hits Back by Trip Gabriel

50 Years Into the War on Poverty, Hardship Hits Back by Trip Gabriel

Korea Confronts Tendency to Overlook Safety as Toll in Ferry Sinking Grows by Choe Sang-Hun

Korea Confronts Tendency to Overlook Safety as Toll in Ferry Sinking Grows by Choe Sang-Hun

Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Four Great Myths of the McCarthy Era by Jesse Walker

Four Great Myths of the McCarthy Era by Jesse Walker

Can the Gender Gap Be Solved? by Kay Homowitz

Can the Gender Gap Be Solved? by Kay Homowitz

Confirmation Bias and Its Limits by Yuval Levin

Confirmation Bias and Its Limits by Yuval Levin

The Case for Voluntary Private Cooperation by Michael Munger

The Case for Voluntary Private Cooperation by Michael Munger

Personality Research Says Change in Major Traits Occurs Naturally by Elizabeth Bernstein

Personality Research Says Change in Major Traits Occurs Naturally by Elizabeth Bernstein

The Failure of Desegregation by Jelani Cobb

The Failure of Desegregation by Jelani Cobb

Monday, April 21, 2014

Hollywood Actors: Six-Packs That Speak Lines by Megan McArdle

Hollywood Actors: Six-Packs That Speak Lines by Megan McArdle

Ignoring an Inequality Culprit: Single-Parent Families by Robert Maranto and Michael Crouch

Ignoring an Inequality Culprit: Single-Parent Families by Robert Maranto and Michael Crouch

Why White Privilege Is Not The Problem by David Marcus

Why White Privilege Is Not The Problem by David Marcus

Why Are Feminists So Insecure? 6 Reflections On The Confidence Gap by Mollie Hemingway

Why Are Feminists So Insecure? 6 Reflections On The Confidence Gap by Mollie Hemingway

Treat wage theft as a criminal offense by Catherine Rampell

Treat wage theft as a criminal offense by Catherine Rampell

Is the U.S. losing the tech race? by Michael S. Teitelbaum

Is the U.S. losing the tech race? by Michael S. Teitelbaum

Explaining the Rain: The Rise and Decline of Nations after 25 Years by Jac C. Heckelman

Explaining the Rain: The Rise and Decline of Nations after 25 Years by Jac C. Heckelman

Economics Majors and Earnings: Further Exploration by Jonah Sinick

Economics Majors and Earnings: Further Exploration by Jonah Sinick

From Rags to Riches to Rags by Mark R. Rank

From Rags to Riches to Rags by Mark R. Rank

10 Rules for Students and Teachers Popularized by John Cage by Jonathan Crow

10 Rules for Students and Teachers Popularized by John Cage by Jonathan Crow

British Pathe video collection

British Pathe video collection

We're Ready For Our Robot Poet Overlords by Bianca Bosker

We're Ready For Our Robot Poet Overlords by Bianca Bosker

The Most Important Book Ever Is All Wrong by Clive Crook

The Most Important Book Ever Is All Wrong by Clive Crook

Saturday, April 19, 2014

It’s Not Actually a Miracle by David J. Hand

It’s Not Actually a Miracle by David J. Hand

Lost in Literary History: A Tale of Courage in the South by Dwight Garner

Lost in Literary History: A Tale of Courage in the South by Dwight Garner

Ideological Segregation Online and Offline by Matthew Gentzkow and Jesse M. Shapiro

Ideological Segregation Online and Offline by Matthew Gentzkow and Jesse M. Shapiro

Why isn’t New Zealand richer and more productive? by Tyler Cowen

Why isn’t New Zealand richer and more productive? by Tyler Cowen

Written in Black & White from Nextions

Written in Black & White from Nextions

Garbage In, Garbage Out: Or, How to Lie with Bad Data by Charles Wheelan

Garbage In, Garbage Out: Or, How to Lie with Bad Data by Charles Wheelan

How digital music services may be fuelling a ‘superstar artist economy’ by Stuart Dredge

How digital music services may be fuelling a ‘superstar artist economy’ by Stuart Dredge

University of California at Berkeley graduation speech, 2007 by Thomas J. Sargent

University of California at Berkeley graduation speech, 2007 by Thomas J. Sargent

Easter: Opening Day for Reclaiming the Radical Message of the Gospel by Wayne Meisel

