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Books in 2023

January 10, 2023 by sergneri 2 Comments

Last half of “Bleeding Edge” by Thomas Pynchon 01/06/2023 – Done – enjoyable. Checked out “Rising : dispatches from the new American shore” by Elizabeth Rush from the library – good account the present impact of rising seas on a few areas in the world and a cautionary tale about the future. She’s an excellent … [Read more…]

Posted in: Arts, Climate Change, Content, Environment, Ethical and green living, Faits Divers, Feminism, History, Politics, Racism, Science, Sea Stories, Slavery, the Anthropocene, Thinking about, This Day in History, What I Read Tagged: A Canticle for Leibowitz, Against the day, Albert and the Whale, American Midnight, Bleeding Edge, Coal wars : the future of energy and the fate of the planet, Don DeLillo, Elizabeth Rush, Herbert Gold, How Markets Fail, John Cassidy, Ka, Philip Hoare, Richard Martin, Roberto Colasso, Slow Learner, The Marriage of Cadmus and Harmony, Thomas Pynchon, Walter M. Miller Jr, White Noise

“Smile like a hairdresser / Giving Cameron Diaz a shampoo.”

January 9, 2023 by sergneri Leave a Comment

Charles Simic, Pulitzer-Winning Poet and U.S. Laureate, Dies at 84 A Serbian-born American, he left the impression in his verse that he had “poked a hole into everyday life to reveal a glimpse of something endless.”

Posted in: Ethical and green living, Faits Divers, Obituaries, Sea Stories, Thinking about Tagged: Belgrade, Charles Simic, poet, poet laureate, Pulitzer Prize

Michael Snow, Prolific and Playful Artistic Polymath, Is Dead at 94

January 6, 2023 by sergneri Leave a Comment

He was a painter, a musician, a photographer and a sculptor. But he was best known for experimental (and often contentious) films like “Wavelength.” New York Times, Jan. 6, 2023 “I am not a professional,” he declared in a statement written for a group show catalog in 1967. “My paintings are done by a filmmaker, … [Read more…]

Posted in: Arts, Content, Faits Divers, Obituaries, Photography, Thinking about Tagged: animation, Annette Michelson, Canadian, Cecil Taylor, filmmaker, Hollis Frampton, jazz pianist, Jonas Mekas, Joyce Wieland, Ken Jacobs, Michael Snow, movie, painter, photographer, polymath, Richard Foreman, Richard Serra, sculptor, Steve Reich, Toronto, Wavelength

Angelo Badalamenti, Is Dead at 85

December 12, 2022 by sergneri Leave a Comment

Angelo Badalamenti, Composer for ‘Twin Peaks,’ Is Dead at 85

Posted in: Faits Divers, Modern Music, Obituaries Tagged: 1990 Grammy, Angelo Badalamenti, Composer, David Lynch, films, Isabella Rossellini, music, musical, Soundtrack

Lee Lorenz, 90, Cartoonist at The New Yorker, Dies

December 10, 2022 by sergneri Leave a Comment

This obituary of Mr. Lorenz contains many links to other cartoonists as well as his insights on the New Yorker.

Posted in: Content, Faits Divers, History, Obituaries, Politics, Thinking about Tagged: Cartoonist, Jack Ziegler, Lee Lorenz, Robert A. Gottlieb, Roz Chast, The New Yorker, Tina Brown, William Shawn

John Prados, Master of Uncovering Government Secrets, Dies at 71

December 7, 2022 by sergneri Leave a Comment

John Prados, Master of Uncovering Government Secrets, Dies at 71 New York Times By Clay Risen Dec. 3, 2022 John Prados, miner of declassified documents, dies at 71 Washington Post By Emily Langer December 5, 2022

Posted in: Ethical and green living, Faits Divers, History, IT Failures, Obituaries, Politics, Thinking about Tagged: antiwar activist, classified documents, Dr. Prados, George Washington University, John Prados, National Security Archive, Richard M. Nixon, scholar, U.S. government archives, Watergate

Jaron Lanier on Poisoning

November 27, 2022 by sergneri 1 Comment

Trump, Musk and Kanye Are Twitter Poisoned The New York Times, Opinion Guest Essay, Jaron Lanier, Nov. 11, 2022 ‘Extinction is on the table’: Jaron Lanier warns of tech’s existential threat to humanity, The Guardian, Edward Helmore, Sun 27 Nov 2022. Jaron Lanier is a computer scientist who pioneered research in virtual reality and whose … [Read more…]

Posted in: Climate Change, Environment, Ethical and green living, Faits Divers, Feminism, IT Failures, Politics, Racism, Science, Slavery, the Anthropocene, Thinking about, Trump Tagged: addiction, antisemitism, behavior-modification, cancel culture, Elon Musk, engagement, fandom, Jaron Lanier, Kanye West, online bullying, operant conditioning, public behavior, slavery denialism, Twitter Poisoned

The Crime Spike Is No Mystery

November 23, 2022 by sergneri Leave a Comment

In The Atlantic, Patrick Sharkey writes about the causes of crime; “By zooming out and looking at the big picture, the question of what causes violence becomes quite answerable.” November 23, 2022 Patrick Sharkey is the William S. Tod Professor of Sociology and Public Affairs at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. He … [Read more…]

Posted in: Environment, Ethical and green living, Faits Divers, Finanace, History, Politics, Racism, Science, Thinking about Tagged: Chicago, crime, geography of violence, Patrick Sharkey, Segregation, The Atlantic, Urban Crime, violence

The labyrinthine patterns traced by birds on the wing – in pictures

October 29, 2022 by sergneri 1 Comment

From the Guardian 10/29/2022 – The labyrinthine patterns traced by birds on the wing – in pictures by Alice Fisher. On a hike one day, photographer Xavier Bou, who is based in Barcelona, wondered if the flight paths of birds could be captured on paper. Through research he realised they could – and represented in … [Read more…]

Posted in: Environment, Faits Divers, Science, Sea Stories, Thinking about Tagged: birds, birds on the wing, flight paths, ornithographies, photographer, photographer Xavier Bou, Xavier Bou

The surreal photographs of Ralph Eugene Meatyard

October 28, 2022 by sergneri Leave a Comment

From the Guardian October 28, 2022, The surreal photographs of Ralph Eugene Meatyard “Ralph Eugene Meatyard (1925-1972) was an American optometrist and pioneer of experimental and surreal photography, working in Kentucky. Heavily influenced by Southern Gothic literature, his carefully constructed, haunting images are on display at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art in New Orleans … [Read more…]

Posted in: Content, Faits Divers, Sea Stories, Thinking about Tagged: experimental photography, Meatyard, Photography, Ralph Eugene Meatyard, Southern Gothic literature, surreal, surreal photography
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