FAFO Comes to Child Care

(First edition photo by Bauman Rare Books)

A man named Spock has been blamed for why the baby boom generation purportedly lacked the strength of character of its predecessors. No, it wasn't Star Trek's famous Vulcan but Dr. Benjamin Spock, whose book, The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care (1946), sold over 50 million copies after World War II and revolutionized the thinking about child care.

Dr. Spock de-emphasized the fixed scheduling and withholding of affection promoted by pre-war education experts and advocated training of each child as an individual. (Personal note: my mother had a copy of Baby and Child Care on her bookshelf, and while I think my brothers and I turned out okay academically we certainly weren't as "tough" as our parents.)

(Lenneman/WSJ)

There is another philosophy now taking hold, best captured by the acronym FAFO. For the uninitiated, Grok explains (note: your humble delicate blogger has masked the "F" word with asterisks):

The term FAFO stands for "F*** Around and Find Out." It originated in American slang, particularly within online and social media contexts, as a pithy warning or retort implying that someone will face consequences for their reckless or provocative actions. The phrase gained traction in the early 2010s, especially on platforms like Twitter (now X), Reddit, and meme culture, where it was used humorously or defiantly to highlight cause-and-effect scenarios.

Its roots can be traced to informal, confrontational language often heard in street or bar settings, but it exploded in digital spaces due to its blunt, catchy nature. By 2020, FAFO was widely used in political, social, and cultural discussions, often tied to situations where someone’s actions lead to predictable repercussions. The term has since been adopted in various contexts, from casual banter to protest slogans, and even appeared in merchandise and media.

No specific individual or event is credited with coining it, but its spread was fueled by viral posts and memes, particularly during heated online debates.

Now back to FAFO in childhood education:

FAFO (often pronounced “faff-oh”) is based on the idea that parents can ask and warn, but if a child breaks the rules, mom and dad aren’t standing in the way of the repercussions. Won’t bring your raincoat? Walk home in the downpour. Didn’t feel like having lasagna for dinner? Survive until breakfast. Left your toy on the floor again? Go find it in the trash under the lasagna you didn’t eat.

Parenting that’s light on discipline has dominated the culture in recent decades. But critics blame the approach for some of Gen Z ’s problems in adulthood. They cite surveys that show young adults struggling with workplace relationships (was it because their parents never told them “no”?) and suffering from depression and anxiety (was it because their parents refereed all their problems?).

For parents who have spent years trying to meet their children’s emotional needs without slipping into overt permissiveness, FAFO can sound blessedly simple.

The reaction against Dr. Spock's methods didn't start with FAFO; "tough love" came into widespread use in 1968. Actions have consequences, and kids can't always count on their parents--or a forgiving world--to bail them out.

The Laughing Heir

(For sale on Amazon): But will your cat take care of you?

We are personally acquainted with Bay Area millionaires who are over-60, never been married, and never had children. (They are millionaires primarily because of the houses they bought over 25 years ago.)

The recent growth in this demographic has resulted in the phenomenon of the laughing heir: [bold added]

Charities, distant relatives and even pets are benefiting from surprise inheritances. They can thank people without children.

Not having children is becoming more common, both among millennials and older people. A July Pew Research Center analysis found that 20% of U.S. adults age 50 and older hadn’t had children.

And many of these people don’t have wills. An AARP survey found half of childless people age 50-plus who live alone have a will, compared with 57% of others that age. Those without wills have less control over what happens to their money, which often ends up in the hands of people who don’t expect it.

This phenomenon of a surprise inheritance is common enough that it has a name: the laughing heir.

“All they do is get the money and go, ‘Ah ha ha, look at that,’ ” said Michael Ettinger, an estate lawyer in New York.

Having a significant estate when a childless person dies may be the result of rational decision-making:

Financial advisers say a far bigger concern than who gets what is making sure there is enough money and support for a comfortable old age, because clients without children can’t call on them for help...

Choosing an estate executor and who would handle money and health decisions on your behalf can be difficult when you don’t have children, financial advisers say. Using a promised inheritance as a reward for taking care of you when you are older isn’t a good solution, said Jay Zigmont, an investment adviser focused on childless people.

“Unfortunately, it is relatively common to see family members who are in the will decide to opt for cheaper medical care (or similar decisions) in order to protect what they will be inheriting,” he said in an email.

