Recent Posts - page 122

  • Charles Swift and Edwin Lewis

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    This afternoon, at the Dorchester Historical Society, historian Charles Swift gave a first-rate presentation to an overflow crowd about the famous-in-some-circles architect, Edwin J. Lewis Jr.; check out Swift’s summary in his blog, including four of his beautiful photos.

  • The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency

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    I often find that I’m in the midst of reading two books at once, especially if one is fiction and one is non-fiction. That’s what happened to me recently, finishing both Freakonomics, by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner,… Read More ›

  • Freakonomics

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    Just finished reading Freakonomics, the much-discussed popularization of applied statistics by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner, economist and writer respectively. Although Levitt won the Nobel Prize for Economics, this best-seller really is about “applied statistics” rather than economics…. Read More ›

  • Math and Magic

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    The Weston High School Math Club just returned from an enjoyable and informative talk on “Mathematics and Magic Tricks,” presented by Prof. Persi Diaconis of Stanford University and sponsored by the Clay Mathematics Institute. As always — well, as we… Read More ›

  • To the Power of Three

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    Just finished listening to Laura Lippman’s To the Power of Three on audiobook. This post-Columbine mystery presents a school shooting that’s partly predictable but mostly not so, starting with the fact that the shooter is a girl and concluding with… Read More ›

  • The Rosengarten Report

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    I’ve been a subscriber to The Rosengarten Report for about a year now. I recommend it — with some reservations. According to David Rosengarten, this is a “fiercely independent, passionately written newsletter on the best foods and wines in the… Read More ›

  • The importance of blogging

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    “Blogging is good for your career,” said reporter Penelope Trunk in a Boston Globe article on April 16. This is a bit surprising, given all the stories about people who have been fired or not hired because of what they… Read More ›

  • Separated by a common language

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    First I was told that Churchill said it. Then I was told that it was Wilde. But actually it was Shaw who described England and America as “two countries separated by a common language.” Language is part of culture, so… Read More ›

  • London

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    We’re staying at 22 York Street, a lovely B&B just off Baker Street in London. Of course it’s foolish to try to make a dent in the to-do list when one has only a short stay in London, but we… Read More ›

  • The Sunday Philosophy Club

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    Just finished reading The Sunday Philosophy Club, by Alexander McCall Smith. This quirky mystery isn’t for everybody, as it’s more an exploration of applied philosophy than a mystery novel. Complete with an explicit reference to Sissela Bok’s Lying, it creates… Read More ›

  • Market Harborough and environs

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    Barbara and I are in England right now, visiting our Dorchester friend Ardis, whose company has sent her to Market Harborough for a period of over a year. She volunteered to be our kind chauffeur, so we don’t have to… Read More ›

  • The other Cambridge

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    Barbara and I spent the day with our host, Ardis, visiting the other Cambridge — you know, the one in England. Seeing 600-year-old buildings still in active use and walking in the footsteps of Isaac Newton never cease to astonish…. Read More ›

  • By a Spider's Thread

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    Just finished listening to By a spider’s thread, by Laura Lippman, on audiobook. Although it poses as a detective novel or mystery novel — or at least is so positioned by its publisher, Avon — it doesn’t really fit the… Read More ›

  • Too much in your inbox?

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    Thanks to Diane Greco for pointing out this series of articles on “the skills, tools, and attitude needed to empty your email inbox — and then keep it that way.” Now all I have to do is implement the advice.

  • The sociology of model railroading

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    It takes a certain kind of person to be interested in the sociology of model railroading…

  • W

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    Can this really be true? George W. Bush is the first president since Herbert Hoover who has no Jews in his cabinet at all and has appointed no Jews to the Federal bench. — Professor Sherman L. Cohn, Georgetown University… Read More ›

  • Hip hop fo' Hebrews, and three cheers for Goths

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    Thanks to sashinka for these two links: Hip hop fo’ Hebrews. An article explaining why parents should be happy if their kids belong to the goth subculture.

  • Urinetown

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    Yesterday I saw Weston High School’s production of Urinetown. It was exceptionally well done, with excellent acting, singing, and dancing, as well as a first-rate performance by the tiny orchestra in the pit. Time flew by, and the two-and-a-quarter hours… Read More ›

  • Tilt-A-Whirl

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    I’m almost done reading Tilt-A-Whirl, by Chris Grabenstein. With a few pages left to go, I confidently recommend this novel enthusiastically. The character who narrates the story in the first person is a young, part-time cop in a summer-tourist community… Read More ›

  • Big Picture Curriculum Day

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    Today was the assigned date for the Math Department’s Big Picture Curriculum Day, which meant a full-day workshop with no math classes. Although we were not thrilled about having to miss two consecutive days of math classes — especially troublesome… Read More ›