Yes, the title of the book is A Place for Everything. No, it is not a Marie Kondo knockoff. It will be the subtitle that tells you what it’s really about: The Curious History of Alphabetical Order. That’s what it’s about…. Read More ›
Month: February 2021
Just Thai… but what more do you need?
Tonight’s yummy takeout from Just Thai: JTK wings, gyoza, teriyaki beef, pork with garlic and oyster sauce.
Repairing Boston’s electoral process
We continue on from yesterday’s post talking about some good advice from Bill Walczak… That one was about how to repair the police (repairing instead of “defunding”); this one is about how to repair the election process in Boston, which suffers… Read More ›
Repairing the world (or at least the police)
Bill Walczak reminds us: [T]he ability of police officers to be successful in ensuring peace and safety depends on characteristics like judgment, empathy, being unbiased, and able to handle people in crisis. … If our goal for policing is peace… Read More ›
Can you explain this puzzle, WGBH?
Can anybody explain this? Barbara and I have been members of WGBH for decades now. For the past 36 years GBH has sent their monthly magazine to the correct address: (As you see, I have redacted the street name to… Read More ›
Support your local restaurant! For instance, the Ashmont Grill again…
Barbara and I shared a delicious takeout dinner from the Ashmont Grill last night: garlic parmesan chicken wings fried Brussels sprouts with cilantro and mint (three nights’ worth!) wood-grilled hanger steak, cooked medium rare as ordered, with fries cheddar cheeseburger,… Read More ›
“I was allowed to believe things that weren’t true.”
Quick: who said the sentence in the title of this post? That’s right, it’s your favorite Member of Congress, Marjorie Taylor Greene! Linguist Mark Liberman, incidentally a former classmate of mine, observes that Steve Silberman nominated the above sentence of Greene’s to… Read More ›
Who are the Sami?
Hands up if you know who the Sami are without looking it up! Hmm… only three of you. I could have asked whether you can figure out where the stunning movie Sami Blood was filmed, relying on the title alone. Again,… Read More ›
No, your family name was NOT changed at Ellis Island!
Every American Jewish family—and a few Gentile families as well—have a family story that they’re convinced is true: the family name had been changed by an immigration official at Ellis Island more than a century ago. In my case, the… Read More ›
Zia Gianna: “Valentine’s Date Night to Go”
Chef Nino, Sicilian native and recently naturalized American citizen, offered a special Valentine’s Day takeout dinner at his neighborhood Italian caffe, Zia Gianna, right around the corner from us: Salmon and dill dip with imported crackers Spezzatino with tortino potatoes (i.e.,… Read More ›
First-naming, tutoyer, and duzen
When is it OK for a stranger to call you by your first name? This is a more complicated question than it first appears to be. I’ve been listening to a lot of podcasts with guests during the pandemic, and… Read More ›
Barton Fink
The Coen brothers, I decided, deserved one more try. They do have a stellar reputation, after all. After disliking Fargo, Raising Arizona, and Blood Simple, I had almost given up on the Coens, but reviews convinced me to check out… Read More ›
An English accent—in recordings from 1340 to 2006. (1340? What? Really!?)
Don’t read the title to this post. It’s a lie. Simon Roper has not actually discovered recordings from 1340. Or even 1400. But his 18-minute video is still very much worth watching. When I say “watching,” I mean more than… Read More ›
The Secret Life of Books
A book about books—how self-referential! And how wonderful! The full title of the book under discussion is The Secret Life of Books: Why They Mean More than Words. More than words indeed. Tom Mole’s delightful paean to the book is largely about… Read More ›
Racism and linguistics
I’ve only once cited the first-rate Humans Who Read Grammars. Yes, only once. But it’s not my fault! I would love to cite them more, but the authors post too rarely. What’s the matter with you guys? Do you have a life… Read More ›
Why do physicists play dominoes? And what’s the connection between the Aztecs and the Arctic Circle anyway?
I’m sure you’ve been wondering: what’s a mathologer? Or perhaps you should ask “Who’s The Mathologer?” In that case, the answer is easy: The Mathologer is Burkard Polster. I’m kidding about part of this, of course—not about his name, which… Read More ›
The Princess Bride revisited
“Never get involved in a land war in Asia.” That’s the line I’ve remembered for more than three decades. Yes, it has been that long since The Princess Bride was first released! How well has this movie held up? Amazingly well, I… Read More ›
Learning Strategies 