Recently, a reader sent me a blog by Roy A. Barnes, a writer from southeastern Wyoming who devotes his space to the business of getting published.  One of his articles provided definitions,  in layman’s terms, of the legal rights publishers seek before printing a work.  I thought

I’ve always been fascinated with Astronomy.  As a teenager I helped put together a monthly  astronomer’s newsletter supported by the Griffith Park Observatory in Southern California and meant for amateur enthusiasts.  When I got to college my interests took a different turn, bu

The other evening, PBS news featured an interview with Lev Grossman who has published the 3rd book in his fantasy trilogy.  The new title is, The Magician’s Land.  What’s interesting about the author’s work is that it’s targeted to adults rather than to young readers.  Gros

In the September 17 issue of Atlantic Monthly, physician Zeke Emanuel explains why he hopes to die by the age of 75.  His reasoning is that by 75, he will have “made whatever contributions, important or not, I am going to make.”  He complains that our society is stretching life

I admit I have little knowledge about Muslims or their faith. At best, I brushed shoulders with a few while traveling in East Africa.  My most memorable encounter was with my safari guide in Uganda.  During one of our many chats, he mentioned a custom in his country that obliged a w

Richard Dawkins has published the first of his two part memoir, An Appetite for Wonder,  and John Gray, emeritus professor of European thought at the London School of Economics, has taken the work apart with surgical deftness. He depicts Dawkins as a man who is facile in his thinking

We have a new reason “to despise Facebook,” says Jay Barmann of SFirst.com. (“Talking Points,” The Week,  October 3. 2014 pg. 16)  The company has long had a policy that requires users to subscribe under their real names.  But what’s in a name some Drag Queens are beginni

One of my blog readers sent me a writer’s comment on the art of blogging.  Barry Ritholtz has been producing a financial blog, Big Picture for over 10 years.  As chief investment officer of Ritholtz Wealth Management and the author of Bailout Nation, the writer has credentials whi

One of my blog readers sent me a writer’s comment on the art of blogging.  Barry Ritholtz has been producing a financial blog, Big Picture, for over 10 years.  As chief investment officer of Ritholtz Wealth Management and the author of Bailout Nation, the writer has credentials wh

Yesterday a friend called and by her hesitant manner, I knew she wanted a favor.  Eventually, she got to her point.  She wanted me to have coffee with her friend who was writing her first book and who wanted my advice on how to proceed.  I agreed to meet this friend, of course.  A