Odds and Ends Archive
March 12, 2010
Jeffery Oicles Is Gone
March 3 was worse than I had thought. I just got word from his sister that my old friend Jeff Oicles also died that day. Jeff was my best friend in elementary school and much of high school. I often...Read all of "Jeffery Oicles Is Gone"
Posted by Duane Smith at 2:00 PM
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March 7, 2010
What To Do With A Ghost
Last night Shirley and I went to another free concert at Pomona College. The Pomona College Orchestra preformed four pieces ending with Antonín Dvořák’s Symphony No. 8 in G major, Op 88 (1889). The highlight of the evening was Anatolia...Read all of "What To Do With A Ghost"
Posted by Duane Smith at 9:33 AM
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March 5, 2010
Robologues Do Euthyphro
Via Leiter Reports: A Philosophy Blog...Read all of "Robologues Do Euthyphro"
Posted by Duane Smith at 12:21 PM
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March 4, 2010
William Mann, August 25, 1943 - March 3, 2010
Bill Mann was a friend of mine, a coworker, sometimes a coconspirator, a friend of mine. He died peacefully at home yesterday evening with his family around him. He died after a four plus year battle with a slow growing...Read all of "William Mann, August 25, 1943 - March 3, 2010"
Posted by Duane Smith at 10:09 AM
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February 27, 2010
Yes, It Is. Thank You!
Over night, I received an email that asked, “Is your religious belief strong enough?” I saw no need to take their link. In fact, I advise against taking their link....Read all of "Yes, It Is. Thank You!"
Posted by Duane Smith at 1:03 PM
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February 25, 2010
Stolen Descartes Letter Found
While not one of my normal abnormal interests, I found this report in The Chronicle of Higher Education abnormally interesting. A long-lost letter by René Descartes has come to light at Haverford College, where it had lain buried in the...Read all of "Stolen Descartes Letter Found"
Posted by Duane Smith at 9:47 AM
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February 20, 2010
A Musical Struggle
Last night’s concert featured something different. Something I had never seen or heard before. The second number was a piano duo with Ming Ysu at the piano and Lorenz Gamma on the violin. The piece was Alfred Schnittke’s Sonata No....Read all of "A Musical Struggle"
Posted by Duane Smith at 2:44 PM
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February 16, 2010
I Made History And I Wasn’t All That Nervous
One of our neighbors, an approximately 10 year old one, had an assignment to interview someone and write a report that included, among other things, material from the interview. It was for a Weekly Reader essay contest. Yes, there still...Read all of "I Made History And I Wasn’t All That Nervous"
Posted by Duane Smith at 12:37 PM
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February 14, 2010
Two Contrasting Concerts
Friday evening Shirley and I attended a Bluegrass and Old Time Music concert featuring Richard Greene, Peter Feldmann and Joti Rockwell. Last night we attended “Music for Two Pianos” with Karl and Margaret Kohn. My guess is that Pomona College’s...Read all of "Two Contrasting Concerts"
Posted by Duane Smith at 4:16 PM
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February 12, 2010
Don’t Give Away The Store
Over at Feeling Finite, Alan Lenzi shared an abstract of a paper he will be giving at the 2010 ASOR session. The ASOR session is entitled, “Communication and Power in Mesopotamian Civilizations.” His post with the abstract is “Advertising Secrecy,...Read all of "Don’t Give Away The Store"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:28 AM
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February 7, 2010
Exploring Boundaries
Last night Shirley and I attended the 18th annual Ussachevsky Festival Concert at Pomona College. For us it was only our 2nd annual Ussachevsky Festival Concert. Dedicated to electronic music, this event has a decidedly experimental character. “Electronic music” covers...Read all of "Exploring Boundaries"
Posted by Duane Smith at 10:18 AM
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February 5, 2010
Wandering Interests
More than a little belatedly, I’ve ordered Mark Wilson’s Wandering Significance: An Essay on Conceptual Behavior. I may have some more to say about it in a week or so. If you haven't already, I encourage you to get your...Read all of "Wandering Interests"
Posted by Duane Smith at 1:59 PM
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January 26, 2010
The Paradigm Incendiary Post
Chris Clarke has it at Coyote Crossing. Check it out....Read all of "The Paradigm Incendiary Post"
Posted by Duane Smith at 4:51 PM
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January 21, 2010
Can Azaleas Swim?
Read all of "Can Azaleas Swim?"
