Outside the Beltway

54% of Americans want an alternative to the Democrats and Republicans. The question remains as to what kind of third party they want.

Insane Clown Posse are Christians, yo. And they say Fuck a lot.

According to some new studies by crack economists, it’s helpful to have a spouse bringing in some money if you happen to lose your job.

Once the province of science fiction, a car that can drive itself is now a reality, thanks to Google and DARPA. The implications are mind boggling.

Thirty-two years after the first “Test Tube Baby” was born, the doctor who pioneered the procedure that created her has been recognized with a Nobel Prize.

Has modern life robbed America’s youth of their ability to think? Or simply caused them to think in different ways about different things?

A third of the Forbes 50 were born billionaires. Does that mean the game is fixed?

An amusing parody of the typical press report on a new scientific finding.

The nine months humans spend in the womb may be the most important time of our lives. And that has some profound implications.

Is there a quiet cyberwar going on and we are just starting to notice it?

Affluent whites are astounded that Adrian Fenty appears about to lose his bid for re-election as DC’s mayor. But the majority black population is less than thrilled with his tenure.

The winners of state legislatures in November will have a great deal of influence over Congressional elections for the next decade. Should it be that way?

David Brooks blames our economic woes on a change from a culture that valued productive work to one of gentility. And Bill Cosby.

Bryan Caplan argues that the fact so many kids in the developing world don’t go to school proves that education isn’t very valuable.

With Rahm Emanuel apparently set to leave the White House to run for Mayor of Chicago, speculation is turning to who may replace him in what some have called the nation’s de facto Prime Minister-ship.

Comments sections on larger blogs seem inevitably to turn into cesspools. Is it worth trying to stop it happening?

Most of what passes for conventional wisdom about learning is wrong.

The world’s smartest scientist says there is no god. Or, at least, no need for one.

No, the discipline isn’t having a George Constanza situation. Rather, a job market that has been dismal for decades has gotten worse.

When professors blog, they send signals to their students about their attitudes. Where do we draw the line between free expression and unprofessional conduct?

Career fields dominated by women tend to pay less than those dominated by men. But gender discrimination isn’t the main reason.

Renowned author Ray Bradbury hates big government but wants it to fund the colonization of Mars. That a man of his intelligence and insight can hold such diametrically opposed thoughts is an amusing reminder of the limits of human rationality.

Mutated bacteria spreading in India could mark the end of effective antibiotic drugs. The medical repercussions would be enormous.

Attractive women face discrimination when applying for “masculine” jobs. The benefit from their attractiveness in all other jobs, however.

Blogs are all grown up now and indistinguishable from other online media.

If lawyers and MBAs don’t understand their mortgage documents, what chance do the rest of us have?

In the first entry in this series we looked at a basic question of democratic theory. In this one, we look at whether the EC ever worked as the Framers intended.

The concentration of policy wonks in the Washington-New York-Boston corridor produces skewed analysis.

Barack Obama was a big hit on college campuses in 2008. Two years later, those same young voters seem to be having second thoughts.

By filling out Captcha’s two word phrases, you’re helping digitize old books. It’s still really annoying.

Nate Silver provides yet more bad news for Democrats: When screening for “likely voters,” Republican numbers look even better.

Most academic journal articles are unreadable dreck. So, why are we demanding that more of them be produced?

Much like his pledge to close Guantanamo within a year, President Obama’s promised deadline to implement a “scientific integrity” program has come and gone.

Despite new breakthroughs, an HIV vaccine is still some ways off. But, my, we’ve come a long way.

What exactly is it about air conditioning that has some people so upset ?

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said in an interview that he considered raising Muslim self-esteem about their contributions to science one of the goals of his agency.

A lot of Americans don’t know that the US gained its independence from Great Britain. How can this be? Is it a liberal conspiracy?

Political science journals, particularly those which exist to provide scholarly insights into matters of public policy, ought to be freely available online.