Practicing your way into greatness

This David Brooks piece is very satisfying because:
a) as he puts it

Public discussion is smitten by genetics and what we’re “hard-wired” to do. And it’s true that genes place a leash on our capacities. But the brain is also phenomenally plastic. We construct ourselves through behavior.

b) I have met an extraordinary number of brilliant people especially in the US who work hard, but are somehow reduced to defending or hiding their hard work, in the interest of looking "cool". This illusion of "effortless brilliance" behind the successful breeds more disappointment than inspiration and is, I believe, a remnant of a pre-democratic age of inherited brilliance.

Premature nostalgia for England

From the NY Times, an American reminisces about that most spectacular mixture of wit, understatement and politeness that is language at Oxbridge:

Katz continued: “After a year or so of tuning into the subtleties of the English language, something quite remarkable occurred — I began to perceive many different layers of expression in ways the British communicate. Where they are often criticized by Americans for being cold, I began to see endless expressions of warmth. Where they might be considered narrow-minded, I found instead some of the most open-minded, progressive minds I have encountered.”

English tolerance can be as uplifting as American idealism, that many-faceted and quizzical “quite” seeing U.S. “hope.

I hear you, mate. I have two months to go, but I miss 'em Brits already.

With that, I am back on the blog after the thesis sabbatical, deluding myself I discovered something profound about social democratic parties of Europe in the meantime. It turns out I am going back to the States next year for a PhD. Oh well, this kid will never stop studying as my mother used to say.