Easter: Opening Day for Reclaiming the Radical Message of the Gospel by Wayne Meisel

Thursday, April 17, 2014

The slow death of free speech by Mark Steyn

The slow death of free speech by Mark Steyn

Babies prefer fairness – but only if it benefits them – in choosing a playmate by Molly McElroy

Babies prefer fairness – but only if it benefits them – in choosing a playmate by Molly McElroy

Smack Madness by David J. Krajicek

Smack Madness by David J. Krajicek

Can Limiting Divorce Make Marriage Stronger? by Megan McArdle

Can Limiting Divorce Make Marriage Stronger? by Megan McArdle

Conservatives in the Mist, Yet Again by Ed Driscoll

Conservatives in the Mist, Yet Again by Ed Driscoll

The US is an oligarchy, study concludes by Zachary Davies Boren

The US is an oligarchy, study concludes by Zachary Davies Boren

Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Yes, IQ Really Matters by David Z. Hambrick and Christopher Chabris

Yes, IQ Really Matters by David Z. Hambrick and Christopher Chabris

Inflated Research Claims Can Harm Children by Marilyn Price-Mitchell

Inflated Research Claims Can Harm Children by Marilyn Price-Mitchell

Parental Involvement Is Overrated by Keith Robinson and Angel L. Harris

Parental Involvement Is Overrated by Keith Robinson and Angel L. Harris

The Many Ways in Which The New Book About the Duke Lacrosse Case is Wrong by Stuart Taylor, Jr.

The Many Ways in Which The New Book About the Duke Lacrosse Case is Wrong by Stuart Taylor, Jr.

For Obamacare, What Counts As Success? by Ross Douthat

For Obamacare, What Counts As Success? by Ross Douthat

Touristic Bias: Why Americans Overrate Europe, and Europeans Underrate America by Bryan Caplan

Touristic Bias: Why Americans Overrate Europe, and Europeans Underrate America by Bryan Caplan

The Fluctuating Math Errors in Americans’ Tax Returns by Mona Chalabi

The Fluctuating Math Errors in Americans’ Tax Returns by Mona Chalabi

In Singapore, citizens don’t want babies — or foreign workers, either by Lydia Depillis

In Singapore, citizens don’t want babies — or foreign workers, either by Lydia Depillis

Donald Rumsfeld's Letter to the IRS: My Taxes Are a Known Unknown by Paul Caron

Donald Rumsfeld's Letter to the IRS: My Taxes Are a Known Unknown by Paul Caron

The Guardian and Washington Post Don't Deserve Pulitzers Just for Sparking a Debate by Benjamin Wittes

The Guardian and Washington Post Don't Deserve Pulitzers Just for Sparking a Debate by Benjamin Wittes

Extract Money From People Using the Ambiguity Effect by Esther Inglis-Arkell

Extract Money From People Using the Ambiguity Effect by Esther Inglis-Arkell

Your reality is 15 seconds in the making by Nick Stockton

Your reality is 15 seconds in the making by Nick Stockton

Occupational Employment Statistics from the Bureau of Labor Statistics

Occupational Employment Statistics from the Bureau of Labor Statistics

U.S. workforce more concentrated in large — and largely low-paid — occupations by Drew Desilver

U.S. workforce more concentrated in large — and largely low-paid — occupations by Drew Desilver

Challenges and Best Practices for Scaling Home Visiting Programs by Conor Williams

Challenges and Best Practices for Scaling Home Visiting Programs by Conor Williams

Kapital for the Twenty-First Century? book review by James K. Galbraith

Kapital for the Twenty-First Century? book review by James K. Galbraith

Earnings of Economics Majors: General Considerations by Jonah Sinick

Earnings of Economics Majors: General Considerations by Jonah Sinick

Which Creates Better Writers: An MFA Program or New York City? by Leslie Jamison

Which Creates Better Writers: An MFA Program or New York City? by Leslie Jamison

Tuesday, April 15, 2014

From bestseller to bust: is this the end of an author's life? by Robert McCrum

From bestseller to bust: is this the end of an author's life? by Robert McCrum

Essays in The Public Philosophy by Walter Lippmann

Essays in The Public Philosophy by Walter Lippmann

The Advancement of Learning by Francis Bacon

The Advancement of Learning by Francis Bacon

How Dante Saved My Life by Rod Dreher

How Dante Saved My Life by Rod Dreher

There was nothing dark about the Dark Ages: The Medieval Origins of Science by Benjamin M Vallejo

