Tag Archives: books
Smell and Memory
Sniff sniff. Sniff. Have you ever had that experience where you smell something and are whisked back in time to your childhood? A lot of people have. Proust wasn’t just making it up with the whole madeleine thing, you know. … Continue reading
bird by bird by bird by bird
A beloved book has reentered my life. It’s Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life. This was required reading in my science writing class at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and contains many useful pieces of advice, … Continue reading
field book project
I recently acquired a smartphone. (As a friend told me: “Welcome to 2005.”) This is improving my life in a lot of ways, among them that it is finally possible for me to read blogs. I know, yeah, I have … Continue reading
museum tourist: lincoln books
Ford’s Theatre–you may have heard of it, a certain president was shot there–is opening a new “Center for Education and Leadership.” That is, a new museum about Abraham Lincoln and what a big deal he is. I went through it … Continue reading
museum tourist: jefferson bible
The other day I was having lunch with a newly-laid-off friend, and after lunch she suggested we go visit the Jefferson Bible at the National Museum of American History. This is the excellent thing about not having a “regular” job … Continue reading
book! book! book!
Fantastic photographer Chris Linder has a new photography book, Science on Ice, about four expeditions to the cold and icy parts of our planet. Including one to the Bering Sea. Sound familiar? That’s right, it’s the expedition I went on. … Continue reading
unlikely friendships
My former National Geographic colleague Jennifer Holland has a new book. It’s the #9 book on Amazon right now. The book, Unlikely Friendships: 47 Remarkable Stories from the Animal Kingdom, is about animals that are buddies. There’s a monkey that … Continue reading
museum tourist: beinecke rare book & manuscript library
The last time I was in New Haven, I heard that one must see the Beinecke library on campus at Yale. I didn’t get around to it. So I rectified that situation this week. It doesn’t look like much from … Continue reading
hawks are supposed to be outdoors
How cool is this? A Cooper’s Hawk is hanging around the Main Reading Room at the Library of Congress. They first spotted it on Thursday and it was still there as of this blog post Friday. Actually, the Thursday blog … Continue reading
killer of little shepherds
I just finished a totally cool book: The Killer of Little Shepherds: A True Crime Story and the Birth of Forensic Science, by Douglas Starr. It’s about a serial killer who knocked off a couple dozen people in late-19th-century France, … Continue reading