The old-age safety net, which many still subscribe to, is to have children who will have your best interests at heart. (I've seen enough murder mysteries to know that this is not always the case!)

The second-best option appears to be letting your distant relatives know they will be remembered in the will for some assistance today. The risk, as mentioned above, is that the aforementioned relatives may prioritize keeping the size of the estate as large as possible at the expense of the elderly person's care. And, as they collect their inheritance, they'll be laughing all the way to the bank.

Bringing Your Kid to Work Has Its Risks

The first televised Presidential debates between Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy have been analyzed extensively by historians, and the consensus seems to be

that people who listened to the radio were more likely to vote for Nixon while people who watched the debates on television were more likely to vote for Kennedy. One of the explanations to this phenomena was presidential candidates physical appearances during the debates with Kennedy appearing better on television than Nixon.

As further proof that video is more impactful than audio, watch Rep. John Rose' (R-TN) speech on the House floor with his six-year-old son Guy seated behind him. Mute the sound in order to appreciate more fully why Guy dominated the show.

A child on the House floor while @repjohnrose delivers remarks. pic.twitter.com/HeNY5nNNEI

— CSPAN (@cspan) June 3, 2024

Whatever It Takes, Including Coloring Books and Crayons

Children are often invited to sit near the altar to
hear the homily (Church of the Brethren photo)

The "baby bust" is a worldwide topic of conversation nowadays, but most American Christians were aware of it two decades ago when the mainline Protestant denominations lamented the dearth of young adults in the pews. The wishful thinking back then was that it wasn't demographics but the lack of appealing messaging; certain denominations, like the Southern Baptists and the Latter-Day Saints (Mormons), appeared to be doing okay.

In 2024 the downturn in church attendance, especially among young people, has become obvious to everyone. Even the Baptists and the Mormons are struggling. Extrapolating from the current trend, Pew Research forecasted that Christians will be in the minority in 2070.

Families with young children are so prized that behaviors that once would have been frowned upon are now embraced for the long-term good.

Headline: If a Parish Isn’t Crying, It’s Dying

[Pope Francis] said, “It really irritates me when I see a child crying in church and someone says they must go out. God’s voice is in a child’s tears.”

If that’s so, then St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church in Hillsdale, Mich., is full of God’s voice. It is blessed to have many large families attending regularly. I was a member of the parish during college, and my wife became Catholic there. The cooing and shouting—often from newborns—serves as a backing track to each service, and few seem to mind. It’s no surprise: A stack of bookmark-size cards at the end of each pew informs visitors what the parish thinks about its informal children’s choir.

In defense of the shushers, your humble blogger/boomer must point out that, since I was forced to be quiet during service, I learned during the late 1950's to read "grown-up" language by following the service in the 1928 Book of Common Prayer. But that regimen isn't for everyone, and if coloring books and crayons are what keep the kids and more importantly their parents coming back, then I'm all for it.

Happy Days of Yore

Alumni Ron Howard (Richie Cunningham) and
Henry Winkler (the Fonz) - WSJ photo

WSJ editorialist Matthew Hennessey has a problem with pre-teen TV: [bold added]

like most parents, my wife and I are always on the hunt for “safe” shows for our kids to watch. Tween programming is as vapid as ever, but these days it comes with a distinct woke overlay. Pronoun preaching and climate propaganda have replaced slapstick and potty humor. None of that works for us.

His solution? "Happy Days," currently found on Amazon Prime. Mr. Hennessey's son especially likes the Fonz.

“Happy Days” was a half-hour situation comedy on ABC from 1974-84. Created by Garry Marshall, the show was set in Milwaukee and revolved around the middle-class Cunningham family, Howard and Marion and their children Richie and Joanie. Minor characters, Potsie and Ralph Malph, palled around at Arnold’s Diner, but the star was the Fonz...

It’s impossible to overstate the cultural importance of the Fonz in his time. He was the biggest thing on TV, which was the biggest thing in America...in leather jacket and tight jeans he was as cool as they come. The Fonz was a light caricature of the greaser archetype—slick, tough, a chick magnet. He rode a motorcycle and spoke in an incongruous Brooklynese (the mid-’70s were the height of the “Italian Stallion” phase of American masculinity). His cartoonish catchphrases—“Whoa!” “Sit on it!”—were ubiquitous.

