Where do you go to find the answer to a question about science fiction? Google? Wikipedia? The New York Times? All of those are plausible answers, but it would sure be convenient to have everything you want to know in… Read More ›
Month: January 2021
Gaston is learning Polish—and liking it!
“Polish is a very difficult language,” says the typical American who doesn’t live in the Dorchester neighborhood known as the Polish Triangle. That’s primarily because they want to buy a vowel when they see so many consonants. They look at… Read More ›
Twelve Gifts for Writers
What a refreshing antidote to that horrid book of unscientific advice that I won’t name here. You know which horrid book I’m talking about: that undeservedly famous guide by Strunk and White. The antidote is the little book Twelve Gifts for Writers by… Read More ›
Nerds, Harry Potter, and Burmese translations: what do these have in common?
You know those “Common Bonds” puzzles, a.k.a. “What do these three have in common?” Look at the title to this post. The first two items are easy—nerds have a lot in common with Harry Potter—but Burmese translations? Take a look… Read More ›
Support your local restaurants!
Barbara and I continue to follow Tara and Michaela’s advice: support your local restaurants! Last night we had fantastic take-out from the Ashmont Grill: bacon-wrapped meatloaf with mashed potatoes, grilled asparagus, and mushroom gravy; wood-grilled 12 oz. ribeye steak with roasted… Read More ›
Suppose you lived on a dodecahedron. How would you avoid your neighbors?
“Suppose you lived on a dodecahedron,” I say. “How would you avoid your neighbors?” “But I don’t live on a dodecahedron,” you claim. “Anyway, what if I don’t want to avoid my neighbors?” Stop! This is mathematics. We make abstractions away from the real… Read More ›
Lost Yiddish words?
“Every language changes.” This is a standard response when peevers complain about “bad” English. In fact, it’s appropriate response #1. As you know, peevers file regular grievances about singular “they,” about new words, new meanings, the word “irregardless,” slang, the willingness… Read More ›
The 99% Invisible City
“Always read the plaque.” This is getting out of control. I now have 13 books on my list of Top Ten Favorite Books! The 99% Invisible City is now the thirteenth. Something has to be done. And why, you ask, are there 13 books… Read More ›
Gym Jordan, grammar expert
Leading Republican congressman Jim Jordan is well-known as an expert on “pronouns“:
A number theory discovery by a 12-year-old Nigerian boy! And one by an 11-year-old Massachusetts girl!
Everyone knows the stereotype: mathematical discoveries are made by white and Asian males in their 20s and 30s. Right? Well, like all stereotypes, there’s a certain amount of statistical reality that supports this impression and obscures all examples to the… Read More ›
What’s wrong with being named Quartus anyway?
So you’ve never heard of the name Quartus? I’m not surprised. Almost no one, after all, is named Quartus. But why not? Peter Gainsford answers the question—and other questions as well, most of which you didn’t even know you had…. Read More ›
The road to hell
Suppose you did something wrong—unintentionally. Does your lack of ill intent mitigate the offense? The issue arose recently in a slightly heated conversation with a good friend of mine. I was upset with her because she had inadvertently done something… Read More ›
Tavolo
Barbara and I had a yummy take-out dinner last night from Tavolo via curbside pickup: meatballs, polenta with mushroom, shrimp scampi with fettuccine, chitara amatriciana, and flourless chocolate cake. Plenty of leftovers! I am pretending that it was all low-calorie… Read More ›
Another sign in Dot
Spotted on today’s walk in Dorchester, at the corner of Neponset Ave and South Monroe Terrace:
Dorchester loves Georgia.
Spotted on Carruth Street during yesterday’s walk:
That’s Life. “Uncertainty is the only certainty.”
This is life: In a world where truth seems to be at a premium and the future unsure, it’s comforting to know precisely when the sun is going to come up and that when it does, it will do so… Read More ›
The (apparently) oxymoronic Anthology of Cozy-Noir
Cozy-noir? Cozy and noir? Hmmm… certainly sounds like an oxymoronic pair of mystery sub-genres! But maybe editor Andrew MacRae has something up his sleeve. Has he managed to combine the two into a seamless whole? It was an intriguing enough… Read More ›
“Why haven’t I ever been to Petra?”
That’s what I kept asking myself as I was watching the PBS Nova episode Petra, Lost City of Stone, which I somehow missed when it first aired six years ago. This amazing archaeological site in Jordan competes in quality with… Read More ›
Should the passive voice be avoided? And what’s wrong with Strunk? And what about White, while we’re at it?
The bill was signed by the president. The bill remained on the president’s desk for five days. Mistakes were made. All three of those sentences are in the passive voice, right? Actually, wrong. Only the first and third are. So… Read More ›
A belated New Years Eve feast from Ashmont Grill
Yes, it was three days late, but it was worth the wait! Barbara and I ordered a huge take-out feast from our favorite restaurant, the Ashmont Grill. It will take us another three days to eat it all. The four… Read More ›
Learning Strategies 