Sunday, February 12, 2017

Spare Time Plus Peregrine Books

Equals unplanned purchases...


Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race, by Margot Lee Shetterly, is for Cassandra, but don't her; it's a surprise.

Consider Phlebas, by Iain M. Banks

Alexander to Constantine: Archaeology of the Land of the Bible, by Eric M. Meyers and Mark A. Chancey

Lucy M. Lewis: American Indian Potter, by Susan Harnly Peterson


What Do I Do On Sunday Mornings?

Unless I'm working, reading, or exploring that is...


First things first. A pot of dark roast is prepared. Then...

Frequent readers of my blog will know I have hundreds of books on my "to read" shelf, which is both an actual bookcase as well as a long virtual list.

I actively participate in two on-line forums. One is about rifles and is called Scoutrifle.org. The other is the comments section (actually a Discus forum) below the UK radio show and podcast Unbelievable.

I strive not to spend too much time on Twitter and Facebook, which I find
 much easier without the apps on my phone.  Still, I frequently fail. Those "likes" are addictive...

When I'm out and about on my own, especially driving, I try to keep up with about a dozen podcasts:

  • Astronomy Cast - Frasier Cane and Dr. Pamela L. Gay take us on a weekly "a fact-based journey through the cosmos"
  • The Deconstructionists - John Williamson and Adam Narloch wrestle with their religious belief
  • Escape Pod - Science Fiction short stories
  • Ideas from CBC Radio - Paul Kennedy hosts a thoughtful examination of "social issues, culture and the arts, geopolitics, history, biography, science and technology, and the humanities."
  • Monstertalk - Monsters and the paranormal in popular media
  • On Being - Krista Tippett “thoughtfully delving into the mysteries of human existence."
  • On The Media - Meta-analyis of home the media covers the news
  • Point of Inquiry - Science, religion, and politics
  • Quackcast - Mark Crisp, MD, on Supplements, Complementary and Alternative Medicine, or as he calls it, SCAMs.
  • Rationally Speaking - Exploring "the borderlands between reason and nonsense, likely and unlikely, science and pseudoscience."
  • Reasonable Faith - William Lane Craig discusses his view of evangelical Christianity
  • Skeptoid - "Critical Analysis of Pop Phenomena"
  • Spark My Muse - "Fuel for the human journey" by Lisa Delay
  • Unbelievable - Debate between Christians and non-Christians
  • You Are Not So Smart - The impact of human cognition on critical thinking