Ben Wurgaft
@benwurgaft.bsky.social
writer, historian, appetite!
there is a humanistic equivalent to innumeracy besides "illiteracy."
https://benwurgaft.org/
there is a humanistic equivalent to innumeracy besides "illiteracy."
https://benwurgaft.org/
Pinned
Ben Wurgaft
@benwurgaft.bsky.social
· May 18
I have a new cool guy thing I do which is, when I see a driver weaving across lanes of highway traffic, I say "whoa check out Anni Albers over there."
Best thing I ever did in the History dept. at Berkeley is spend hundreds of their dollars at Kermit Lynch Wine (for a conference)
November 27, 2025 at 7:51 PM
Best thing I ever did in the History dept. at Berkeley is spend hundreds of their dollars at Kermit Lynch Wine (for a conference)
I’m going to a Thanksgiving hosted by a fellow food writer but I expect the real star of the weekend will be reading, starting with @martin65.bsky.social’s Dogwitch
November 27, 2025 at 1:38 PM
I’m going to a Thanksgiving hosted by a fellow food writer but I expect the real star of the weekend will be reading, starting with @martin65.bsky.social’s Dogwitch
I'm at the "Promote Your Book! People Want to Hear About Your Book!" I'm at the "Bemoan NSF's Cancellation of the Program that Made Your Book Possible"
I'm at the combination "Promote Your Book! People Want to Hear About Your Book!" "Bemoan NSF's Cancellation of the Program that Made Your Book Pos-
I'm at the combination "Promote Your Book! People Want to Hear About Your Book!" "Bemoan NSF's Cancellation of the Program that Made Your Book Pos-
November 26, 2025 at 9:59 PM
I'm at the "Promote Your Book! People Want to Hear About Your Book!" I'm at the "Bemoan NSF's Cancellation of the Program that Made Your Book Possible"
I'm at the combination "Promote Your Book! People Want to Hear About Your Book!" "Bemoan NSF's Cancellation of the Program that Made Your Book Pos-
I'm at the combination "Promote Your Book! People Want to Hear About Your Book!" "Bemoan NSF's Cancellation of the Program that Made Your Book Pos-
Reposted by Ben Wurgaft
'I was left thinking that Effective Altruism is in fact the perfect philosophy for our time, given that our time is wallpapered by instrumentality, afflicted with a craze for the STEM-ish value of measurability, & obsessed with something...called “impact.”'
Enjoyed @benwurgaft.bsky.social's latest
Enjoyed @benwurgaft.bsky.social's latest
Opinion | How a Thought Experiment Changed the World
Peter Singer and the roots of effective altruism.
www.chronicle.com
November 26, 2025 at 3:53 PM
'I was left thinking that Effective Altruism is in fact the perfect philosophy for our time, given that our time is wallpapered by instrumentality, afflicted with a craze for the STEM-ish value of measurability, & obsessed with something...called “impact.”'
Enjoyed @benwurgaft.bsky.social's latest
Enjoyed @benwurgaft.bsky.social's latest
Perhaps like me you don't live in Portland, ME, but often wish you did. Maybe one reason (as for me) is Tandem Coffee, whose pie is superb. They are raising money for Wayside Food Programs in Maine - you get their pie dough recipe for a donation of $5 or more: www.tandemcoffee.com/products/pie...
Pie Dough (Recipe) For The People
A digital recipe. The foundation of something good. A way to help. Happy holidays! We've made this video to help you through one of the most important parts of a homemade feast—the pie crust. Tandem h...
www.tandemcoffee.com
November 25, 2025 at 3:46 PM
Perhaps like me you don't live in Portland, ME, but often wish you did. Maybe one reason (as for me) is Tandem Coffee, whose pie is superb. They are raising money for Wayside Food Programs in Maine - you get their pie dough recipe for a donation of $5 or more: www.tandemcoffee.com/products/pie...
Reposted by Ben Wurgaft
the code is PENN-HOLIDAY25 -- get yours now!
Ah, @pennpress.bsky.social has just announced their holiday sale! 40% off means that the paperback of my book on philosophy's encounter with "the public intellectual," Thinking in Public, is about $20.
100% of the historical analysis for 60% of the price.
www.pennpress.org/978081222434...
100% of the historical analysis for 60% of the price.
www.pennpress.org/978081222434...
