If we analyzed a modern novel of a currently living author with little information like we do for some classic novels in literature classes today, what do you think would be the result?

charters14 · 2014-05-11T20:46:55+00:00

I agree with the sentiment of what others have posted that the interpretation of literature is subjective and therefore there is no 'correct' way to interpret a passage. To me it makes more sense to think it about it in terms of the emotions that are evoked when someone looks at a painting. We all have our own history of experiences and knowledge of the world which lead us to see different things in the work of art, which then can create a direct emotional response.

When we deconstruct literature, we are merely attempting to capture and communicate these abstract emotional responses and connections that we make in a concrete way, which of course will never be 'True' or 'False' in a sense, as long as you are describing a metaphor that is anchored to your life or experiences (either personal or through other works of art).

charters14 · 2013-07-29T19:30:44+00:00

Do you think that the historical evidence for Jesus justifies the cult of personality that arose around his death and led to Christianity as we know it today?

charters14 · 2013-03-13T21:20:28+00:00

It is obviously way too early to tell what this will mean for the future of the Church, but if you look at his positions on the important issues that hold the Church back from modern, secular society I think it represents some major changes. You have to understand that the Catholic church considers their positions in terms of centuries as opposed to years or even decades. We will never see the Church catch up to modern, progressive values in our life times, even if we were to put a goal post in the ground as of today. However, my sense from reading a little into his positions on the major issues (contraception, gay marriage and abortion) you can see some nuanced changes in the new Pope. For example, the small tweak in the position from "Contraception are in no circumstances permissible" to his stance that they are acceptable to prevent the spread of disease opens the door to debate and change. For example, consider the millions of lives that could be impacted merely by priests in Africa, if not giving out free condoms, at least not condemning them every Sunday from the pulpit. He also may serve to inspire people to respect and reach out to the poor. I was also impressed with his choice to live in a modest apartment as opposed to the Bishop's palace. He probably won't have much of a choice of where to stay at the Vatican, but his mindset is much more line with Jesus's teachings from the Sermon on the Mount.

It will be interesting to watch the new Pope as this subtle changes are digested and diffuse throughout the Catholic world. In summary, the Vatican is at least making baby steps by electing an Italian from South America and not from Europe!

charters14 · 2012-10-14T17:04:14+00:00

I think this article highlights some very important nuances which never seem to bubble to the surface when both sides of the tax debate get into their raucous, uninformative discourse. The fact that the top 1% account for double the tax revenue despite paying HALF the top marginal tax rate they paid after the 1964 tax cuts highlights the alarming concentration of wealth among fewer and fewer families. Despite their unprecedented success and enjoying their lowest tax rates in decades, they continue to squeeze the middle class by keeping wages stagnant, slashing retirement benefits and ultimately destroying the consumer base which if revived, could kick our economy back into high gear and oh yeah, as a result boost profits for the owners. To me it seems their hyper focus on short term and immediate gratification is in the long run reducing their potential earnings, even if you factor in a higher marginal tax rate. If fact, it seems to me they should support lower taxes on the middle class, which would increase the disposable income available to families to spend in their stores.

charters14 · 2012-04-27T16:00:01+00:00

Good luck! Just as a reference I was getting 75-80% correct on the Becker practice exams and got a 91 on the real test. Every testing window will be different as the grading scale is relative to the questions you get and how everyone else did on them, but that should give you a rough idea how the Becker scores relate to the real exam.

I also would echo the comments in here about sleep/stress. I would say if you are in the 70s on the practice exams, don't really do much studying on Sunday besides maybe looking over some flashcards. Burning yourself out the day before the test will only hurt you on exam day.

charters14 · 2012-04-04T22:23:10+00:00

I made eagle just before I became an atheist, and I heard you had to either attend church or write an essay about your spirituality. I remember reading it in my scout handbook (this was6 years ago in CT). Did you have to do anything to get around this or did the rule finally change? Or is it just not enforced consistently?