There was nothing dark about the Dark Ages: The Medieval Origins of Science by Benjamin M Vallejo

5 Ridiculous Myths You Probably Believe About the Dark Ages by J. Wisniewski

5 Ridiculous Myths You Probably Believe About the Dark Ages by J. Wisniewski

Are our students doomed to an inferior education? by Ethan Siegel

Are our students doomed to an inferior education? by Ethan Siegel

The U.S. Cities Where College Grads Are Most Segregated From Everyone Else by Richard Florida

The U.S. Cities Where College Grads Are Most Segregated From Everyone Else by Richard Florida

The Confidence Gap by Katty Kay and Claire Shipman

The Confidence Gap by Katty Kay and Claire Shipman

Women’s wages are up, but many families’ incomes are down: Why? A Q&A with Brad Wilcox by Natalie Scholl

Women’s wages are up, but many families’ incomes are down: Why? A Q&A with Brad Wilcox by Natalie Scholl

How Japan Copied American Culture and Made it Better by Tom Downey

How Japan Copied American Culture and Made it Better by Tom Downey

Small U.S. Colleges Battle Death Spiral as Enrollment Drops by Michael McDonald

Small U.S. Colleges Battle Death Spiral as Enrollment Drops by Michael McDonald

Monday, April 14, 2014

I Sold My Undergraduate Thesis to a Print Content Farm by Joseph Stromberg

I Sold My Undergraduate Thesis to a Print Content Farm by Joseph Stromberg

Our Psychodramatic Campuses by Victor Davis Hanson

Our Psychodramatic Campuses by Victor Davis Hanson

American’s Misguided Gender Missionaries by Martha Bayles

American’s Misguided Gender Missionaries by Martha Bayles

1 in 68 Children Now Has a Diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder. Why? by Enrico Gnaulati

1 in 68 Children Now Has a Diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder. Why? by Enrico Gnaulati

Brad Smith of Intuit: Follow the Fastest Beat of Your Heart interview by Adam Bryant

Brad Smith of Intuit: Follow the Fastest Beat of Your Heart interview by Adam Bryant

So You Think You're Smarter Than A CIA Agent by Alix Spiegel

So You Think You're Smarter Than A CIA Agent by Alix Spiegel

It’s the Market: The Broad-Based Rise in the Return to Top Talent by Steven N. Kaplan and Joshua Rauh

It’s the Market: The Broad-Based Rise in the Return to Top Talent by Steven N. Kaplan and Joshua Rauh

Persistent pay gap could result from greater male risk tolerance, higher pay for male athletes, professional musicians by Mark J. Perry

Persistent pay gap could result from greater male risk tolerance, higher pay for male athletes, professional musicians by Mark J. Perry

Why Liberalism Needs Pluralism by Ross Douthat

Why Liberalism Needs Pluralism by Ross Douthat

Diversity and Dishonesty by Ross Douthat

Diversity and Dishonesty by Ross Douthat

Sunday, April 13, 2014

Why the Gender Gap Won’t Go Away. Ever. by Kay S. Hymowitz

Why the Gender Gap Won’t Go Away. Ever. by Kay S. Hymowitz

Cruel When Not Kind by Theodore Dalrymple

Cruel When Not Kind by Theodore Dalrymple

Father of the Wild Things by Stefan Kanfer

Father of the Wild Things by Stefan Kanfer

The Dismal Art book review by James Surowiecki

The Dismal Art book review by James Surowiecki

Still in the grip of the Great War from The Economist

Still in the grip of the Great War from The Economist

Big data: are we making a big mistake? by Tim Harford

Big data: are we making a big mistake? by Tim Harford

War is good for us book review by David Crane

War is good for us book review by David Crane

Warning: College students, this editorial may upset you from The Los Angeles Times

Warning: College students, this editorial may upset you from The Los Angeles Times

It Doesn’t Matter Where You Go to College by Michael Bernick

It Doesn’t Matter Where You Go to College by Michael Bernick

Saturday, April 12, 2014

Buffalo Was Once a Model for Integration. Now the Vast Majority of its Public Schools Are Segregated by Mark Byrnes

Buffalo Was Once a Model for Integration. Now the Vast Majority of its Public Schools Are Segregated by Mark Byrnes

Friday, April 11, 2014

Trends in Ages at Key Reproductive Transitions in the United States, 1951–2010 by Lawrence B. Finer and Jesse M. Philbin.

