“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing … Continue reading
The power of punctuation
An English professor wrote on the board: A woman without her man is nothing. The class was then asked to punctuate the sentence. The men wrote: “A woman, without her man, is nothing.” The women wrote: “A woman: without her, man is nothing.” Eats, Shoots and Leaves If you are at all interested in punctuation, then this … Continue reading
Better then Dickens?
Omar Khayyam “The Moving Finger writes: and, having writ, Moves on: nor all thy Piety nor Wit Shall lure it back to cancel half a Line, Nor all thy Tears wash out a Word of it.” (Fitzgerald’s quatrain 51 in his 1st edition) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubaiyat_of_Omar_Khayyam I have known this for more years than I can remember, … Continue reading
Living in a Quantum World: Scientific American
Those who are not shocked when they first come across quantum theory cannot possibly have understood it. Niels Bohr Quantum mechanics is commonly said to be a theory of microscopic things: molecules, atoms, subatomic particles. Nearly all physicists, though, think it applies to everything, no matter what the size. via Living in a Quantum World: … Continue reading
Star Trek and Leadership
Alex Knapp at Forbeshas come up with five leadership lessons from Star Trek’s Captain Kirk. I’ve summarised them here, but really you need to read the whole piece: www.forbes.com/…/james-t-kirk/ 1. Never Stop Learning “You know the greatest danger facing us is ourselves, an irrational fear of the unknown. But there’s no such thing as the unknown– only things … Continue reading
The crow vending machine
Crows are common, we’ve all seen them. Well, since watching this I have never seen them in quite the same way. The vending machine doesn’t sell crows, it sells to crows. They buy food from it. If you are pushed for time start watching at 3:20 for half a minute.
Space elevators & Alastair Reynolds
Not so much a review and a rave A great piece of SF writing in the tradition of Arthur C Clarke and Isaac Asimov. Actually the second in the Revelation Space series though a good place to start if you’re not too sure. Specifically this book has a detailed description of what would happen to a space elevator if someone … Continue reading
Embracing – or simply coping with – otherness
Thandie Newton gives a surprisingly compelling talk on the challenges and benefits of being different – being other.
The Power of introverts
There are introverts, extroverts and ambi-verts Susan Cain speaking at TED in eloquent defence of introversion.
This land doesn’t know a real hero.
Hero This has a cast that is virtually a who’s who: Jet Li, Tony Leung, Maggie Cheung, Ziyi Zhang. And then it is directed by Zhang Yimou and ‘presented’ by one Quentin Tarantino. After that it will either be a great disappointment or heroic. For me it is definitely the latter. The colour, the scope, the story with its twists and … Continue reading
Silent Running
Silent Running Early 70′s environmental movie. It stars a young Bruce Dern, though the real stars are the three robot helpers: Huey, Dewey and Louie. One for both the science fiction fan and the lover of good films. The interplay between Dern and the robots is in turns funny and poignant.
American Graffiti -
American Graffiti The coming of age film. Funny, heartbreaking, sad, thoughtful and though provoking. Form George Lucas with a young Harrison Ford, driving a car with the number plate THX 1138 (!) (And yes that is a very young Ron Howard!)
The End of the Affair
The End of the Affair A Grahame Green story filmed by Neil Jordan. From the title is could seem to be trite and in lesser hands perhaps would have been. But here it is really appealing. A complex, mysterious and beautifully made film. 8/10
In the Mood for Love
Art house perfection from Hong Kong director Wong Kar-wai. The direction, photography, characterisation, acting, soundtrack are all exceptional. It transports you to another place. It is near impossible to adequately describe. Have a look at the web site to get a taste of what it is like. On a scale of 1-10 this rates 15. British magazine … Continue reading
Guest review: Pulp Fiction
“The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the iniquities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he, who in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother’s keeper and the finder of lost … Continue reading
Now is the time…
Nunc est bibendum, nunc pede libero pulsanda tellus. Now is the time for drinking, now the time to dance footloose upon the earth. Horace: Book I, ode xxxvii, line 1
Never Let Me Go
Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro I read this book some two years ago, perhaps longer. I have found it to be unforgettable. By the end of the book I felt I knew the characters and I had such a clear view of the school. I highly rate all of Ishiguro books I have … Continue reading
The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald I read this a very long time ago and I remember enjoying it. Different to the film, though I enjoyed that too. Fond memories of the ‘Gatsby’ look it spawned: excessively wide lapels, etc.
Art lament – updated
Update: June 2011 I have now quite unexpectedly met Kristian. It was a real pleasure, though sadly he still hasn’t had his paintings back. Originally published AUGUST 21, 2009 I have long known the quip about there being no such thing as bad publicity, though I am not entirely sure I agree with it. On … Continue reading
Seekers after truth and beauty
He who seeks truth shall find beauty. He who seeks beauty shall find vanity. He who seeks order, shall find gratification. He who seeks gratification, shall be disappointed. He who considers himself the servant of his fellow beings shall find the joy of self-expression. He who seeks self-expression, shall fall into the pit of arrogance. … Continue reading
