Been a little while since I’ve done an Obsessive Update, but a few noteworthy things have come up recently: A very nice review at Pet Connection: “this brilliant and (relatively) simple book explains the basic premises of quantum physics in terms that dogs and most English majors can understand.” Which is not to say that… Continue reading How to Teach Physics to Your Dog: Obsessive Update
Category: Pop Culture
Other People Need Your Help
Several items in the general category of charitable activity: Kate is running the Con or Bust auction again this year, with proceeds going to support people of color interested in attending SFF cons, principally Wiscon. Bidding is open through Saturday at 11:59pm ET, and items up for bid include many things that may be of… Continue reading Other People Need Your Help
Emmy: Distinguished Alumna
On this morning’s walk, a woman stopped me and Emmy to say that she recognized us from a picture. Emmy was adopted from the Mohawk and Hudson River Humane Society shelter back in 2003, and when they heard about How to Teach Physics to Your Dog, they contacted me about writing Emmy up as a… Continue reading Emmy: Distinguished Alumna
Many Worlds, Many Treats: The Movie
Another dramatic reading of a chapter from How to Teach Physics to Your Dog, just because. This is Chapter 4, which is based on the original Many Worlds, Many Treats post that kick-started the whole thing: I’m sitting at the computer typing, when Emmy bumps up against my legs. I look down, and she’s sniffing… Continue reading Many Worlds, Many Treats: The Movie
How to Teach Physics to Your Dog in Broome County
I’ve been buried in work, so I haven’t had time to do any real blogging, but I do want to post a quick reminder of this week’s signing: — This FRIDAY, March 5 (that is, the day after tomorrow), I will be signing books at the Vestal, NY Barnes and Noble at 7pm. I’m not… Continue reading How to Teach Physics to Your Dog in Broome County
China Mieville, The City and the City [Library of Babel]
I’ve tried a couple of times to read China Mieville’s highly praised Perdido Street Station, but found it so unpleasant that I stopped maybe a third of the way in. Some of the things he said about his theories of literature as the guest of honor at Readercon a few years ago also made me… Continue reading China Mieville, The City and the City [Library of Babel]
Upcoming Appearances for How to Teach Physics to Your Dog
A couple of upcomign events related to How to Teach Physics to Your Dog: — Next FRIDAY, March 5, I will be signing books at the Vestal, NY Barnes and Noble at 7pm. This is the big-box chain store closest to my hometown, and my parents report already getting calls about it, which is weird… Continue reading Upcoming Appearances for How to Teach Physics to Your Dog
The Edge of Physics by Anil Ananthaswamy
One of the weird-but-cool things about being C-list famous on the Internet is that some publishers now send me unsolicited review copies of forthcoming books about science. These aren’t always the books I would really like to get free copies of, but, hey, free books. Among the books I’ve received in the last year or… Continue reading The Edge of Physics by Anil Ananthaswamy
Amazing Laser Application 5: Optical Data Storage!
What’s the application? CD and DVD players use lasers to read (and in some cases write) digital information from convenient plastic disks. What problem(s) is it the solution to? 1) “How do we store a large amount of digital information in a convenient and stable fashion?” 2) “How do we make everybody buy the White… Continue reading Amazing Laser Application 5: Optical Data Storage!
Yellow Blue Tibia by Adam Roberts [Library of Babel]
While Adam Roberts was kind of an ass regarding last year’s Hugo ballot, the summary of his latest, Yellow Blue Tibia, sounded pretty entertaining to me, and it was on the Locus Recommended Reading list, so I got it out of the library. The book is presented as the memoir of Konstantin Skvorecky, a Soviet… Continue reading Yellow Blue Tibia by Adam Roberts [Library of Babel]