the Evil Line

There are a lot of answers to the Edge question, so I should be allowed at least one more post discussing them (earlier ones are here and here).

Philip Zimbardo offers an at once depressing and optimistic look at the human condition, one that rings true and that echoes the sentiment in the quotation at the top of this page. Diane F. Halpern suggests, without meaning to, that moral considerations can outweigh scientific ability and personal choice.

Michael Shermer wins the sound bite award: "Where goods cross frontiers, armies won't." And W. Daniel Hillis wins the honesty award.