Consciousness and the World | by Riccardo Manzotti | NYR Daily | The New York Review of Books

Tim: You mean, essentially, that we are objects, and objects “take place,” rather than act.

Riccardo: We are part of the physical world, hence objects. What else could we be—immaterial souls?

As for identity, we are what we are because we are identical with a portion of the world that has come together over the years in a certain way. The traditional separation of subject and object that underpins all standard thinking on consciousness and identity lies at the heart of our troubles as individuals and as a society. Convinced that we are separate from the world, we feel we have been expelled from the Garden of Eden, and we yearn to return, maybe after death. But however useful the subject-object divide may be for all kinds of practical matters, it is plain wrong.

Why is pop culture obsessed with battles between good and evil? | Aeon Essays

Good guy/bad guy narratives might not possess any moral sophistication, but they do promote social stability, and they’re useful for getting people to sign up for armies and fight in wars with other nations. Their values feel like morality, and the association with folklore and mythology lends them a patina of legitimacy, but still, they don’t arise from a moral vision. They are rooted instead in a political vision, which is why they don’t help us deliberate, or think more deeply about the meanings of our actions. Like the original Grimm stories, they’re a political tool designed to bind nations together.

It’s no coincidence that good guy/bad guy movies, comic books and games have large, impassioned and volatile fandoms – even the word ‘fandom’ suggests the idea of a nation, or kingdom. What’s more, the moral physics of these stories about superheroes fighting the good fight, or battling to save the world, does not commend genuine empowerment. The one thing the good guys teach us is that people on the other team aren’t like us. In fact, they’re so bad, and the stakes are so high, that we have to forgive every transgression by our own team in order to win.

Acne Vulgaris | Acne | JAMA Dermatology | The JAMA Network

Conclusions: The astonishing difference in acne incidence rates between nonwesternized and fully modernized societies cannot be solely attributed to genetic differences among populations but likely results from differing environmental factors. Identification of these factors may be useful in the treatment of acne in Western populations.

Here's a clue perhaps?

Phantom Thread (2017) **

The actors and production design are admirable but the script and direction is lacking. There doesn't seem to be any coherent point not even logically. And simply an astounding number of extreme closeups of one actor's face at a time.

How to see a memory

This collection of work from multiple groups has built a strong case that the physiological trace of a memory — or at least key components of this trace — can be pinned down to specific neurons, says Silva. Still, neurons in one part of the hippocampus or the amygdala are only a tiny part of a fearful foot-shock engram, which involves sights, smells, sounds and countless other sensations. “It’s probably in 10–30 different brain regions — that’s just a wild guess,” says Silva.

Cars 3 (2017) **

Strictly for the toddler set, but so technically well done it's quite watchable for all ages.

The Future (2011) ***

Another quirky, unusual and interesting film from Miranda July about intelligent but seriously flawed individuals trying to make sense out of life. Not as fully realized as her first film but not a bad second try at all.

She's Funny That Way (2014) **

It's nice to see old Bogdanovich regulars back in action and Ms. Aniston is always a treat but there are too many times when the "comedy" seems forced and the jokes tired.

Nefertiti, Confucius, Genghis Khan, and Charlemagne Are Almost Certainly on Your Family Tree

The answer was merely 600 years ago. Sometime at the end of the 13th century lived a man or woman from whom all Europeans could trace ancestry, if records permitted (which they don’t). If this sounds unlikely or weird, remember that this individual is one of thousands of lines of descent that you and everyone else has at this moment in time, and whoever this unknown individual was, they represent a tiny proportion of your total familial webbed pedigree. But if we could document the total family tree of everyone alive back through 600 years, among the impenetrable mess, everyone European alive would be able to select a line that would cross everyone else’s around the time of Richard II.

Greta Gerwig Comments on Woody Allen Sexual Assault Allegations – Variety

“I can only speak for myself and what I’ve come to is this: If I had known then what I know now, I would not have acted in the film. I have not worked for him again, and I will not work for him again. Dylan Farrow’s two different pieces made me realize that I increased another woman’s pain, and I was heartbroken by that realization. I grew up on his movies, and they have informed me as an artist, and I cannot change that fact now, but I can make different decisions moving forward.”

So sad to hear this from a woman I had thought was an intelligent and thoughtful person. Apparently she is confused as to the meaning of the word "allegation". An allegation that was refuted 25 years ago:

DF: Why is it that Harvey Weinstein and other accused celebrities have been cast out by Hollywood, while Allen [continues working]?

RW: It’s called due process. It was carried out in 1992 when two separate investigations found there was no credibility to Mia’s accusations, so no charges were ever brought against Allen. He lost the custody battle, but as a legal matter, the assault accusation has been a non-issue for 25 years. The fact that there are members of the Farrow family and others who remain angry at Allen is not a basis for studios to stop funding his movies, or for his fans to stop attending them.

Here's the full essay. I hope Ms. Gerwig gets a chance to read it.

2017 In Review: Music

**** Blondie - Pollinator
**** Game Theory - Supercalifragile
**** Lindsey Buckingham & Christine McVie - s/t
**** New Pornographers, The - Whiteout Conditions
**** Shins, The - Heartworms
**** Shout Out Louds, The - Ease My Mind
*** Aimee Mann - Mental Illness
*** Alvvays - Antisocialites
*** Beaches - Second of Spring
*** Bye Bye Blackbirds, The - Take Out The Poison
*** Charlotte Gainsbourg - Rest
*** Chuck Berry - Chuck
*** Girl Ray - Earl Grey
*** Juliana Hatfield - Pussycat
*** Pains of Being Pure At Heart, The - The Echo of Pleasure
*** Paul McCartney & Elvis Costello - Flowers in the Dirt Demos
*** R. Ring - Ignite The Rest
*** Robyn Hitchcock - Robyn Hitchcock
*** Slowdive - Slowdive
*** Stef Chura - Messes
*** Surfer Blood - Snowdonia
*** Waxahatchee - Out In The Storm
** Cheap Trick - We're All Alright!
** Frankie Rose - Cage Tropical
** Haim - Something To Tell You
** Karla Kane - King's Daughters Home For Incurables
** Menace Beach - Lemon Memory
** Mew - Visuals
** Nicole Atkins - Goodnight Rhonda Lee
** Party Battleship - Cake + Flames
** Paul Weller - A Kind Revolution
** Popguns - Sugar Kisses
** Pugwash - Silverlake
** Spoon - Hot Thoughts
** Squeeze - The Knowledge
** TC&I - Great Aspirations
** Twin Peaks (Music from the Limited Event Series)
* Charlotte Hatherley - True Love

2017 In review: Movies

**** A Ghost Story
**** Get Out
**** Ladybird
**** The Disaster Artist
*** Logan Lucky
*** The Little Hours
*** The Big Sick
*** The Beguiled
*** Wonder Wheel
** Wonder Woman
** The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected)
** Suburbicon
** Okja
** Logan
** Ghost In The Shell
** Fifty Shades Darker
** Dunkirk
** Blade Runner 2049
** Baby Driver
** Atomic Blonde
* The Shape of Water
* Murder On The Orient Express