Thinking in Public – Penn Press
Long before we began to speak of "public intellectuals," the ideas of "the public" and "the intellectual" raised consternation among many European philosophe...
www.pennpress.org
November 24, 2025 at 8:34 PM
the code is PENN-HOLIDAY25 -- get yours now!
Ah, @pennpress.bsky.social has just announced their holiday sale! 40% off means that the paperback of my book on philosophy's encounter with "the public intellectual," Thinking in Public, is about $20.
100% of the historical analysis for 60% of the price.
www.pennpress.org/978081222434...
100% of the historical analysis for 60% of the price.
www.pennpress.org/978081222434...
Thinking in Public – Penn Press
Long before we began to speak of "public intellectuals," the ideas of "the public" and "the intellectual" raised consternation among many European philosophe...
www.pennpress.org
November 24, 2025 at 5:48 PM
Ah, @pennpress.bsky.social has just announced their holiday sale! 40% off means that the paperback of my book on philosophy's encounter with "the public intellectual," Thinking in Public, is about $20.
100% of the historical analysis for 60% of the price.
www.pennpress.org/978081222434...
100% of the historical analysis for 60% of the price.
www.pennpress.org/978081222434...
Reposted by Ben Wurgaft
nice review of Across the Universe in the @latimes.com!
latimes.com/entertainment-arts/books/story/2025-11-24/crossword-history-natan-last
"Last’s range and intelligence help sell the importance of the crossword, then and now."
latimes.com/entertainment-arts/books/story/2025-11-24/crossword-history-natan-last
"Last’s range and intelligence help sell the importance of the crossword, then and now."
The crossword has a radical history. A puzzle veteran explores why
Natan Last’s book delves into the crossword's century-long story, exploring what the grids we solve reveal about news and culture.
latimes.com
November 24, 2025 at 2:53 PM
nice review of Across the Universe in the @latimes.com!
latimes.com/entertainment-arts/books/story/2025-11-24/crossword-history-natan-last
"Last’s range and intelligence help sell the importance of the crossword, then and now."
latimes.com/entertainment-arts/books/story/2025-11-24/crossword-history-natan-last
"Last’s range and intelligence help sell the importance of the crossword, then and now."
Reposted by Ben Wurgaft
Palgrave, a former haven of academic publishing and home of rather expensive books, now proudly features this small recycling advice: “if disposing of this product, please recycle the paper”.
November 24, 2025 at 8:43 AM
Palgrave, a former haven of academic publishing and home of rather expensive books, now proudly features this small recycling advice: “if disposing of this product, please recycle the paper”.
Reposted by Ben Wurgaft
Haven’t read this yet, but guaranteed to be a banger from @benwurgaft.bsky.social
‘Effective Altruism did not originate in the clean room of a thought experiment but in the matrix of compromise we call a social world … from conversations among elites and has necessarily been molded by the pressures on them and the opportunities afforded them.’
By @benwurgaft.bsky.social
By @benwurgaft.bsky.social
Opinion | How a Thought Experiment Changed the World
Peter Singer and the roots of effective altruism.
www.chronicle.com
November 23, 2025 at 7:06 PM
Haven’t read this yet, but guaranteed to be a banger from @benwurgaft.bsky.social
A movie that takes place where you're from: Good Will Hunting, specifically the bar scene in which the Matt Damon character takes the air out of a Harvard jerk who quotes academic history at him (I'm the jerk).
November 23, 2025 at 9:55 PM
A movie that takes place where you're from: Good Will Hunting, specifically the bar scene in which the Matt Damon character takes the air out of a Harvard jerk who quotes academic history at him (I'm the jerk).
One is reminded of the old Harvard chant, ”you may win, but you have to go back to [or stay in] New Haven.”
November 23, 2025 at 2:55 PM
One is reminded of the old Harvard chant, ”you may win, but you have to go back to [or stay in] New Haven.”
Reposted by Ben Wurgaft
‘Effective Altruism did not originate in the clean room of a thought experiment but in the matrix of compromise we call a social world … from conversations among elites and has necessarily been molded by the pressures on them and the opportunities afforded them.’
By @benwurgaft.bsky.social
By @benwurgaft.bsky.social
Opinion | How a Thought Experiment Changed the World
Peter Singer and the roots of effective altruism.
www.chronicle.com
November 23, 2025 at 1:05 PM
‘Effective Altruism did not originate in the clean room of a thought experiment but in the matrix of compromise we call a social world … from conversations among elites and has necessarily been molded by the pressures on them and the opportunities afforded them.’
