In fact, the answers that religion, as we have come to know it, provides to the question of human worth have played so dominant a role in the preceding centuries that believers often cannot conceive how non-believers can muster sufficient commitment to their own lives to get out of bed each morning, let alone the ethical wherewithal to regard others as deserving of moral regard. Once one "comes out" as an atheist, these are the inquisitions to which one is often subjected.

In Greek, our word for play is paidia and the word for education is paideia, and it is very natural and right that these words should be entangled at the root, together with our word for children, paides, which gave you your words pedagogy and pediatrician.

That's one of the compensations for being mediocre. One doesn't have to worry about becoming mediocre.

Philosophy addresses, in a systematic and progress-making way, questions of deep concern to everyone.

Having your husband at a party is like adding anchovies to a salad. I love anchovies, but you can't taste anything else.

In order to refute a conclusion, you have to put forth the best possible argument for it.

If we don't understand our tools, then there is a danger we will become the tool of our tools. We think of ourselves as Google's customers, but really we're its products.