Trends in Ages at Key Reproductive Transitions in the United States, 1951–2010 by Lawrence B. Finer and Jesse M. Philbin

Looking For Tom Lehrer, Comedy’s Mysterious Genius by Ben Smith

Looking For Tom Lehrer, Comedy’s Mysterious Genius by Ben Smith

The Paramedic Murderer of Narrowsburg, N.Y. by Nina Burleigh

The Paramedic Murderer of Narrowsburg, N.Y. by Nina Burleigh

If He Looks Stupid, He Probably Is by Ross Pomeroy

If He Looks Stupid, He Probably Is by Ross Pomeroy

Growing Gap Between First Sex and First Birth by Rebecca Wind

Growing Gap Between First Sex and First Birth by Rebecca Wind

Thursday, April 10, 2014

‘Something politically incestuous’ by Bradley A. Smith

‘Something politically incestuous’ by Bradley A. Smith

Oldest message in a bottle found by Baltic fishermen from The History Blog

Oldest message in a bottle found by Baltic fishermen from The History Blog

Individual Justice or Collective Legal Mobilization? Employment Discrimination Litigation in the Post Civil Rights United States by Laura Beth Nielsen, Robert L. Nelson, and Ryon Lancaster

Individual Justice or Collective Legal Mobilization? Employment Discrimination Litigation in the Post Civil Rights United States by Laura Beth Nielsen, Robert L. Nelson, and Ryon Lancaster

Work Preferences, Life Values, and Personal Views of Top Math/Science Graduate Students and the Profoundly Gifted: Developmental Changes and Gender Differences During Emerging Adulthood and Parenthood by Kimberley Ferriman, David Lubinski, and Camilla P. Benbow

Work Preferences, Life Values, and Personal Views of Top Math/Science Graduate Students and the Profoundly Gifted: Developmental Changes and Gender Differences During Emerging Adulthood and Parenthood by Kimberley Ferriman, David Lubinski, and Camilla P. Benbow

Testimony on the Gender Pay Gap by Diana Furchtgott-Roth

Testimony on the Gender Pay Gap by Diana Furchtgott-Roth

What makes most restaurant reviews worthless by Tyler Cowen

What makes most restaurant reviews worthless by Tyler Cowen

Minimum wage hikes and real net wages by Tyler Cowen

Minimum wage hikes and real net wages by Tyler Cowen

Wednesday, April 9, 2014

“The Theft of the Century” by Robin

“The Theft of the Century” by Robin

Government Can't Fix Real Gender Pay Gap by Megan McArdle

Government Can't Fix Real Gender Pay Gap by Megan McArdle

What's going to happen to Germany? by Jane The Actuary

What's going to happen to Germany? by Jane The Actuary

Creative Routines from Info We Trust website

Creative Routines from Info We Trust website

Don't Sweat the Microaggressions by Amitai Etzoni

Don't Sweat the Microaggressions by Amitai Etzoni

Make Space for Poetry by Wendy DeGroat

Make Space for Poetry by Wendy DeGroat

Why Teaching Poetry Is So Important by Andrew Simmons

Why Teaching Poetry Is So Important by Andrew Simmons

This ‘Supporting Healthy Marriage,’ I do not think it means what you think it means by Philip N. Cohen

This ‘Supporting Healthy Marriage,’ I do not think it means what you think it means by Philip N. Cohen

The Great Divide: Norman Lear, Archie Bunker, and the rise of the bad fan. by Emily Nussbaum

The Great Divide: Norman Lear, Archie Bunker, and the rise of the bad fan. by Emily Nussbaum

Tuesday, April 8, 2014

The Culture of Shut Up by Jon Lovett

The Culture of Shut Up by Jon Lovett

More Moms Staying Home, Reversing Decadeslong Decline by Laura Meckler

More Moms Staying Home, Reversing Decadeslong Decline by Laura Meckler

Deadlier Than Sharks: The Science of Deer in the Headlights by Ross Pomeroy

Deadlier Than Sharks: The Science of Deer in the Headlights by Ross Pomeroy

The Polarized Partisan Geography of Inequality by Michael Zuckerman

The Polarized Partisan Geography of Inequality by Michael Zuckerman

The safety net catches the middle class more than the poor by Catherine Rampell

The safety net catches the middle class more than the poor by Catherine Rampell

A remarkably small idea that could reduce distracted driving by Emily Badger

A remarkably small idea that could reduce distracted driving by Emily Badger

Why Street Protests Don't Work by Moises Naim

Why Street Protests Don't Work by Moises Naim

Sex, movies and the desperate attempt to shock audiences. (Hint: it’s not working.) by Ann Hornaday

