The Doctor as Amoralist

The Doctor as Amoralist

Under the Knife: A History of Surgery in 28 Remarkable Operations by Arnold van de Laar, translated by Andy Brown. St. Martin’s Press, 2018. Hardcover, 357 pages, $30. Reviewed by Karl C. Schaffenburg In his entertaining and readable review of the history of surgery,...
Surviving the Robot-Barons

Surviving the Robot-Barons

The Human Advantage: The Future of American Work in an Age of Smart Machines by Jay W. Richards. Crown Forum, 2018. Hardcover, 209 pages, $23. Reviewed by Jacob Bruggeman College graduates, young professionals, and people making mid-career transitions to other...
Casting Extras in The Truman Show

Casting Extras in The Truman Show

The Truman Show Written by Andrew Niccol. Directed by Peter Weir. Paramount, 1998. Reviewed by Titus Techera On its twentieth anniversary, The Truman Show turns out to have been prophetic about what happens to us when we go digital. In the terms of the old world of...
Ancient Walls and New Bridges

Ancient Walls and New Bridges

Eduard Habsburg “And thou, O Wall, O sweet, O lovely Wall …” “Why are you posting pics of walls all the time? Shouldn’t we rather … you know, build bridges?” a fellow Tweeter ironically suggested after I posted the umpteenth snapshot of my walk along the Aurelian Wall...
The Scientific Case for an Alarming Utopia

The Scientific Case for an Alarming Utopia

Enlightenment Now. The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress by Steven Pinker. Viking, 2018. Hardcover, 556 pages. $35. Reviewed by Jeffrey Folks Steven Pinker’s writing is intriguing. Just about everything he says is half right and half wrong. In this and...