Posted by Duane Smith at 1:07 PM
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January 17, 2010
Have A Little Time To Waste?
Well, I'm not sure that I do but I often waste more than a little anyway. Here's a way to have a some useless fun. Ever wonder about the position of a string of digits within first 200 million digits...Read all of "Have A Little Time To Waste?"
Posted by Duane Smith at 6:37 PM
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January 16, 2010
Going To WECSOR?
If you plan to attend the WECSOR joint Western AAR, SBL, and ASOR conference at Arizona State University, Tempe, March 13-14, live in the greater Los Angeles area and want to avoid airplanes, this post is for you. I'm strongly...Read all of "Going To WECSOR?"
Posted by Duane Smith at 6:40 PM
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January 15, 2010
It Takes A Lot Of Nerve
Shirley and I are in the midst of changing banks. We spent much of this week and last doing online research and than going to a few selected banks to get a feel for how they treated us and get...Read all of "It Takes A Lot Of Nerve"
Posted by Duane Smith at 4:02 PM
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December 28, 2009
Now in Prison
After many years of futile effort, Shirley thinks she has finally found an honorably person in my background: John Porterfield of Duchal, 1613-1690, my 8th grandfather. But I find a few things about him a little troubling. Not the least...Posted by Duane Smith at 3:48 PM
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December 26, 2009
What Are The Chances?
Just before Christmas, Shirley and I completed a series of Teaching Company lectures on probability by Michael Starbird, Professor of Mathematics at the University of Texas at Austin. A course like this is a must for anyone who 1) lacks...Read all of "What Are The Chances?"
Posted by Duane Smith at 9:40 AM
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December 21, 2009
Christopher O’Brien Is Back
One of my favorite bloggers, Christopher O’Brien, has resumed blogging at his old stomping ground, Northstate Science. He was away from blogging for almost two years. I couldn't bring myself to remove his site from my news feed. I'm now...Read all of "Christopher O’Brien Is Back"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:47 AM
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December 20, 2009
Not Philosophers' Mythological Science
Brian Leiter asked his readers to suggest the best philosophy books and articles of the past decade. Not too surprisingly, I hadn't heard of many of the suggestions but I had heard of Mark Wilson's Wandering Significance: An Essay on...Read all of "Not Philosophers' Mythological Science"
Posted by Duane Smith at 11:08 AM
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December 13, 2009
Lawrence Lessig On Getting Our Values Around Copyright
The other day, Robert Cargill identified a lecture by Lawrence Lessig at the DUCAUSE09 conference as a "must watch." Robert was correct. So, here is another change to hear Lessig's lecture. To whet your appetite, I've reproduced, under a Creative...Read all of "Lawrence Lessig On Getting Our Values Around Copyright"
Posted by Duane Smith at 9:00 PM
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December 12, 2009
What Philosophers Think
Last month I mentioned a philosophy survey conducted by David Chalmers and David Bourget. Well, the results are in. Take a look and be sure to read the comments. The greatest consistency among targeted faculty members, professional philosophers all, concerned...Read all of "What Philosophers Think"
Posted by Duane Smith at 9:46 AM
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December 10, 2009
There's Serious Humor and Then There's Just Plain Funny
Over the last couple of days, two unrelated essays have hit the internet. First, Alun Salt made the skeptical case for the Titanic remaining unsinkable. For example, "The data is contradictory. The officers of the Titanic claimed it went down...Read all of "There's Serious Humor and Then There's Just Plain Funny"
Posted by Duane Smith at 7:56 AM
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December 2, 2009
Who Is He?
