How We Develop Creativity

Recently, I've been thinking a lot about the nature of creativity. It's an elusive concept, like the concept of God. A friend of mine told me about a recent article in New Yorker dealing with the same topic: "Should creative writing be taught?" My view is in line with the "official position" of The University of Iowa Writers' Workshop: Read on »

Published: Jun-15-09

Fear of Everything Else

I've known many people in my life who are smart and talented yet somehow cannot manage their own lives well. I've always been puzzled and fascinated by this phenomenon. I figured there must be some careers perfect for their intelligence and talent. The only problem, I thought, was that they weren't aware of these careers. In fact, most career orientations offered at schools are based on the same premise. It's an encouraging and exciting premise too, like finding a Mr. or Ms. Perfect. Needless to say, I've never succeeded in finding such a career for anyone. This is when I began doubting my own premise. Maybe the problem does not lie in the careers they choose, but in everything else that they have to deal with no matter which careers they choose. In other words, it's not about what they want to do; it's about what they don't want to do but have to. Read on »

Published: May-27-09

Let's Give the Other Search Engines a Chance

The artist Jenny Holzer said in her work: "The abuse of power comes as no surprise." I share the same view. In this essay, I want to persuade you to use search engines other than Google because it could come as no surprise that Google's dominance in the search engine market leads to abuse. Don't get me wrong: I love many of Google's products, and I use them every day. I'm not bashing Google as a company. My argument has to do with their dominance in the search engine market, and why it is in our own interest to help others be competitive with Google. Google essentially has a monopoly in this market and a monopoly can happen even if a company has no intention of monopolizing or have no predatory business practices. English as a language, for instance, has a monopolistic power, because our desire to have a universal language is strong. Nevertheless, a monopoly is a powerful and dangerous force because the abuse of that power can happen almost unconsciously to the holders of the power. Read on »

Published: Apr-30-09

You Are Your Own PR Agent on Facebook

I think we often underestimate the value of small talk. I should know, because small talk is something I'm really bad at. When I go to a party, I often start talking about serious issues, business, and/or highly technical things, and within minutes, I'm standing alone in the middle of a crowd. If you intellectually think about the idea of small talk, everyone tends to dismiss it as being superficial and pointless, but it must have a very important social function, otherwise people would not do it so often (and otherwise I should be the life of the party). Read on »

Published: Apr-20-09

Raising Girls

I have a 4-year old girl. As a father, the experience of raising a girl has been enlightening to say the least. It has given me an insight into what girls and women experience as they grow up. Firstly, I am now thoroughly convinced that many of the feminist arguments about the environment causing girls to want to be beautiful, be nurturing, love the color pink, etc., are wrong. Those arguments must be coming from feminists who have never had children of their own. If you do have your own, you would have to be blind to think that. Not just my own girl, but her friends too, required no effort, encouragement, nor even introduction for them to love all things pink and glittery. Read on »

Published: Feb-22-09

Why Your Parents Don't Want You to Be a Rock Star

I have never seriously wished to be a rock star, but like everyone else, have occasionally fantasized about being one. In my college days and 20s, rock music was practically a religion. (Here, I'm using the term broadly to mean any styles of music popular among the youth, not the specific genre or style of music called "rock".) Virtually all my friends have, at one point or another, tried to form a band or be somehow associated with one. Rock music is a perfect remedy for the feelings of insecurity, loneliness, and angst that come with being young. To top it all, most parents do not want you to pursue a career in rock music. That makes you want to do it more, so that you can feel you are your own person, not a product designed and programmed by your parents to be a certain way. The unfortunate thing I see now in my 40s is that your parents' warnings have some truth to them, which is being ignored or misunderstood. Most of the parents don't explain it well either. They sound like they are making excuses for their failure to pursue their own dreams. So, in an attempt to avoid becoming a wimp like your parents, you try even harder to be a rock star. It's a vicious cycle. Read on »

Published: Aug-31-08

Empathy and Female Brains

I've always believed that male and female brains were biologically different from the day we were born. Now that I have a child of my own and see many of her friends grow up, it is hard to imagine how anyone could deny the difference. I have been so vocal about the gender differences that many of my friends think I am a sexist. I became so used to it that it doesn't bother me anymore. Given this reputation of mine, one would assume that I would agree with everything stated in the book "The Essential Difference" by Simon Baron-Cohen, which explores the difference between male and female brains. To my surprise, I found myself disagreeing with him in a fundamental way. Read on »

Published: May-2-08

Moral Dilemma of Intelligence

In my younger days, I simply assumed that other people were as intelligent as I was. I had no reason to believe otherwise. Nobody came to me with an admission or acceptance that my intelligence was superior to theirs. (Do I sound condescending and full of myself? Bear with me for now.) Compare this with someone who is physically superior. Most professional boxers, for instance, have a reasonable understanding of their own superiority. This understanding is crucial in using their physical strength appropriately. If they did not understand their superiority, they could get into all sorts of trouble. But, this does not hold true for intelligence. Why? Shouldn’t those with high IQs recognize their own intelligence and learn to use it appropriately in our society too? Read on »

Published: Dec-16-07

Anti-Seducer

The word "seduction" is not generally perceived positively. There is something dark and negative about the idea of seducing, yet, it is a key factor in achieving happiness. (It is difficult to feel content if nobody likes you.) We humans are social creatures; I believe we've evolved to crave social recognition and to fear isolation. In this sense, seduction has been a critical component of evolution and is an important survival skill. We therefore need to look at it pragmatically. Read on »

Published: Dec-7-07

Should We Teach “Emotional Intelligence” to Our Children?

“Emotional Intelligence” is much talked about these days. Even though I can see its significance in certain areas of our lives (especially in business), I am skeptical of those who are rushing to apply the theory to child development and psychology. The term “Emotional Intelligence” was popularized by Daniel Goleman who was interested in identifying the quality that made people successful in the corporate world. The data of his research are kept private, so we do not know for sure, but I would imagine that his research does not cover successful people in the arts or anyone outside of the corporate world (the likes of, for instance, Woody Allen, Kurt Cobain, Andy Warhol, Noam Chomsky, Bobby Fischer, etc..). Read on »

Published: Oct-7-07