Author Archives
In 2018 I semi-retired by retiring from Weston High School after my 21st year teaching mathematics there. This was also my 44th year as a teacher altogether. In 2023 I retired fully, adding in my 18 years at Harvard’s Crimson Summer Academy each summer. For 21 years I had taught at the Saturday Course in Milton, MA, and I used to serve on the board of the Dorchester Historical Society.
I read, cook, and spend a lot of time building my model railroad. For some reason I’m left with less free time than would be ideal, considering that I’m supposed to be retired, but somehow I also manage to devote time to my wife, Barbara, and to our varying number of cats (once up to six, but now sadly down to one).
Larry Davidson
ljd@larrydavidson.com
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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 ›
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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 ›
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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 ›
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“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 ›
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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 ›
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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 ›
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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 ›
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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 ›
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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 ›
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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 ›
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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 ›
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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 ›
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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 ›
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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 ›
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The new Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction
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 ›
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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 ›
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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 ›
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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 ›
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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 ›
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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 ›
Learning Strategies 