The Marginalian
The Marginalian

Search results for “a burst of light”

Hand-Lettered Illustrations of Emily Dickinson’s Poetry
Hand-Lettered Illustrations of Emily Dickinson’s Poetry

“Tell all the Truth but tell it slant . . .The Truth must dazzle gradually / Or every man be blind”

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John Updike on the Universe and Why There is Something Rather Than Nothing
John Updike on the Universe and Why There is Something Rather Than Nothing

“The mystery of being is a permanent mystery, at least given the present state of the human brain.”

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We Got Merge: Noam Chomsky on the Cognitive Function that Made Language Evolve
We Got Merge: Noam Chomsky on the Cognitive Function that Made Language Evolve

“You got an operation that enables you to take mental objects … already constructed … and make bigger mental objects out of them.”

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The 11 Best Art and Design Books of 2011
The 11 Best Art and Design Books of 2011

From the Periodic Table to Craigslist, or what the greatest graphic designer of all time has to do with Moby-Dick.

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Stefanie Posavec Visualizes The Best of <em>Brain Pickings</em>
Stefanie Posavec Visualizes The Best of Brain Pickings

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What Actually Happens While You Sleep and How It Affects Your Every Waking Moment
What Actually Happens While You Sleep and How It Affects Your Every Waking Moment

“We are living in an age when sleep is more comfortable than ever and yet more elusive.”

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The Usefulness of Useless Knowledge: A 1939 Manifesto for the Incalculable Rewards of Joyful Curiosity
The Usefulness of Useless Knowledge: A 1939 Manifesto for the Incalculable Rewards of Joyful Curiosity

“Our conception of what is useful may… have become too narrow to be adequate to the roaming and capricious possibilities of the human spirit.”

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5 Art and Design Projects Inspired by Literary Classics
5 Art and Design Projects Inspired by Literary Classics

From James Joyce to Jonah, or what the Brontë Sisters’ objectification of men has to do with Holden Caulfield.

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5 Must-Read Books by TED Global 2011 Speakers
5 Must-Read Books by TED Global 2011 Speakers

What the pursuit of pleasure has to do with lie-detection, the history of money and the sorrows of work.

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Brain Pickings Redux: Best of 2009
Brain Pickings Redux: Best of 2009

A year’s worth of ideas, inspiration and innovation from culture’s collective brain.

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