PASSPORT TIDBITS
MY PASSPORT HASN’T had much use recently. Indeed, there was a time when my T&E (Travel & Expense Report) was more than my R&T salary. So Shiela Fitzpatrick’s “File-Selves” caught … Continue reading
FIDO SNIFFS OUT ARITHMETIC ANXIETY
“Whether it’s a tricky maths problem or an unexpected bill,” Nicola Davis of The Guardian reports, “daily life is full of stressful experiences. Now researchers have found that humans produce … Continue reading
ON LATE MEDIEVAL CLUTTER
HAVING READ TOM Johnson’s “No More Baubles,” London Review of Books, September 22, 2022, I feel a kinship with people living in Late Medieval London. We were/are prone to clutter. … Continue reading
ちょっとつんどく—MY PERSONAL JAPANESE PHRASE
I RECENTLY LEARNED THE JAPANESE word つんどく, tsundoku, which means acquiring books but letting them pile up without reading. To which I add ちょっと, chotto, Japanese for “a little.” That … Continue reading
DID THE EARTH MOVE FOR YOU, JUST A LITTLE?
THE INTERESTING FACTS WEBSITE reports that “The Earth Shakes Every 26 Seconds, and Scientists Aren’t Sure Why.” Well, this is tantalizing enough to require a perusal and perhaps some additional … Continue reading
SPERM WHALE CLANISH CLICKING
IT HAS LONG BEEN KNOWN that sperm whales make clicking sounds to communicate as well as to echolocate prey in ocean darkness at depths of a mile or more. Recently, … Continue reading
THE FOURTH ELEMENT: FIRE
LIFE WAS A LOT SIMPLER when Aristotle had only four elements: air, earth, water, and fire. Later, he added heavenly aether, and things have gotten more complicated since then. It’s … Continue reading
BEING HEP, LIKE, TWENTY-THREE SKIDOO
A BEAUTY OF SLANG is its etymological appeal. Why “23” anyway? And, y’know, is it “hep” or “hip”? This clearly calls for some research. My sources are multitudinous. With the … Continue reading
JAPAN TRIPPIN’—1958
THE JAPAN POCKET GUIDE entered my collection in 09/06, meaning it was already 48 years old when I acquired it. Hmm…. Now that it’s 64 years old, I wonder how … Continue reading
BERNOULLI’S JAALI
ARCHITECTS OF THE TAJ MAHAL, Formula One designers, and cricket bowlers have all been inspired by Daniel Bernoulli. Here are tidbits on these gleaned from BBC as well as my … Continue reading
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