02 Feb R&D | Fake Commute | Liberal Arts

Three Things – January 27, 2021

First Thing: Government R&D

 
There is a strong case for public (aka government) spending on research and development even among conservative economists.

As an economic conservative I approach government spending in private industry with a degree of skepticism. Not only can it cause an artificial ‘steroid-like’ effect in an industry, it also opens the door to favoritism and under-the-table deals.

I want to share two resources I happened to read this week regarding government R&D expenditures:

1. Molecules, Missions and Money, The Economist 16 Jan 2021: While the article is mostly focused on describing the current state of international R&D spending, it’s very clear that government involvement has a huge impact. US government R&D spending as a percentage of GDP has consistently fallen over the past four decades, and increasing spending “by even a few tenths of a percentage points could make a big difference.” R&D doesn’t always pay off, but it maintains a sense of a national ‘mission’ and greats new pathways for national growth.
2. Democracy in America, Alexis de Tocqueville [II 1.10] 1835: Tocqueville spends a good deal of time explaining the connection between democracy and human ingenuity. Long story short, giving people the right to individuality encourages inventive thinking. Still, Tocqueville recognizes the long-term need for government leadership in the area of innovation, suggesting that “from now on all the effort of the social power must be brought to sustain advanced studies and to create great scientific passion.”

My reflection is this: there are a whole lot of things that our government doesn’t need to be spending money on…R&D isn’t one of them. As we look to bring government spending under control I believe it is important to recognize the positive impacts research in A.I., alternative energy, space travel, and cancer treatment have on our world. Not only does it benefit real people but it sets the ‘mood’ for our nation: “We are a people of innovation.”

Second Thing: WSJ Article on ‘Fake Commutes’

 
A few months ago I started to get really excited about daily walks. It’s a very mindful activity and it has the double effect of clearing my head and stretching my legs after being alone in the home office all day.

Apparently I am not alone! The Wall Street Journal’s recent article “Welcome to the Fake Office Commute” discusses a trending new routine of ‘commuting’ to the home office. I love this idea! As humans we are programmed to seek routines and consistency. For many, the daily commute into work provides a subconscious moment of ‘mental preparation’ for the day ahead. It also establishes a physical ‘barrier’ between work-life and home-life. In this post-pandemic, WFO-era world, many of us aren’t commuting anymore and we lost that separation.

If you work from home full-time or even for one or two days each week, give this a try! Go for a 15 minute walk before or after the work day (I prefer after work) and see how it clears your head!

Third Thing: Liberal Arts

 
I stumbled upon a passage in Seneca the other day which gave a great description of ‘liberal arts’:

“Why ‘liberal studies’ are so called is obvious: it is because they are the ones considered worthy of a free man (‘liber‘). But there is really only one liberal study that deserves the name–because it makes a person free–and that is the pursuit of wisdom. Its high ideals, its steadfastness and spirit make all other studies puerile and puny in comparison.” –Seneca, Letters from a Stoic Letter LXXXVIII

The study of liberal arts has gone in and out of vogue over the decades, most recently being criticized as being ‘impractical’ and inferior to working-class skills and technical know-how.

There is a lot I could say about the importance of a formal liberal arts degree and how it can or should fit into one’s overall education, but the emphasis of liberal arts isn’t on the school or the degree–it’s about the person. Liberal arts is about broadening one’s perspective and strengthening one’s ability to reason. It’s about better-understanding the natural world and the systems that govern our human civilization.

Liberal arts isn’t just for white collars and academics, either. ‘Freeing oneself’ should be in everyone’s interest, whether you’re a black-smith, a barista, or an executive.