CEO Larry Page wants to found a new nation where the Internet giant would set all the rules; even during consensual sexual acts, extreme pornography may be pushing the limits of morality; meanwhile, what was Harvard thinking when it gave Heritage Foundation former analyst Jason Richwine a Ph.D. for his racist dissertation? These discoveries and more below.

On a regular basis, Truthdig brings you the news items and odds and ends that have found their way to Larry Gross, director of the USC Annenberg School for Communication. A specialist in media and culture, art and communication, visual communication and media portrayals of minorities, Gross helped found the field of gay and lesbian studies.

Google CEO Is Tired of Rivals, Laws, Wants to Start His Own Country In a surprise appearance at Google’s I/O conference today, CEO Larry Page took the stage to philosophize and take questions about the company’s products, their role in the world, and how Google can solve world hunger.

Researchers and Scientific Groups Make New Push Against Impact Factors More than 150 researchers and 75 scientific groups issued a declaration on Thursday against the widespread use of journal “impact factors,” blaming the practice for dangerous distortions in financing and hiring in science.

Why Did Harvard Give a PhD for a Discredited Approach to Race and IQ? He’s probably the first person ever to lose his job because of his Harvard PhD dissertation: Jason Richwine, let go by the Heritage Foundation on Friday.

The Ethics of Extreme Porn: Is Some Sex Wrong Even Among Consenting Adults? In “What Do You Desire?” Emily Witt travels to San Francisco, attends a shoot for a pornographic video about “women bound, stripped, and punished in public,” reflects on her own unsuccessful search for romantic love, and ponders the implications of a sexual culture where no desire is considered off-limits so long as all participants give their consent.

Obama Speaks Of ‘Going Bulworth’ In Second Term The New York Times reported that President Barack Obama has spoken privately of “going Bulworth,” a reference to the 1998 Warren Beatty movie about a California Senate candidate who becomes unusually honest after having run as a centrist Democrat.

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