Yes, it’s a bit quiet around here — that’s the sound of the school year beginning anew. You’ll notice that we’ve added, at bottom right, some choice selections for your own personal reading list. Have a nice long Labor Day weekend. We’ll see you in a few. . . . . Continue Reading »
A major official has admitted that this most important public policy proposal was written intentionally so that it could not be understood by voters. From the story:Hostility...will be intensified by a startling intervention by Karel de Gucht,...who suggested that the [bill] was designed so . . . . Continue Reading »
Derek Silvers shares a fascinating talk given by Kurt Vonnegut in which the novelist explains why people have such a need for drama in their life . [Vonnegut] said, “People have been hearing fantastic stories since time began. The problem is, they think life is supposed to be like the stories. . . . . Continue Reading »
An interesting discussion at LibraryThing on Dune ‘s effect on the science-fiction genre : One of my favourite things about SF is that the sheer amount of stuff that those authors pack into these books is unbelievable. Case in point: Double Star , by Robert A. Heinlein – in less than 200 . . . . Continue Reading »
The September Scientific American has an interesting article about one of the things that marks human beings as exceptional—our mental abilities to think and conceive uniquely from all other animals, which the writer calls the “mind.”Since this is Scientific American, the . . . . Continue Reading »
About 10 percent of infants die in their first year of life in Africa—still shockingly high, but considerably lower than the European average less than 100 years ago, let alone 800 years past. And about two thirds of Africans are literate—a level achieved in Spain only in the 1920s. . . . . Continue Reading »
Ten Anglican Nuns and their chaplain received into the Catholic Church. . . . . Continue Reading »
Non-Muslims should fast during Ramadan , says the mayor of London. And non-Catholics skip meat on Fridays, too, of course. Well, no, that would be imposing religious views, wouldn’t it? . . . . Continue Reading »
After a dear colleague died at age fifty-eight, my wife forced me to join the gym so that I might avoid a similar fate for her and our small children. I have enjoyed the experience immensely except for one thing. The treadmills I like to use, the ones under the big fan, face directly into the . . . . Continue Reading »
The New York Post has a story about a group of Torah-toting, pistol-packing, karate-chopping rabbis that is almost too awesome for words. Fortunately, they include a Pulitizer-worthy photo (see right) and a a video which Gothamist describes as “mix of Wes Anderson, Adam Sandler, and the . . . . Continue Reading »
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