Category Archives: Life

Vale Ed Diener, Mr Happiness

Posted on May 4, 2021 by Paul Frijters

Ed Diener, one of the best-known scholars of happiness died this week at the age of 76. He was known as Dr Happiness in the United States, well-known for his 7-item scale on wellbeing and his constant refrain that the … Continue reading →

Posted in Dance, Death and taxes, Life, Science | Leave a comment

Australia or Sweden: which has had the better 2020?

Posted on April 14, 2021 by Paul Frijters

Compared to the trends on January 2020, has Australia or Sweden lost more wellbeing in 2020? And which has seen the greater damage to expected future wellbeing years for after 2020? The Table below summarizes the answers to this. For … Continue reading →

Posted in Coronavirus crisis, Cultural Critique, Death and taxes, Ethics, Health, Life, Politics - international, Science | 39 Comments

Uncertainty, Part 1: McGurk

Posted on March 23, 2021 by Paul Frijters

As one the best illustrations of the way our minds deal with uncertainty, consider the following video. Please listen and watch at least 30 seconds so you can experience the three sequences of spoken words. Pretty much all humans who … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics and public policy, Life, Media, Philosophy, Political theory, Science, Social, Theatre | 21 Comments

Three lessons on Chinese culture and politics

Posted on December 1, 2020 by Paul Frijters

The animosity between the Chinese and Australian authorities is heating up, so we Westerners need to understand some of Chinese culture and politics. I do not have all the answers, but some 10 years of working and teaching on China … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Life, Science, Social, Society, Uncategorized | 40 Comments

Histories of the Great Panic.

Posted on November 23, 2020 by Paul Frijters

How will Western historians in 2050 remember 2020? In scenario 1, “The Great Panic, a lost generation”, I sketch my best guess. Scenario 2, “A job well done” is the one I imagine many current Western governments hope is told. … Continue reading →

Posted in Coronavirus crisis, Cultural Critique, Dance, Geeky Musings, Health, History, Humour, Innovation, Libertarian Musings, Life, Philosophy, Politics - international, Politics - national, Public and Private Goods, Social Policy, Society | 92 Comments

Canadian doctor Joffe MD on the negative effects of covid-19 responses

Posted on October 23, 2020 by Paul Frijters

Dr. Joffe just posted a new article on the many negative effects of lockdowns in Canada and in the world as a whole. He really has put in a fantastic effort to source the evidence on the negative effects of … Continue reading →

Posted in Coronavirus crisis, Death and taxes, Economics and public policy, Education, Health, Life, Medical, Politics - international, Politics - national, Social Policy, Society | Leave a comment

The Great Barrington Declaration?

Posted on October 6, 2020 by Paul Frijters

A group of senior medical scientists have gotten together to pen an open petition to governments and society, calling for a herd immunity approach to the coronavirus. Signatories already include over 3000 “Medical & Public Health Scientists”, 4000 “Medical Practitioners”, … Continue reading →

Posted in Coronavirus crisis, Cultural Critique, Death and taxes, Health, History, Life, Medical, Science, Society | 61 Comments