User:Skaaii

Hi there,

This is just an early version of my page. who am I? I'm a recent college grad who spent most of his adult life like an autodidact and finally decided to pursue a more disciplined form of education. I am eternally thankful to my parents for supporting me when they no longer had to and will always do things to make them feel good about their choice, especially by sharing my enthusiasm for science and disciplined study and teaching others about the joys of research and study.

my favorite authors (in no specific order are):
 * Stephen Hawking and A Brief History of Time because he made a subject so complex so accessible to so many. The fact that able-bodied people like me haven't done 1/10th of what he has done leaves the rest of us with no excuse to remain lazy.
 * Charles Darwin and On The Origin of Species because his writing reminds me that "genius" is not necessarily the product of birth (I argue that he was not born especially intelligent) rather it is the product of a long and disciplined study and a strong work ethic, if he can do it, regular folks like I can too.
 * Stephen Jay Gould and The Mismeasure of Man because his writing style reminds me of my own (friendly and chummy, but a bit verbose and scientific) and because he gives a roundhouse kick to the head to all those who believe in the genetic basis of intelligence and in our conceit of what we call intelligence in general. I also love his idea of spandrels and exaptations where not everything need be functional.
 * Richard Dawkins and The Selfish Gene because he is such a master writer and can make such a wonderful concept to easy to digest. being a strict functionalist sometimes put him at odds with Gould, but both actually complement each other well.
 * Niccolo Machiavelli because his work The Prince is one of the most frequently misunderstood (by folks who never read his book) books of all time. Even the definition Machiavellian has perpetuated this myth. For those interested in truly understanding the truth of his book, just read his Discourses on Livy.
 * Mark Twain because his book Huckleberry Finn is entertaining when you read it as a high school student and as an adult can be analyzed for its deep and incisive commentary of society in the 19th and even in our centuries.
 * Jared Diamond and Guns Germs and Steel because i've never seen someone provide such a compelling argument for the way human societies have come about. I studied under him and agree he is truly genius and deserves his accolades.
 * Herman Melville because his book Moby Dick and particularly the obsessiveness of Captain Ahab serves as a reminder of how a single obsession can ruin someone's life. so many scientists have ruined their careers because they were so focused on producing a result at all costs. nothing is worth pursuing at all costs.