To become aware of the possibility of the search is to be onto something.
— Walker Percy, who died in 1990
“You can’t retire from being great.”
~ Jozef Imrich
It strikes me that this may be one of the differences between youth and age: when we are young, we invent different futures for ourselves; when we are old, we invent different pasts for others.
- Julian Barnes
In a letter he wrote to his girlfriend Monica Jones in 1966, Larkin says: “The only good life is to live in some sodding seedy city & work & keep yr gob shut & be unhappy.”
For a limited time, you can view the feature length documentary Chair Times: A History of Seating online for free courtesy of Vitra, a Swiss design company.
Franz Boas in 1888: “It is most unpleasant work to steal bones from a grave, but what is the use, someone has to do it” Boas
Fiction is no good in a crisis, and it dislikes confronting world events head-on. So you'll have to wait for that coronavirus novel
Science & Tech Spotlight: Social Distancing During Pandemics – GAO-20-545SP: Published: May 13, 2020. Publicly Released: May 13, 2020. “How far is far enough for successful social distancing? We take a look at some of the still-developing science behind the practice. A CDC guideline based on historical studies of selected infections says that the area of highest risk is within 3 feet of an infected person. Some studies suggest a buffer of 6 feet may further reduce risk. Other studies examining droplet dispersion in sneezing and coughing found they can go more than 6 feet. Also, viral material may persist in the air within a room for up to 3 hours. But many factors, including the amount of viral material and duration of exposure needed to transmit the disease, are still unknown. The distance droplets carry infectious materials depends on droplet size, humidity, air currents, and other factors…
40 years on from Back in Black, AC/DC still matters
In the 40 years since Bon Scott's death and the release of Back in Black, AC/DC's legacy has grown.
Among the titles: a Gerald Murnane, A Season on Earth.
They've announced the winner of this year's Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature, which alternates between fiction one year and non the next; this was a non year -- and the winner is: Kafka's Last Trial by Benjamin Balint.
“The Rijksmuseum is today publishing the largest and most detailed ever photograph of The Night Watch on its website, making it possible to zoom in on individual brushstrokes and even particles of pigment in the painting. Work on Operation Night Watch will resume on Wednesday 13 May in the glass chamber in the museum. See the photograph
In Focus has a selection of the winners of the 2020 BigPicture Natural World Photography Competition organized by the California Academy of Sciences. Here’s how Andy Parkinson got that amazing photo of the hare:
That morning, Jim Sams, clever but by no means profound, woke from uneasy dreams to find himself transformed into a gigantic creature.
Think Like a Feminist: The Philosophy Behind the Revolution by Carol Hay, reviewed at Publisher’s Weekly.
Sick Souls, Healthy Minds: How William James Can Save Your Life by John Kaag, reviewed by James T. Kloppenberg at The Washington Post and Terry Eagleton at The Guardian.
Frank Ramsey: A Sheer Excess of Powers by Cheryl Misak, reviewed by Michael Bevan at The Oxonian Review.
Freedom in the Age of Alternative Facts by Santiago Zabala, reviewed by William Egginton at the Los Angeles Review of Books
Every episode of The Office recreated in Slack
To get this intimate shot of a mountain hare (Lepus timidus) curled up against a Scottish winter storm, Andy Parkinson endured weeks of ferocious cold and wind that drove shards of ice into his face. Britain’s only native rabbit species, on the other hand, is utterly at home in these inhospitable conditions. Groups of twenty or more hares gather each winter to nibble heather on leeward slopes, where the snow tends to be shallower. Before resting, they jump away from their tracks to confuse predators. And while some ride out storms in burrows or depressions, this female created her own shelter, tucking herself into a ball to conserve heat and minimize exposure to the elements. It’s a nifty strategy for surviving the kind of weather that drives most creatures indoors or underground.You can view the winners and category finalists on the BigPicture Competition website. Photos above (top to bottom) by Andy Parkinson, Jes Stockhausen, and Amy Vitale.
That morning, Jim Sams, clever but by no means profound, woke from uneasy dreams to find himself transformed into a gigantic creature.
Jim Sams has undergone a metamorphosis. In his previous life he was ignored or loathed, but in his new incarnation he is the most powerful man in Britain – and it is his mission to carry out the will of the people. Nothing must get in his way: not the opposition, nor the dissenters within his own party. Not even the rules of parliamentary democracy.
With trademark intelligence, insight and scabrous humour, Ian McEwan pays tribute to Franz Kafka’s most famous work to engage with a world turned on its head.
When my husband lost his wedding ring, I felt my stomach drop
Wedding bands are seen to symbolise love and commitment, so it's not surprising that a lost ring would evoke feelings of sadness, guilt or superstition, writes Mikki Cusack
A prophetic novel …
A Priestly Voice of Wisdom - The Catholic Thing
“Present-day society is no longer content merely to administer our common patrimony,” the curé tells him. Though spoken by a fictional character in 1937, it could have been uttered in 2020. The academy routinely labels America’s Founders ignorant, bigoted, sexist, and racist “dead white men,” unworthy of honor.Unfortunate, many in the hierarchy these days don’t seem up to the task. That would include Philadelphia’s pusillanimous new archbishop
Christianity, the deepest source of our nation’s laws and cultural norms, is termed oppressive and intolerant. The New York Times’ “1619 Project,” which “aims to reframe the country’s history by placing the consequences of slavery and the contributions of black Americans at the very center of our national narrative,” represents a false and cynical view of America.
Old math reveals new secrets about these alluring flowers National Geographic
Think Like a Feminist: The Philosophy Behind the Revolution by Carol Hay, reviewed at Publisher’s Weekly.
Sick Souls, Healthy Minds: How William James Can Save Your Life by John Kaag, reviewed by James T. Kloppenberg at The Washington Post and Terry Eagleton at The Guardian.
Frank Ramsey: A Sheer Excess of Powers by Cheryl Misak, reviewed by Michael Bevan at The Oxonian Review.
Freedom in the Age of Alternative Facts by Santiago Zabala, reviewed by William Egginton at the Los Angeles Review of Books
Every episode of The Office recreated in Slack
When You Come To The End Of Your Books
Nana Ruby reads almost her weight in books every week, but the libraries are closed. Where to turn? – The New York Times