By @benwurgaft.bsky.social
By @benwurgaft.bsky.social
[in analytic session]
Me: what if ‘the dreamer’s disease’ is actually narcolepsy?
My analyst: what is a ‘New Radical’? You mean the New Left Review?
Me: what if ‘the dreamer’s disease’ is actually narcolepsy?
My analyst: what is a ‘New Radical’? You mean the New Left Review?
November 22, 2025 at 12:11 AM
[in analytic session]
Me: what if ‘the dreamer’s disease’ is actually narcolepsy?
My analyst: what is a ‘New Radical’? You mean the New Left Review?
Me: what if ‘the dreamer’s disease’ is actually narcolepsy?
My analyst: what is a ‘New Radical’? You mean the New Left Review?
Reposted by Ben Wurgaft
bolo tie with chrysoprase setting, extra-long staples, genuine saffron, money clip in the shape of daffy duck, extendable turf rake, “live laugh love”parody signs reading “stop drop roll”, extra-strength paracetamol from tj, middle-tier monthly patreon subscription to dr. bronner’s copywriter
reaching stick, pants zipper-upper robot, butler whose only job is to get you a cotton pad when you're doing skincare, bamboo that grows exactly fast enough to turn on the light switch every morning, guy to cut back the bamboo at night, overnight oats from the store
November 21, 2025 at 4:17 PM
bolo tie with chrysoprase setting, extra-long staples, genuine saffron, money clip in the shape of daffy duck, extendable turf rake, “live laugh love”parody signs reading “stop drop roll”, extra-strength paracetamol from tj, middle-tier monthly patreon subscription to dr. bronner’s copywriter
As news of dramatic restructuring and cuts at the New School emerges, here is my 2020 review of Judith Friedlander's history of the New School for Social Research; she served there as anthropology professor and dean. I spent two years there as a postdoc.
www.gothamcenter.org/blog/the-eni...
www.gothamcenter.org/blog/the-eni...
The Enigma of Rescue: On a Recent History of the New School for Social Research — The Gotham Center for New York City History
The Enigma of Rescue: On a Recent History of the New School for Social Research By Ben Wurgaft The New School for Social Research holds a story of rescue dear. This is the tale of how its co-found...
www.gothamcenter.org
November 21, 2025 at 4:04 PM
As news of dramatic restructuring and cuts at the New School emerges, here is my 2020 review of Judith Friedlander's history of the New School for Social Research; she served there as anthropology professor and dean. I spent two years there as a postdoc.
www.gothamcenter.org/blog/the-eni...
www.gothamcenter.org/blog/the-eni...
Myusy, a festive sea slug, is a mascot for the coastal town of Hayama, in Kanagawa Prefecture. He never sleeps. He says that he will never die. He dances in light and in shadow and he is a great favorite.
Myusy, a festive sea slug, is a mascot for the coastal town of Hayama, in Kanagawa Prefecture. Myusy supports beach cleanups and activities to protect the marine environment.
November 21, 2025 at 3:17 PM
Myusy, a festive sea slug, is a mascot for the coastal town of Hayama, in Kanagawa Prefecture. He never sleeps. He says that he will never die. He dances in light and in shadow and he is a great favorite.
Reposted by Ben Wurgaft
bears repeating
I know I say this a lot, but the performances of our public intellectuals are usually persuasive arguments for everyone to cultivate their private judgment.
November 20, 2025 at 4:19 PM
bears repeating
Reposted by Ben Wurgaft
"A philistine neither knows nor cares anything about art, including literature—his essential nature is anti-artistic—but he wants information and he is trained to read magazines...The philistine does not distinguish one writer from another"
November 19, 2025 at 2:26 PM
"A philistine neither knows nor cares anything about art, including literature—his essential nature is anti-artistic—but he wants information and he is trained to read magazines...The philistine does not distinguish one writer from another"
Reposted by Ben Wurgaft
Adjuncts, indie scholars, publishers, journal eds: please spread the word about this and help me do recon! It's so hard w/ social media being so fragmented to learn about all the great lit studies articles and books pub'd this year by contingent/indie folx. I know there's lots! Deadline: end of Nov.
