In A Perfect World

Remembering the GI Bill

On Memorial Day, when we honor Americans of every political persuasion who gave their lives for their country, it's worth recalling that there are times in our history when America's political leaders worked together for the country's good. In 1944, the GI Bill was passed by both houses of Congress by unanimous votes, making it possible for millions of veterans returning from the war to go to school and own a home.

What Would You Sacrifice for a Major Breakthrough?

 
What would you sacrifice to solve a problem that has stumped mathematicians for more than a century? What if, at the conclusion of your creative breakthrough, you would be deluged with generous offers from top American universities? What if you could expect a million-dollar prize for solving that problem?

Russian mathematician and genius Grigory Perelman solved the Poincare Conjecture, a complex topological problem involving how to characterize three-dimensional spheres. With an unbending focus on mathematics since childhood and a mind possessed with nearly superhuman computing power, Perelman did what no man or woman could do before. But to do it required sacrificing nearly every vestige of a normal life. Now 43, this internationally acclaimed mathematician lives with his mother. 

Masha Gessen, author of the recently published and powerfully told Perfect Rigor: A Genius + The Mathematical Breakthrough of the Century, believes that Perelman has Asperger's Syndrome, an autistic condition that has enabled his singular focus and rigorous commitment to rules. But it also has made him unable to cope with the messy reality of everyday life and the social pressures that swirled around him and his extraordinary achievement.

In fact, Gessen describes how offended and hurt Perelman was by the outpouring of offers from schools such as Princeton, Columbia and MIT that followed his celebrated triumph. Rather than enjoying the flattery, he saw this behavior as signs of the crass commercialization of math, a lack of ethics, vulgar attempts to buy him off for all his hard work.

So what did he do? He dropped out. He is said to have stated that he was quitting mathematics forever.

Whatever level of eccentricity or madness (Gessen's word) Perelman suffers, I have to say that I admire his fearless stand enormously. He's forsaken most everything for what he believes is right.

Yes, it may be a loss for mathematics and for the universities and students who could learn from him, but he's offered an enduring principle: What matters most is not the fame or the fortune. It's the work itself. 

Wrestle with Contrary Ideas for a Vital Brain

See the New York Times story about the aging brain? Remember any of the details? No? Then, it's probably a good idea to check it out. There's both good news and useful advice for keeping your mind sharp.

First, the good news: A middle-aged person, while more easily distracted and more likely to forget details, has mental gifts that younger people don't usually have. "The brain, as it traverses middle age, gets better at recognizing the central idea, the big picture," writes Barbara Strauch. "If kept in good shape, the brain can continue to build pathways that help its owner recognize patterns and, as a consequence, see significance and even solutions much faster than a young person can."

And while researchers have long believed that the aging brain suffers significant brain cell loss, Strauch says that scientists in recent years are doubting this: "What is stuffed into your head may not have vanished but has simply been squirreled away in the folds of your neurons."

So what will it take to nourish and reawaken your brain? Get out of your comfort zone, confront contrary ideas and shake those synapses. Here's what Dr. Kathleen Taylor, a professor of St. Mary's College of California and a student of the brain, says: "As adults we have these well-trodden paths in our synapses. We have to crack the cognitive egg and scramble it up."

And this: “There’s a place for information. We need to know stuff. But we need to move beyond that and challenge our perception of the world. If you always hang around with those you agree with and read things that agree with what you already know, you’re not going to wrestle with your established brain connections.”

That's good advice -- for brains of every age.

Government spending is evil? Really?

The anti-government fanatics would have us believe that taxes are an abomination and the public should always oppose spending increases. Given our troubled economy and this incessant libertarian/Republican refrain, you might expect that voters would reject any initiatives that could raise their taxes.

But you would be wrong.

By a two-thirds majority, voters yesterday in Scottsdale, Ariz., (where I live) supported a budget override that allows the school district to increase its operating budget up to 10 percent a year to protect 179 teaching positions and support elementary school music programs, gifted services and after-school programs. The funds -- nearly $70 million over seven years -- would also help pay for library and other instructional materials, playground improvements, classroom technology, even fine arts materials. 

