Blog | steelsnowflake

6 days ago
6 min

Pascal's Terror: Should We Fear the Eternal Silence of the Infinite Spaces?

Pascal was wrong to fear the eternal silence of these infinite spaces. A godless existence is still one full of mystery and wonder.

75 views

American Democracy and the Myth of Progress

Paul D. Wilke

Sep 16
8 min

American Democracy and the Myth of Progress

For Mencken, the common man was more Homer Simpson or Peter Griffith than anything resembling the idea of a thoughtful and engaged citizen.

51 views

Paul D. Wilke

Sep 12
8 min

Is the Marketplace of Ideas a Myth?

The marketplace of ideas is not functioning well in an era of fake news and conspiracy. Why is this and what should we do about it?

29 views

Why did the Eastern Roman Empire Survive?

Paul D. Wilke

Sep 7
16 min

Why did the Eastern Roman Empire Survive?

The Eastern Roman Empire survived thanks to its geography and a well-defended capital, Constantinople. The Western Romans had neither.

19 views

Where are all the Aliens? Four Unsettling Explanations to Fermi's Paradox

Paul D. Wilke

Sep 2
7 min

Where are all the Aliens? Four Unsettling Explanations to Fermi's Paradox

The Fermi Paradox, named after Italian physicist Erico Fermi, asks the very basic question, "Where are they?" I explore 4 possible answers.

35 views

Emerson's "Circles" as a Metaphor for Human Experience

Paul D. Wilke

Aug 23
5 min

Emerson's "Circles" as a Metaphor for Human Experience

Ralph Waldo Emerson's essay "Circles," published in 1841, is one of my favorite metaphors for looking at human experience.

42 views

Paul D. Wilke

Aug 19
7 min

My Weird Hang-up with Masks

And yet, I still bristle when I have to wear a mask; some vague, ill-defined unease sets in. I get grumpy and irritable

33 views

Paul D. Wilke

Aug 12
2 min

Lost in the Random-More

No heaven. No hell. No karma even. Pop! Just an endless cycle of deep time erasing our time, one more time, for all time. Remember that

21 views

Paul D. Wilke

Aug 5
1 min

Placid (a Poem)

I hope when I go I don't look back at all that came before at all the wins and losses at all the loves and hates and all the boredom

40 views

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SteelSnowflake.org

A humanities blog for the perennially perplexed

Pascal's Terror: Should We Fear the Eternal Silence of the Infinite Spaces?

American Democracy and the Myth of Progress

Is the Marketplace of Ideas a Myth?

Why did the Eastern Roman Empire Survive?

Where are all the Aliens? Four Unsettling Explanations to Fermi's Paradox

Emerson's "Circles" as a Metaphor for Human Experience

My Weird Hang-up with Masks

Lost in the Random-More

Placid (a Poem)