It’s that time of year friends! Thanks to @erinbartram.bsky.social and our friends at @contingent-mag.bsky.social, Laura and I are putting together a list of 2025 articles & books by contingent & indie lit critters. DM, reply, email me @ suny press. And spread the word!!
We are at it again! Myself & the wonderful @rcolesworthy.bsky.social😍
Seeking pubs -- articles, book chapters, monographs -- by contingent lit scholars for the 2025 list 👇👇 please spread the word!!!
contingentmagazine.org/2024/12/08/2...
Seeking pubs -- articles, book chapters, monographs -- by contingent lit scholars for the 2025 list 👇👇 please spread the word!!!
contingentmagazine.org/2024/12/08/2...
November 19, 2025 at 1:52 PM
Adjuncts, indie scholars, publishers, journal eds: please spread the word about this and help me do recon! It's so hard w/ social media being so fragmented to learn about all the great lit studies articles and books pub'd this year by contingent/indie folx. I know there's lots! Deadline: end of Nov.
I was a postdoc at NSSR in 2010-12 and taught undergrads and grad students. I’m anxious on behalf of everyone currently seeking an education or a livelihood at the new school.
November 19, 2025 at 2:07 PM
I was a postdoc at NSSR in 2010-12 and taught undergrads and grad students. I’m anxious on behalf of everyone currently seeking an education or a livelihood at the new school.
Reposted by Ben Wurgaft
The New School is now a place where students cannot major in History, Anthropology, Sociology, Global Policy & International Affairs, Global Studies, Urban Studies, or Environmental Studies. And more pauses, closures, and mergers coming down the pike this week. The future is uncertain.
November 19, 2025 at 1:15 PM
The New School is now a place where students cannot major in History, Anthropology, Sociology, Global Policy & International Affairs, Global Studies, Urban Studies, or Environmental Studies. And more pauses, closures, and mergers coming down the pike this week. The future is uncertain.
Reposted by Ben Wurgaft
“Do you want to trust the person whose head is full of math instead of feeling? Myself, I would prefer a less-abstract pattern of moral responsiveness — call it analog morality, if you will, the kind that happens in our real lives outside of thought experiments.” — @benwurgaft.bsky.social
as a topic for journalism, moral philosophy appears meek - but what if we add a collegiate social movement, billionaires, and a healthy dose of scandal? I reviewed David Edmonds' new book on the Effective Altruists and Peter Singer, for @chronicle.com: www.chronicle.com/article/drow...
Opinion | How a Thought Experiment Changed the World
Peter Singer and the roots of effective altruism.
www.chronicle.com
November 18, 2025 at 11:55 PM
“Do you want to trust the person whose head is full of math instead of feeling? Myself, I would prefer a less-abstract pattern of moral responsiveness — call it analog morality, if you will, the kind that happens in our real lives outside of thought experiments.” — @benwurgaft.bsky.social
holiday book shoppers, East Bay Booksellers has assembled a mighty catalogue full of literature, politics, and great small press titles and you can browse it here:
(honored our Ways of Eating is one of the titles, @ahablives.bsky.social )
simplebooklet.com/holiday-cata...
(honored our Ways of Eating is one of the titles, @ahablives.bsky.social )
simplebooklet.com/holiday-cata...
Holiday Catalog 2025
Holiday Catalog 2025
simplebooklet.com
November 18, 2025 at 10:35 PM
holiday book shoppers, East Bay Booksellers has assembled a mighty catalogue full of literature, politics, and great small press titles and you can browse it here:
(honored our Ways of Eating is one of the titles, @ahablives.bsky.social )
simplebooklet.com/holiday-cata...
(honored our Ways of Eating is one of the titles, @ahablives.bsky.social )
simplebooklet.com/holiday-cata...
Reposted by Ben Wurgaft
This promises to be an excellent piece—clicking over to Ben’s essay now.
as a topic for journalism, moral philosophy appears meek - but what if we add a collegiate social movement, billionaires, and a healthy dose of scandal? I reviewed David Edmonds' new book on the Effective Altruists and Peter Singer, for @chronicle.com: www.chronicle.com/article/drow...
Opinion | How a Thought Experiment Changed the World
Peter Singer and the roots of effective altruism.
www.chronicle.com
November 18, 2025 at 6:43 PM
This promises to be an excellent piece—clicking over to Ben’s essay now.