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November 20, 2012 According to some very smart people, the odds are overwhelming that you are just self-conscious software in a giant simulation. Sorry. Take a look around; just how real does everything look? Reality, however real, may just not be what you think it is.

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November 20, 2012 The escalation of hostilities between Hamas and Israel has put post-Arab Spring Egypt's relationships to the test. Gary Varvel sees Israel getting the short end of the deal, while Paresh Nath thinks Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi faces a difficult task.

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November 19, 2012 Some members of Congress and the media are trying to show a link between Gen. David Petraeus' resignation and the controversy over the U.S. Consulate attack in Benghazi. Chip Bok is a true believer in a causal link, while Mike Luckovich sees only conspiracy-mongering.

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November 18, 2012 As diagnoses of autism have risen, so too have autistic characters in literature. Tasha Robinson explains how an "intelligent outsider's view of humanity" has led to a growing number of autistic characters in young adult fiction.

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November 18, 2012 Romney's remark that he lost the election as a result of Obama's "gifts" to African-Americans, Hispanics and young Americans has reinvigorated a meme that Romney tried to quash. John Darkow thinks the former governor was engaging in hypocrisy, while Mike Lester is in full accord with Romney's views.

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November 17, 2012 In a week in which the news has been filled with a fiscal cliff, rockets, sex and security, a restaurant review also raised a ruckus. New York Times critic Pete Wells took on Food Network star Guy Fieri's new restaurant, but his motives for doing so remain elusive.

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November 17, 2012 One of the key sticking points in a deal to avoid the fiscal cliff is whether wealthy Americans will pay more taxes. Adam Zyglis thinks continuing tax cuts for the rich has no real support, while Lisa Benson feels that ending the cuts would be only a drop in the lunch bucket.

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November 16, 2012 Can fundraising actually be fun? Howard H. Stevenson debunks some of philanthropy's biggest myths — and offers five gems about the art of doing good.

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November 16, 2012 One day before Friday's deadline, states were given a 28-day extension to decide whether they'll participate in health insurance exchanges. Joe Heller thinks the time for excuses is through, but, as Joel Pett prophesied last July, new challenges to the health care bill are already being mounted.

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November 16, 2012 Our kids are bombarded with stresses, and sensory overload, at home, on the playground and in the classroom. Commentator Barbara J. King reads the work of Canadian psychologist Stuart Shanker and considers concrete strategies to help our children self-regulate.

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November 15, 2012 There are some who think it might be a good idea to go over the "fiscal cliff." Gary Varvel fears what it means for the U.S. economy, while Milt Prigee sees a deep downside for President Obama.

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November 14, 2012 Human-machine integration looms on the horizon, with a promise to redefine who we are as people. Inventor and futurist Ray Kurzweil is an apostle of the coming Singularity, a time when it is envisioned that technology will advance to the point that life is redefined as something other than what we know and experience today.

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