Tag Archives: courtesy

Share Yourself

Posted on February 26, 2026 by Robert Basil

On a recent train trip I listened to a young computer whiz give a remarkably agile and lucid explanation to his aunt of AI’s probable future role in his industry. Seated two seats behind him, I was too rapt to … Continue reading →

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More on Sacks

Posted on January 10, 2026 by Robert Basil

Lawrence Weschler wrote And How Are You, Dr. Sacks: A Biographical Memoir of Oliver Sacks. I remember it being a very fine book. I was wondering how Weschler would address the revelations published in Rachel Aviv’s New Yorker piece. I … Continue reading →

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Pope Francis

Posted on April 21, 2025 by Robert Basil

“When people ask for a blessing, an exhaustive moral analysis should not be placed as a precondition for conferring it. For those seeking a blessing should not be required to have prior moral perfection.” “A little bit of mercy makes the … Continue reading →

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It’s actually easy

Posted on March 14, 2022 by Robert Basil

… not to do this.

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On collaboration

Posted on July 14, 2020 by Robert Basil

Richard Rogers upon meeting Lorenz Hart for the first time:  “I left Hart’s house having acquired in one afternoon a career, a partner, a best friend and a source of permanent irritation.” Their song “My Funny Valentine” is something of a … Continue reading →

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Mistakes you should avoid as a business using social media

Posted on September 15, 2017 by Robert Basil

The always smart Kaylynn Chong at Hootsuite has these six good reminders: Don’t over-hashtag. “Too many hashtags can make you look spammy or desperate if you’re using ones that aren’t relevant to your post. Even if you gain followers, it’s … Continue reading →

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The Interruption

Posted on December 9, 2016 by Robert Basil

The renowned and divisive Hungarian-American physicist Edward Teller would tell this little story about an exchange he had with the great Niels Bohr: Some of us, including Bohr, were having a discussion about the spectrum and states of molecular oxygen. Bohr had some opinions, … Continue reading →

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The Hobo Ethical Code

Posted on November 18, 2016 by Robert Basil

This is beautiful. From Open Culture: 1. Decide your own life; don’t let another person run or rule you. 2. When in town, always respect the local law and officials, and try to be a gentleman at all times. 3. Don’t take … Continue reading →

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Hence, teaching manners matters

Posted on November 2, 2016 by Robert Basil

In a blog post this morning called “A Raging Snowflake,” my good friend Clarissa writes: Remember the Oppressed Tiffany, a very special snowflake whose “narrative was erased by the entire field of academia” when a hapless prof asked her to … Continue reading →

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Real Words

Posted on September 21, 2016 by Robert Basil

One of the best pure writers I have ever seen was a psychology student at Kwantlen Polytechnic University named Emily (she gave me permission to use her first name). She could amalgamate and compress numerous, complex source articles into a … Continue reading →

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