A reading from the Book of Genesis: 1 And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. 2 And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there. 3 And they said one to another, Go to,… Continue reading Genesis 11:1-9 (Slight Variation)
Death to the Un-Noted Endnote
This is a rare weekend in which I’ve completed two serious books– the aforementioned Newton and the Couterfeiter and Chris Mooney and Sheril Kirshenbaum’s Unscientific America (a review copy showed up Friday, thanks guys), about which more later. They’re very different books, but both excellent in their own way. While they have very different subjects,… Continue reading Death to the Un-Noted Endnote
Newton and the Counterfeiter by Thomas Levenson
I’ve been enjoying Tom Levenson’s “Diary of a Trade Book” series quite a bit (the latest post is on cover art), so when I say a stack of copies of Newton and the Counterfeiter: The Unknown Detective Career of the World’s Greatest Scientist at the bookstore the other day, I snapped one up. As the… Continue reading Newton and the Counterfeiter by Thomas Levenson
links for 2009-07-05
slacktivist: The short straw "Tony Perkins looks nervous, unsure if he should be glad he gets to go first. He reaches out and makes his choice. Grinning broadly, he holds up the long straw for the others to see and, chuckling to himself, makes his way to the back of the room. âItâs not fair,â… Continue reading links for 2009-07-05
Ad Astra Per Aspera
SteelyKid shows off her recently expanded climbing ability: I could attempt to make a strained connection to the Fourth of July by making some analogy between a baby climbing stairs and the need for constant slow improvement in the national character, or some such. But really, it’s just a cute baby picture being posted as… Continue reading Ad Astra Per Aspera
links for 2009-07-04
Charlie Rose – An interview with David Foster Wallace A 1997 interview, when Wallace was promoting A Supposedly Fun Thing I’ll Never Do Again, covering a wide range of topics. (tags: video writing books literature movies humanities academia society culture) In Which Your Host Witnesses a High-Speed Chase : Built on Facts "Conservation of momentum… Continue reading links for 2009-07-04
Two-Word Lyrics: Independence Day Edition
I have a new appreciation for Cathy and Amanda and the rest of the infant room staff at the day care center, after two days of chasing a fully recovered SteelyKid around the house because she still had a couple of coxsackie virus blisters on her hands. They’re earning the money we’re paying them. She’s… Continue reading Two-Word Lyrics: Independence Day Edition
How to Teach Physics to Your Dog Contest Winners
After a long baby-induced delay, we are finally ready to announce the winners of the How to Teach Physics to Your Dog Caption Contest and Poetry Contest. I’ve obtained a few more copies of the bound galleys from the publisher, so we’ll be giving two awards in each contest category: one for each photo, one… Continue reading How to Teach Physics to Your Dog Contest Winners
In Which I Cave In to the Current Social Media Fad-of-the-Moment, Purely for Book-Publicity Purposes, You Understand, Not Because I Need Another Time-Waster
http://twitter.com/orzelc That is all.
links for 2009-07-03
Setshot: Basketball for the Aging and Infirm: Rosters: Managing the list "Overall, I like administering the list because I can virtually guarantee that any time I want to play, there will be others to play with. I also like the fact that I have some control over who gets on the list, and more importantly,… Continue reading links for 2009-07-03