WHALE CHAT
“CALL ME ‘MOBY-DICK.’ ” Melville didn’t begin his novel with these words, but the latest cetacean research may suggest he should have. Divers are recording and videoing sperm whales as … Continue reading
GOVERNING BY WORD
WHAT WITH our being in the midst of highly divisive presidential campaigns, it’s a good time to discuss the etymology of words that are associated with how people rule themselves—or … Continue reading
ROMAN VILLA FOUND IN BRITAIN
THE ROMAN EMPIRE, 27 BC – 395 AD, extended as far as the British Isles. And, as recently as last week, a huge Roman villa was discovered in Tisbury, Wiltshire, … Continue reading
FACING UP TO IT
“DID HE really say that??” Maybe yes, maybe no. Facial video manipulation is technically fascinating, potentially beneficial and yet terrifying. The concept builds on human sensitivity to red, green and … Continue reading
THE MERRY WIVES OF LEOPOLD STOKOWSKI
AS DESCRIBED in the recent HBO documentary “Nothing Left Unsaid: Gloria Vanderbilt and Anderson Cooper,” one of Gloria’s three husbands was conductor Leopold Stokowski, noted for his recordings of Bach’s … Continue reading
DRIVING A PARISIAN TAXICAB
LISTENING TO Gershwin’s wonderful American in Paris, complete with its taxi horns, brought back memories of my stint as a Parisian taxicab driver. It was in the 1980s. Auto journalist … Continue reading
GUILTY—OR INNOCENT—BY A HAIRSBREADTH
FORENSICS CAN BE used to prove guilt—or innocence. Studies of tobacco ash and “footsteps” enhanced the reputation of Sherlock Holmes in the late 19th century. For example, his Upon the … Continue reading
CLEARING INNES IRELAND’S NAME
GRAND PRIX driver and R&T contributor Innes Ireland was larger than life. He was also a good friend, even before I cleared his name with the City of Needles, County … Continue reading
AN EDITOR’S DELIGHT—AND A DISCLOSURE
RESEARCHING AND COMPOSING SimanaitisSays.com is great fun. As the dotty old woman said, “I never know quite what I’m going to say until I say it.” And so it is … Continue reading
A YORKSHIREMAN’S SPORTS CAR
QUICK, LIST CARS named for planets in our Solar System. If you like, include the Uranus even though it’s a fictional marque from the Grand Theft Auto video game. Next, … Continue reading
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