Sex, movies and the desperate attempt to shock audiences. (Hint: it’s not working.) by Ann Hornaday

Monday, April 7, 2014

When Youth Violence Spurred ‘Superpredator’ Fear by Clyde Haberman

When Youth Violence Spurred ‘Superpredator’ Fear by Clyde Haberman

Serious reading takes a hit from online scanning and skimming, researchers say by Michael S. Rosenwald

Serious reading takes a hit from online scanning and skimming, researchers say by Michael S. Rosenwald

Children Need to Learn Context to Know When to Stop interview with Christopher Chatham

Children Need to Learn Context to Know When to Stop interview with Christopher Chatham

Once you impose the ‘ceteris paribus’ condition, the alleged 23% gender pay gap starts to quickly evaporate by Mark J. Perry

Once you impose the ‘ceteris paribus’ condition, the alleged 23% gender pay gap starts to quickly evaporate by Mark J. Perry

Mind Which Gap? The Selective Concern Over Statistical Sex Disparities by Kingsley R. Browne

Mind Which Gap? The Selective Concern Over Statistical Sex Disparities by Kingsley R. Browne

Why Are Toys So Gendered? by Cordelia Fine

Why Are Toys So Gendered? by Cordelia Fine

How Do We Fix Bad Science? by Paul Bisceglio

How Do We Fix Bad Science? by Paul Bisceglio

Has Higher Ed Peaked? by Bryan Alexander

Has Higher Ed Peaked? by Bryan Alexander

During Cold War, CIA used ‘Doctor Zhivago’ as a tool to undermine Soviet Union by Peter Finn and Petra Couvée

During Cold War, CIA used ‘Doctor Zhivago’ as a tool to undermine Soviet Union by Peter Finn and Petra Couvée

Sunday, April 6, 2014

In Spain, a Family Reunion, Centuries Later by Doreen Carvajal

In Spain, a Family Reunion, Centuries Later by Doreen Carvajal

Mistakes To Avoid For Theologians Talking About Economics by Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry

Mistakes To Avoid For Theologians Talking About Economics by Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry

Saturday, April 5, 2014

All-Time Bestselling Children's Books by Diane Roback, Jason Britton, and Debbie Hochman Turvey

All-Time Bestselling Children's Books by Diane Roback, Jason Britton, and Debbie Hochman Turvey

4 Ways High School Makes You Hate Reading by Christina H

4 Ways High School Makes You Hate Reading by Christina H

Quantifying the Advantage of Looking Forward by Tobias Preis, Helen Susannah Moat,H. Eugene Stanley, and Steven R. Bishop

Quantifying the Advantage of Looking Forward by Tobias Preis, Helen Susannah Moat,H. Eugene Stanley, and Steven R. Bishop

The State Tax Grab by Steven Malanga

The State Tax Grab by Steven Malanga

Friday, April 4, 2014

The Theory of the Business by Peter Drucker

The Theory of the Business by Peter Drucker

Equal Pay, Equal Work, Equal Opportunity by Robert VerBruggen

Equal Pay, Equal Work, Equal Opportunity by Robert VerBruggen

Down and Out by Jamelle Bouie

Down and Out by Jamelle Bouie

Who Killed Poetry? by Joseph Epstein

Who Killed Poetry? by Joseph Epstein

Thursday, April 3, 2014

Gregory Clark on Names from Social Science Bites

Gregory Clark on Names from Social Science Bites

When was the great age of migration? by Tyler Cowen

When was the great age of migration? by Tyler Cowen

Hauntings, homeopathy, and the Hopkinsville Goblins: Using pseudoscience to teach scientific thinking by Rodney Michael Schmaltz and Scott O Lilienfeld

Hauntings, homeopathy, and the Hopkinsville Goblins: Using pseudoscience to teach scientific thinking by Rodney Michael Schmaltz and Scott O Lilienfeld