Sailing the Last Voyage with Newton and Pascal
(Dovetail DOVE 35) 1975 One of the most difficult genres of albums to sell is the spoken word. That's because it's not easy to sustain the listener's interest over a sustained period. Long talking head videos have the same problem. This album is a glorious exception to that. Henderson, originally from Liverpool, regales us with …
Continue reading "Stewart Henderson: Whose Idea of Fun is a Nightmare"
I've put off writing this piece for a long time. The subject is sensitive for a number of reasons. But given the things going on both here, in Europe and the Middle East these days, perhaps it's time to visit this subject, although I'd be the first to admit the example I'm presenting isn't the …
Generally speaking I stop this time of year and commemorate an event of which you, the reader of this blog, are the beneficiary (?). On 1 July 1997 I uploaded the pages of my first website, called then The Wave Equation Page for Piling and now vulcanhammer.net. I duly editorialised the tenth anniversary of that …
I recently came across a fascinating book entitled The Handbook of Palestine by H.C. Luke and E. Keith-Roach. Produced in 1922 by the British Mandate government which had just taken control of the country after a long Ottoman Turkish rule, it’s a fascinating snapshot of the Holy Land beginning its transition to the State of …
The idea that Mainland China and Taiwan should be connected by a 124-km long tunnel got this reaction: "The tunnel proposals were made after banquets and alcohol," Hu Sheng-Cheng, an economist at Academia Sinica, Taiwan's most renowned think tank, told Asia Times Online when flatly dismissing the tunnel idea. Taiwan must already spend huge sums …
Continue reading "Underscoring the Dangers of Mao Tai (and Vodka)"
It's getting complicated out there: A spate of unsavory controversies in the United States is cracking up yoga's wholesome image, with accusations of financial fraud, sexual misconduct and copyright issues involving asanas (positions) plaguing the community. As a result, India, the land where the physical, mental and spiritual discipline of yoga began in ancient times, …
Last week I did a "commencement address" to college students. Today I take on their high school counterparts. I have accumulated a decidedly incongruent academic career, by current standards at least. After enduring the offspring of this country's premier zip code at the Palm Beach Day School (now the Palm Beach Day Academy,) I went …
Continue reading "Advice to Graduates: Go Where the Future Is"
Note the sign to the right. You think we need one like this for our fiscal condition?
I have to admit it: I was amused when the poster at the right appeared on Drudge, who linked with this article, which likened Obama's use of the "Forward" theme with its use in socialist/communist contexts. First: the slogan "Forward" does have strong roots in the history of communism. Whether we will see iconography like …
Continue reading "They Used to Put Posters Like This in the Dry Cleaners in the Soviet Union"
It's the time of the year when most people graduate from whatever school they're graduating from. This is a hypothetical graduation address, this week aimed a college students. I'll take on the high school students in a subsequent post. These days college--especially undergraduate studies--is a long, expensive undertaking, usually accomplished by a large amount of …
Continue reading "Advice to Graduates: Past Performance is Not a Guarantee of Future Returns"
