Monthly Archives: December 2008
Another Book Review: Alan Alda’s Latest
Alan Alda’s latest book, Things I Overheard While Talking To Myself, generally isn’t very funny. But it is good. Alda, a father and a grandfather, talks about his nearly fruitless search for meaning in life. He talks about making a … Continue reading
Bamford’s latest update on the NSA
James Bamford is well known for his revealing of the National Security Agency in The Puzzle Palace, published in 1983. He has written two updates since then, Body of Secrets and The Shadow Factory, the latest one covering the Bush … Continue reading
By Request: A brief description of the leap second
Every day of every year nominally lasts 24 hours, or 1,440 minutes, or 86,400 seconds. This December 31st, as happens on irregular occasions, will actually last 86,401 seconds. You are of course familiar with leap days, which occur on leap … Continue reading
In Memory: Jane Raven Orttung
Last month, my old Piscataway neighbor passed away. Jane Raven Orttung was the daughter of Henry Raven, a well known explorer. Their lives were in part depicted in the fictional account, Jennie, by Robert Preston, which was reviewed New York … Continue reading
In Memory: Malvina Douglas
My great aunt died yesterday at 1:00am localtime. Born Malvina Simon, my aunt Mal was a force to be reckoned with. A brilliant woman, she met her husband Kenneth at the University of Chicago, and it was love at first … Continue reading
