The special Randomness versus Stupidity issue (vol. 18, no. 3) of the magazine (the Annals of Improbable Research) is now online. It’s got lots about randomness and stupidity—and much more. The pleasing-paper version was mailed to subscribers a short while ago. Click on the magazine cover (below) to download a free PDF, or buy a high-quality […]
Tag: stupidity
Stupidity papers called for
In Spring 2013 the scholarly publication parallax is likely to become the very first journal to have had an entire issue devoted to the theme of ‘Stupidity’. The ‘call for papers’ outlines the theme(s) for potential authors. “We invite papers that respond to stupidity by examining its marginalisation within philosophical practice whilst also encouraging contributors […]
Choosing politicians randomly produces better results
Democracies would be better off if they chose some of their politicians at random. That’s the word, mathematically obtained, from a team of Italian physicists, economists, and political analysts. The team includes the trio whose earlier research showed, also mathematically, that bureaucracies would be more efficient if they promoted people at random. Alessandro Pluchino, Andrea Rapisarda, Cesare Garofalo, […]
The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity
The basic laws of human stupidity are ancient. The definitive essay on the subject is younger. Called The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity, it was published in 1976 by an Italian economist. Professor Carlo M Cipolla [pictured here, below] taught at several universities in Italy, and for many years at the University of California, Berkeley. He also […]