Sustainability isn’t sustainable. It implies that the goal of environmental work is to insure a balance between human greed and the health of the biosphere that is similar to the present, only extended indefinitely into the future. The current status quo is unbearable. Sustainable design optimizes human systems to have... [Read More]

COVID-19 has claimed the lives of 120,000 Americans (probably an underestimate) since it arrived in the US in January. The murder of George Floyd by a cop last month sparked protests against racial injustice, along with riots, across the world. More than 40 million Americans are unemployed as the country... [Read More]

I love walking. I live in downtown Houston, which is one of the few places in this car dominated city where you can conceivably walk to get everything you need. The street grid is city blocks are short and the streets are one way, so I can ramble around wherever... [Read More]

Hurricanes are eminently physical. You can literally feel the air change as they get closer. Typically the few days before a hurricane hits are extremely hot. The clouds turn a strange orange color. Then, the first fronts of the storm come. It starts to rain, constantly. In the beginning the... [Read More]

Both my mom and dad were raised as Catholics. They met in a Catholic Charismatic church group, so when I was born I was promptly baptized into the Church and taken along to Mass. Eventually my parents became fed up with the disapproving glances cast their way by fellow parishioners,... [Read More]

Over the past two months I had the opportunity to show my friend Lea, an intern from Germany working in my department at Rice, around my hometown, Houston, Texas. The best part about taking her around town was getting to see my home through the eyes of someone with literally... [Read More]

I’m going to discuss why I read. I recently listened to a conversation between Russ Roberts and Andy Matuschak on EconTalk, where they discuss one of Alex’s recent blogposts about why books are not a great way for people to gain knowledge. The conversation got me thinking about why I... [Read More]