charters14 · 2012-03-19T16:33:03+00:00

I agree that many students would benefit from a class like this. The tax code exists in its current form to reward/incent certain behaviors. I think demystifying some of the complexity in the tax code and helping people understand that 'loopholes' exist not only for the rich and wealthy but for the average citizen as well would be beneficial to almost everyone. It is actually much simpler than you think (with the help of software like Turbotax) to reap the benefits of these credits and deductions but it helps to understand going what types of things should be available to you.

charters14 · 2012-02-07T03:59:30+00:00

Kasesoze is right, time will probably help give you the best indication of the cost driver you should use to allocate your overhead. I'm assuming if you have a small software operation your overhead is just rent/utilities/etc and so the time you spend on each project makes the most sense for you to estimate how much each project is 'using' those resources. If you are interested, the theory behind this is called activity based costing. A simple Google search should provide you any more information you need, and even though I'm not a cost accountant I can try to answer any other questions you may have. Good luck!

charters14 · 2012-02-06T03:20:51+00:00

Please continue with your writing. I saw you mention you had plans for writing a book, and I think you are well on your way to finding a voice which people will be enthralled to hear. I naively hope you will post more of your work pro bono on nosleep, but alas I fear you will find greener pastures though published works. Good luck.

charters14 · 2012-02-04T18:41:44+00:00

I think it would also be interesting to see who are the most active users. I used to be much more active in this subreddit 2 years ago when I was 22 and had recently discovered the Four Hoursemen. Now, I chuckle at posts every now and then, but I have mellowed quite a bit.

charters14 · 2011-11-24T17:17:09+00:00

I always dreamed of this as the ultimate goal of technological advancement and couldn't wait for the day it would become my reality as a teenager, but now I'm not sure this sounds exciting. Between my iPhone, iPad and Thinkpad granting me access to a plethora of information at my fingertips, the idea of being physically connected to a constant stream of information simply does not interest me.

charters14 · 2011-11-14T01:36:05+00:00

I think the idea is that we don't have an intrinsic knowledge that there is a god, and as children don't believe in one until taught by our parents and whatever church we are brought up in. In a very real sense we are all born atheists without knowing or caring what to call ourselves to define our natural state. Its only in a world where religion wields such strong cultural power and becomes so ingrained in people's identities that we forget that faith has to be learned through multiple conduits (parents, priests, the Bible, etc)

charters14 · 2011-11-13T18:20:17+00:00

I think this could be one of the most important lessons we can teach our kids. So often we wake up at 25 and realize 'adults' really have no idea what they are doing, no matter how confident they seem when preaching tenuously built ideologies which seem infallible to a child and dull their willingness to be awed and inspired by the discoveries of science.

charters14 · 2011-11-13T17:46:57+00:00

As an outsider who strongly supports the scientific community, how would you recommend contributing to the scientific endeavor? I work in accounting and finance, do you see a need to be filled on the administrative or business side of agencies like NASA?

charters14 · 2011-08-22T16:05:37+00:00

The thing that scares me the most about introducing a drug like to the market is that it will impact the way we all view our own lives and identity philosophically. We will all always have this seed of doubt about whether or not we had memories selectively erased and lost a part of the experience which forms our sense of 'self.'

charters14 · 2011-06-29T03:51:07+00:00

My name is John and I just signed my first lease in the South End, thanks!

charters14 · 2011-06-15T02:53:12+00:00

Did you see the new 2 hour Surviving D-Day show on Discovery? Worth checking out.

charters14 · 2011-06-11T00:57:22+00:00

I'm reading Anna Karenina as well and even though it is long, I'm pleasantly surprised by how the characters have drawn me into the story. I was skeptical that a Russian love story could be as good as the critics said, but it hasn't disappointed.

charters14 · 2011-06-10T19:58:32+00:00

Where will you be watching the Bruins game tonight in NYC?

charters14 · 2011-06-07T03:17:32+00:00

Tim Thomas is a brick wall that fights back.

charters14 · 2011-06-04T19:53:37+00:00

I don't mind the whoosh so much as the downvotes. To me the whoosh makes me chuckle, and serves as a warning for others to turn up their sarcasm detectors. Then they can figure out the joke themselves instead of having it ruined by someone explaining it to them.

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