"Happy Days" (1974-84) for me fell in that too-busy-to-watch-TV period after graduation but before kids. I did tune in occasionally to spinoffs Laverne & Shirley and Mork & Mindy, notable for the off-script improvisation by Robin Williams, as well as the H-D mother ship, but none of it was must-see programming worthy of being recorded on the new VCR.

"Happy Days" appears to be enjoying a revival. It didn't jump the shark after all.

Just Maintaining the Status Quo is Hard

Whatever one's views on abortion, there's no question that its reduced availability has made it riskier to be an obstetrician gynecologist who has to worry about running afoul of the law, even if he or she strives to be compliant.

Surveying the legal landscape, medical students may decide that being an OB/GYN is too tough because of regulatory requirements. The coming decline in the number of doctors who provide pregnancy, childbirth, and women's health services (not abortion) is probably not what pro-life lawmakers intended.

Now comes another blow: Hospitals Shutter Maternity Wards Amid Falling Birthrates

The closures are broadening a swath of America without maternity units, commonly communities that are sparsely populated or aging. The trend threatens to worsen infant health and maternal death rates that have hit the highest level in decades.

Hospitals that are closing maternity units said they can’t recruit enough staff to safely operate. Hospitals with fewer births are less attractive to doctors and nurses, executives said. Births at OSF HealthCare St. James-John W. Albrecht Medical Center in Illinois declined to 120 last year from 184 in 2019.

It's a sad state of affairs in 21st century America that, whether a woman wants to see through or terminate her pregnancy, she has to travel a greater distance to ensure a healthy outcome for herself.

Cute Kid

After picking up a morning coffee near the International Market Place I sat in the circular garden dedicated to Queen Emma.

A family of seven stopped to play. From their clothes and accessories, but more noticeably their self-assuredness they exuded an aura of wealth. The lady was a beautiful blonde, tanned and athletic. If I had not seen her kids I would not have believed that she was a mother five times over.

The father, who was about the same age, chased after the boy, 5, while the mother looked after her toddler daughter. The two eldest and the baby they left alone.

I was particularly amused by the baby. His head turning rapidly, he would assess his surroundings, then crawl to another spot and repeat the process. At intervals he would take a bite out of the malasada that he held tightly in his left hand. His parents clearly weren't worried about him ingesting harmful bacteria or rolling around on the heavily trafficked artificial turf.

They probably weren't Americans. and that was too bad.

Outward and Visible Signs

2011: At Sandwiches on Sunday children help to feed the hungry.

We've posted before about our hunch--perhaps it's wishful thinking--that church attendance has bottomed out.

But the feeling is based on more than self-absorbed Baby Boomers becoming conscious of their own mortality.

I've seen people coming back--or coming for the first time--because churches, independent of theology,

introduce their children to moral perspectives not found at school;

have already built a structure for helping the poor in the local community;

don't twist their arms for donations of money and time (some places do, but twistees can leave);

provide near-instantaneous feedback about volunteer efforts;

furnish a place where they can see beautiful art and architecture and listen to beautiful music once a week.

Speaking of the latter, composers are writing Christian classical music again:

Early Christian worship, following Jewish practice, emphasized the chanting of psalms by the priest or the choir. Protestant Reformers likewise emphasized the chanting of psalms and congregational singing. For several reasons, by the middle of the 20th century the practice had dwindled in the American church. But a renewed interest in liturgical worship is spurring new compositions. The Theopolis Institute is producing a Psalter with new chant settings of all 150 psalms. Expressly written for untrained singers—i.e., most of us—this new psalter is intended to renew the chanting of psalms as a central element of Reformed worship.

Another fascinating example emerges in recent works of composer Frank La Rocca of the Benedict XVI Institute. Mr. La Rocca’s “Mass of the Americas” draws on distinctly American Catholic religious themes. The work is a tribute to Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, patroness of the U.S., and Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of all the Americas. Musically, the “Mass of the Americas” incorporates Mexican folk hymns into the fabric of contemporary high-church sacred music, while showing due respect for its sources. It also includes possibly the first Ave Maria ever set in Nahuatl, the Aztec language in which Our Lady of Guadalupe spoke to San Juan Diego.

Below is an excerpt from the Mass of the Americas:



Related: The Surprising Surge of Faith Among Young People

Inevitable Deflation

There was a party at the house at the end, one of the few that has little kids.

The air pump was working from dawn to dusk. It had rained all week but today we only had a few drops. Were our neighbors lucky or smart?

