1. This Carl Sagan quote gently refutes my glee yesterday about swearing (“I have to do it; it’s instinct!”):
The cerebral cortex is a liberation. We need no longer be trapped in the genetically inherited patterns of lizards and baboons. We are, each of us, largely responsible for what gets put into our brains, for what, as adults, we wind up caring for and knowing about. No longer at the mercy of the reptile brain, we can change ourselves.
2. Somewhat related, if only because I learned about her in the Cosmos series, did you know that a movie is out about the life of Hypatia? It’s called Agora and its lack of a slick Flash site (or any site) makes me hopeful.