Posts

Showing posts from October, 2021

Verse Written on the Back of a Physics Midterm

“And on the pedestal these words appear Time Now: 10:10 End Time: 10:25 Look upon thy work ye students And despair”

Bad News Friend: Effective Altruism, Kidneys and the Media Octopus

While waiting to have lunch with my local Effective Altruism chapter today, I had a run-in with a close friend, a mathematician, with whom I speak frankly and openly (hi Aaron!).  We scarcely had time to talk, but he breathlessly encouraged me to check out the NYT piece 'Bad Art Friend' which he summarized as a writer donating her kidney as an Effective Altruist cause, while actually wanting attention.  I don't read articles from the octopus as a rule, but I made an exception for a friend. I won't link the article here. If you're the terminally-online sort who's followed the story, you don't need me telling you about it, and if you aren't, you won't get anything from the Times coverage.  (I would, however, pay good money for a linguist to explain why 'bad art friend' and similar terms have such a distinct woke/coastal American sense to them) In summary: An author named Dorland donated her kidney and made sure everyone knew about it. She wa