After the fun came the inevitable deflation.

A truck came to haul the carcass away.

Everyone should sleep well tonight, though they have one hour less to do it.

After I Turned Two, It All Went Downhill

(Drawing from instantfp.co.uk)

The journal Psychological Science reports on experiments that study status quo bias. [bold added]

they got people to rate technologies that appeared at different times, from audiotape cassettes and video recorders to email and cell phones. There was a sharp difference between technologies that appeared before or after people were 2 years old, which is around the time we make our first lasting memories. People thought that technologies that appeared later were more harmful.

One man's status quo bias is another woman's reasonable caution.

I had no doubts about getting my own color television in 1975; my only problem was being able to afford one.

After hearing about the risks of microwave radiation, I was one of the slow adapters to microwave ovens in the 1970's.

I was also suspicious of the hype behind compact fluorescent bulbs that would stop the ice caps from melting, suspicions that were later justified because of potential mercury poisoning.

So let the risk-seekers try out the new stuff. I love scientific progress. Life is much more advanced technologically than when I was two, but if I have to wait a couple of years for the bugs to be ironed out, fine by me.

Relevant Article

Deadlines are not friendly to headline writers. Current events can impart unintended meaning and emotions to an unlucky choice of words.

The Yale Alumni Magazine (YAM) cover story is a cheery one.

The women's ice hockey team made it to the NCAA Final Four ("Frozen Four"), where the Bulldogs lost to the eventual champion, Ohio State, 2-1.

Speaking of current events, YAM also has a relevant article on research into the effect of trauma on children's brains.

Children who have endured chronic stress, such as living in a violent neighborhood or within an unstable home life, tend to have thick branches near the brain’s alarm system (the amygdala) and weaker ones near its off switches (the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex). The alarm system blares and there’s nothing to stop it...

(Wiley Online Library)

For children who have endured severe trauma, one option is Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT). Dylan Gee is involved in a study designed to assess TF-CBT. Previous studies have shown that it works very well for about half to two-thirds of those who go through it, but less well for others. Her goal is to figure out which children are most likely to benefit from TF-CBT and what might improve the process for those who don’t.

Gee is assessing volunteers, aged 10 to 17, before and after therapy. The theory is that the reason many children show fewer symptoms of trauma after TF-CBT is because the therapy strengthened their regulatory centers. In other words, the children have better control over their brain’s alarm center than they had before.

Children exposed to traumatic events, especially those involving extreme violence, will, of course, need therapy ("TF-CBT").

The Yale study indicates that physical intervention in the development of children's brains at the cellular level is also necessary to right the ship.

Although we are years, if not decades, away from devising the methodology, at least we know the direction in which we're headed.

F.O.M.C. (Fear of Missing Carrots)

(WSJ illustration)

Rewarding children for eating healthy foods rarely results in long-lasting changes to behavior. Try reframing the subject.

Many parents use rewards to get children to do things they would otherwise resist, such as eating healthy foods. This approach might work in the short term, but over time it may cause children to resist fruits and vegetables even more, because they will view eating those foods only as means to a reward.

...A series of studies found that when children were told that they could have only a limited amount of a certain food, such as carrots, the kids not only preferred carrots to a more bountiful snack option but ate more carrots and enjoyed them more than kids who chose carrots over a snack in equal supply.

Studies with young children are tricky, so there could be many reasons behind these behaviors, but it seems that the fear of missing out is one important driver that gets us all to partake of items that are in short supply.

The fear of scarcity and its cousin, the fear of missing out, are primal impulses. They cause us to hoard, buy tickets to farewell concerts, and travel great distances to see solar eclipses.

When used creatively, they can instill healthy habits in children. Science proves what smart grandmothers have always known.

Guess Where They Ended Up

(WSJ illustration)

It's a common belief that letting children work out their differences teaches them how to get along as adults; they'll learn that conflict doesn't get them anywhere and that cooperation and compromise move them forward to their goals, whatever they may be.

But what if a goal is to rise in the hierarchy ? To such kids conflict can be help, not hindrance. [bold added]

Stirring up conflict is how some young children manage to achieve top-dog status, according to a study recently published in the journal Personality and Individual Differences...the study showed a pattern among schoolchildren that stemmed from aggressors creating repeated conflicts; classmates would often submit rather than engage.