That's good for the kids and the schools, good for the community, good for jobs, good for business and economic development. It demonstrates that people are willing to pay for initiatives that improve or, in the face of brutal budget cuts, sustain the quality of life.

And this didn't just happen in the relatively affluent Scottsdale. Throughout the Phoenix area yesterday, voters passed more than 20 of these budget overrides and bond proposals to spend more money -- saving jobs, retaining or rehiring teachers, and helping keep class sizes down.

That's money well-spent. And that's not just my opinion. The voters have spoken -- and they agree.

Gustavo Dudamel's Wild Ride

 
Get ready: The wild ride of the Venezuelan wunderkind, 28-year-old Gustavo Dudamel, has begun. The new conductor of the L.A. Philharmonic wowed a crowd of 18,000 in his free debut at the Hollywood Bowl last Saturday, then dazzled the celebs and money bunch in his official inaugural performance Thursday night at Disney Hall.  

Dudamel's arrival promises an expanded repertoire of Latin American music, an extraordinary ability to infuse his orchestra with energy and skill, and a charismatic buoyancy that excites audiences. 

Music critics were hailing his Thursday debut of Mahler's First Symphony. This from Anthony Tommasini of  The New York Times: "For all the sheer energy of the music-making, here was a probing, rigorous and richly characterized interpretation, which Mr. Dudamel conducted from memory."

But as high as musical expectations are among classical aficionados, Dudamel's potential for transforming the L.A. cultural scene is even greater. He took part in El Sistema, a Venezuelan youth orchestra that trains young children from poor backgrounds in classical music. He is passionate about sharing classical music with the widest possible public -- including kids from impoverished backgrounds -- and he's already helping develop a classical program in L.A. like the one that's made his success possible. 

As a sign of his seriousness, he opened the Hollywood Bowl premiere by conducting an orchestra of young musicians, mostly from South-Central L.A., many of whom didn't even play an instrument a year ago. "Of course, we need education," Dudamel told the crowd. "Of course, we need food. Of course, we need health care. But arts culture is the soul of the community of the world."

Greg Mortenson and the Nobel Peace Prize

The Nobel Committee is scheduled to announce its peace prize decision in two days. I don't know if Greg Mortenson is high on the list of nominees or not, but I hope he is. If I could select the winner, Greg will soon be dressing up for an evening of accolades in Oslo.

Why him? Maybe you've heard that the bestselling author of Three Cups of Tea has devoted himself to building more than 80 schools and educating more than 30,000 children (most of them girls) in remote areas of Pakistan and Afghanistan faced with poverty, violent conflict or religious extremism. But he's also taken his message of peace and education to U.S. military leaders -- Gen. David Petraeus, Joint Chiefs' chairman Adm. Mike Mullen and others -- and gotten them to listen and act on the idea that you cannot improve the on-the-ground reality or decrease the potential threats without respecting the local people and building relationships.   

I had the chance to spend a day with Greg in his home of Bozeman, Montana, for a profile I was writing for Four Seasons Magazine earlier this year. He did what he says you should do in his book: He took time, drank tea with me, shared his personal stories, introduced me to his lovely family. He was kind, but more than that he was open and vulnerable, surprisingly modest and deeply passionate about his work.

I came away impressed -- and I'm pulling for his success. On the broken terrain of Pakistan and Afghanistan. And in the halls of Oslo. The more people who know about what Greg Mortenson is doing, the better.

Talk about an Unlikely Trio

Here's a combo that made me pause. Newt Gingrich, Al Sharpton and Arne Duncan -- on tour this month and next -- for "Listening and Learning." Really?

It turns out that as far away as they may be on many political issues, they share a hunger for education reform and a belief in the necessity of closing the achievement gap along racial and socioeconomic lines. They've even agreed that this is a "civil rights" issue. According to Sharpton, it was President Obama who suggested this tour in May when they were at the White House to celebrate the 55th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education.  

And the attitude is amazing. Imagine: Politicians acknowledging that their answers may not be the only answers -- at least in this case. "All of us agree that we have to do something, even though we don't always agree on how to get it done," Sharpton told The Philadelphia Inquirer. "It's the kind of bipartisan spirit we didn't see with healthcare, but we need to see with education."

Ain't that the truth.