Researchers asked 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders to fill out detailed questionnaires at the beginning and end of the school year.

The results showed that children who maintained a frequent pattern of aggression had raised their status at the end of the term, while those who didn’t continue their confrontational behavior failed to get the popularity boost. In short, a small number of students in each grade kept initiating disagreement, presumably with the intention to command respect.

(above the law graphic)

...“For people who care about their status, a disagreement is never just a disagreement. Whether you’re 15 or 50, everything is an exercise in maintaining and improving popularity.”

Other research has shown that such belligerent behavior, rather than being penalized, is rewarded even more at older ages.

Playground troublemakers achieve power by fomenting discord. It's clear that many of them went on to careers in news media, where inflaming differences gets rewarded by clicks and ratings,

The Learning Trap

(Image from very well mind)

Berkeley psychologist Alison Gopnik showed experimentally that children were willing to take greater risks than adults for the sake of gathering information. [bold added]

We used what’s called a “learning trap.” When we grown-ups try something new, from oysters to opera, and get a bad result, we usually won’t try it again... If we quickly conclude that all oysters and operas are indigestible, and reject them ever after, we will never learn that the world is more complicated than that. A stale clam or lame Aida may keep us from ever discovering the delights of a sparkling Belon oyster or a scintillating Magic Flute.

When you give 4- and 5-year-olds exactly the same problem, they behave very differently. They are irresistibly drawn to see what the new blocks will do, even though they love the stars and know that they risk losing them.

But just as grown-up prudence may have drawbacks, childhood curiosity has advantages. Children gathered much more evidence than the adults and were much better at learning. Most of the children did figure out the right rule. However, they earned fewer stars than the grown-ups.

The grown-ups were less willing to experiment because they did not want to lose what they had, while the children were more willing to sacrifice their possessions for knowledge. (One can't over-generalize from this experiment, however, because anyone who has any experience with children knows that they often will fight very fiercely over toys and desired foodstuffs.)

Almost always dismissing ideas because of similarities to things that have failed in the past, I have to fight against the tendency to fall into the Learning Trap. At the same time there is much truth in the quote misattributed to Albert Einstein: “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” As winter approaches, I have less time to waste on repeating mistakes.

Wisdom is knowing when people, situations, objects, and ideas are fundamentally the same..or different.

Rice is Life

We know couples of Asian descent who had newborns during the pandemic. Normally we would deliver baby gifts in person but have been limited to sending cards and gifts via Amazon.

But how may the newborn's parents respond, if they want to send more than a thank-you note?

The insides only come in white (Guardian)

Headline: Japanese parents send relatives rice to hug in lieu of newborns

Parents in Japan are sending bags of rice that weigh the same as their newborn babies to relatives who are unable to visit them due to the pandemic.

The bags come in a wide range of designs, with some shaped like a baby wrapped in a blanket so that relatives can feel as though they are hugging the new arrival while looking at a picture of their face, which is attached to the front.

Your humble blogger thinks the idea is brilliant, but not surprising since it came from the land that made Tamagotchi a world-wide craze nearly 30 years ago. (h/t Tyler Cowen)

Flag Day + 1

Long may they wave

At City Hall the flagpole has gotten a bit crowded.

The Stars and Stripes, the Rainbow Flag (it's Pride Month), and the light blue Foster City flag all flapped proudly in the breeze.

The California flag was tangled in the crossbar, unable to handle the atmospheric winds that pull it in all directions.

Speaking of crosscurrents, today California is officially re-opening: [bold added]

On June 15, California will generally align with the CDC’s mask recommendations, which means that if you’re fully vaccinated you don’t have to wear a mask in almost all settings, including shopping, going to a bar, working out at the gym or attending church services.

There are a few exceptions, such as health care settings and public transportation, including airports and transit stations.

If you are unvaccinated or partially vaccinated, masks are still required indoors, and outdoors when 6 feet social distancing cannot be maintained. California will mostly rely on the honor system to enforce masking rules.

Comment 1: Honor system? I thought that went out of style half a century ago. Well, I'll put my skepticism aside and be open minded about whether that will work. Frankly, I think the danger will come from those who, lacking trust in others, will demand to see vaccination cards when they have no right to do so. I hope I'm wrong.

Comment 2: I'll still wear a mask pulled down over my chin. When I see a masked person approach, I'll pull it up out of courtesy. I often see masked parents out and about with their children, most of whom are not vaccinated. And I do believe that the risk is vanishingly small to children contracting COVID-19 when outdoors, and even if that does happen, the severity is much less. Nevertheless, parents' ability to assess risks is very poor when it comes to their children.

Be kind, even though you don't have to be--that's another meaning of the Flag.

I'll Go Back Inside

After generations of protected status the ducks have lost all fear of humans. They sleep in large groups, not caring about our presence. In the photo above, the ducks wouldn't move when the two strollers approached on the path. Eventually the ladies walked around the dozing birds.

The ducks waddle about, leaving their organic matter everywhere. Neighbors with decks fronting the lagoon have to hose them off weekly; the same goes for cars that are parked outside.

Often we see plumps flying overhead...caution! I have learned from experience not to gaze upward with my mouth open. (Is that where the phrase "duck and cover" comes from?)

Speaking of sharing space with creatures who have the right of way, the kids are back in class. Within a couple of blocks of a school, drivers really must slow down, breathe deeply and exercise patience.

Making it worse, the new bike lanes have encouraged more children and adults to try bicycling. With some using the sidewalk, and with many riding the lanes both with and against traffic, drivers have to keep their head on a swivel.

The coronavirus is nearly over. Nevertheless, I'll go back inside.

What a Difference etc.

We keep the pre-school rooms, furniture, and materials as separated as possible from the church. This policy pre-dated the coronavirus.

The school supply closet, which I last viewed 15 months ago--it's locked on Sundays--had mostly contained disposable plates, napkins, utensils, and other food-service items.

Now it's filled with wipes, disinfectant, and paper towels.

What's changed?

Reading, like Wine, Can be Better After Aging

2019's Little Women was the most recent film adaptation

Sure, you've "read" a book, but how much of it did you retain, and how much of it did you understand?

I read Little Women as a schoolboy. Enjoying the tale of Jo March and her sisters, I picked up its sequel, Little Men, which sat on the Louisa May Alcott shelf in the Winne Units library. The latter book about the following generation wasn't as compelling, but I digress.

As a junior staffer I had a boss who bent the rules without much self-reflection. His favorite aphorism was "it's easier to be forgiven than to ask permission." He was not successful in his business or personal life and was fired two years later.

Revisiting Little Women in 2020, I came across the passage where the teenaged Jo is earning good money for writing "sensational" fiction but doesn't want to tell her parents:

She had a feeling that Father and Mother would not approve, and preferred to have her own way first, and beg pardon afterward.

Four decades after hearing my ex-boss's wisdom, I made the connection to a sentence from a 19th-century children's book.

If good writing is re-writing, then appreciative reading is re-reading, sometimes 60 years later.

Related, from The Therapeutic Value of Reading:

When times are uncertain and scary, something familiar can be a source of solace. The survey of pandemic reading habits conducted by the researchers at Aston University found two types of readers: Those who focused on reading something new to them, to expand their knowledge, and those who re-read familiar books for the sense of comfort and stability and the lack of surprises.

The writer was being too dismissive: re-reading can expand knowledge, too.

Made It To The End

Volumes will be written about this year of unprecedented events, but I won't be joining in: why waste time trying to compose a piece on a subject that thousands of others are writing about more skillfully and comprehensively?

Today being the last day of the year, all this talk about the "end", combined with Yale Professor Nicholas Christakis' tweet (below) reminded me about something that once mattered but hasn't for a long time: where my last name is placed on a list sorted in alphabetical order.

In kindergarten the inchoate brain sensed that there was an advantage to having a last name beginning with a "Y". I got to see how the other kids answered before I was called upon. Being first has its advantages in marketing (e.g., AAA Dry Cleaners), job interviews, and when good stuff is being handed out, but on the whole, as any poker player will tell you, it's better to have the last move.

Being at the end of the line has also instilled the value of patience. I really don't need to be the first to buy the latest iPhone or self-driving vehicle, nor am I disgruntled that I won't be offered the COVID-19 vaccine for months.

So be of good cheer. Things could have been a lot worse, and we made it to the end.

Matthias Weber argues—as he would—that there is convincing evidence that ordering authors alphabetically discriminates against authors whose names appear late in the alphabet, and has implications for the number of collaborations they enter into. https://t.co/REuCbVuR8j

— Nicholas A. Christakis (@NAChristakis) December 31, 2020