In her continuing effort to find an honorable person in one of our backgrounds, Shirley is reading William M. Metcalfe's, 1905, The History of the County of Renfrew. She ran across this rather abnormal passage, Among his prisoners in the...Posted by Duane Smith at 8:07 PM
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November 26, 2009
Happy Thanksgiving
My good friend Bill Berger wrote this Thanksgiving Memory and I thought you'd enjoy it. Happy Thanksgiving! A Thanksgiving Memory I was a child, and didn’t know Thanksgiving was a cold-weather holiday. Los Angeles in November was warm and sunny....Read all of "Happy Thanksgiving"
Posted by Duane Smith at 7:23 AM
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November 25, 2009
Remind Me To Keep Better Notes
As part of a cleanup of some work I've been doing, I ran across an old note on a broken line of Akkadian text. Actually, it's more than just a note. It's the complete reconstruction of the line along with...Read all of "Remind Me To Keep Better Notes"
Posted by Duane Smith at 3:45 PM
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November 23, 2009
A Fun Philosophy Survey
David Chalmers and David Bourget have developed an abnormally interesting philosophical survey. They imaginatively call it "The Philosophical Survey." They target it at professional philosophers and their fellow travelers, graduate students, etc. but seem to welcome all comers. However, not...Read all of "A Fun Philosophy Survey"
Posted by Duane Smith at 11:45 AM
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November 15, 2009
(Near) Quotation of the Day
"There should be a society against the abuse of quantum mechanics." Barbara Ehrenreich, author of Bright-sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America, said something very much like this during a Skeptics Society lecture at Cal Tech...Read all of "(Near) Quotation of the Day"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:04 PM
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November 14, 2009
Fun With Philosophy
On the one hand, I'm not sure that it's the best time to make fun of academics in the humanities. On the other hand, is there ever a bad time to make fun of philosophers? Check out these "shorts takes"...Read all of "Fun With Philosophy"
Posted by Duane Smith at 11:17 AM
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Titles Only From Here On
November 11, 2009
Investment Banking And The Academy
November 3, 2009
Claude Levi-Strauss Dies At 100.
October 27, 2009
Changing Times
October 25, 2009
Sibelius, Hindemith and Haydn, Oh My!
October 12, 2009
Potentially Dangerous Spam
October 4, 2009
Lee and Svard, Half Live In Concert At Pomona College
September 27, 2009
The Humanities: Is It Time To Sell Short?
September 25, 2009
The Phaedo and Joan of Arc
September 20, 2009
New New Music
September 18, 2009
Quotations Of A Few Days Ago
September 8, 2009
Quotation of the Day
Quotation of Yesterday
September 4, 2009
The Myth of Myth
August 23, 2009
Let's All Meet At Ethical Realism
August 20, 2009
Quotation of the Birthday Day
August 17, 2009
A Little Cognitive Gift
August 8, 2009
Answerless Questions and Confusing Relationships
August 3, 2009
A License To Steal (From Thomas Jefferson)
July 31, 2009
The TLG® Canon Online
July 20, 2009
Dripping Away My Time
June 24, 2009
On Why It Is So Important
June 23, 2009
Library Adventures
June 19, 2009
What Next, Apple Pie?
June 17, 2009
Who Exposes More?
June 12, 2009
A Short Rant
June 8, 2009
Statistical Literacy - Sometimes A Life Or Death Matter
June 6, 2009
A Forty Five Year Conversation Continues
May 29, 2009
Are All Things Really Better In Koine?
May 14, 2009
Are You A Weirdo Public Intellectual?
May 13, 2009
The Good And The Bad Of It
May 8, 2009
Journals and Abbreviations
April 19, 2009
Who Are Your Favorite Early Modern Philosophers?
April 7, 2009
A Depressing Reminder
March 26, 2009
Four Stone Hearth Is Up
March 14, 2009
The Woman Has No Mercy
March 11, 2009
On Interviewing
March 8, 2009
Ah! Bach
March 7, 2009
Quotation of the Other Day
March 2, 2009
The Last Couple Standing
February 23, 2009
Like All Protestant Music
February 22, 2009
An Entertaining Program
February 11, 2009
A Few of Simple Questions
February 8, 2009
No Sympathy
January 27, 2009
It Must Be A Slow News Day
January 24, 2009
Following Duane's Law
January 22, 2009
This Year's Oranges
January 6, 2009
Visiting Major Intellectual Monuments
January 2, 2009
100% Correct and Still No Respect
December 29, 2008
A Warmer Shade of Cold
December 20, 2008
Off to Kent Ohio
December 16, 2008
The End of Life As I Have Known It
December 6, 2008
Plato on the Propriety and Impropriety of Writing
November 12, 2008
For Him Of Little Faith
November 10, 2008
Six Not So Random Things About Me
October 28, 2008
For the Next Four Days, Please Don't Find Anything
October 16, 2008
Having A Coke At Sounion
October 9, 2008
A Fruitful Inconvenience
September 23, 2008
New Season, New Music
September 6, 2008
Post It
September 1, 2008
The Rant That Never Was
August 30, 2008
Meet Bunny the Cat
August 23, 2008
Bill Mann - A Mann That Changed the World
August 19, 2008
So This is an Improvement
August 18, 2008
2012 Sells Better Than 2060
August 10, 2008
A Proper Start In Life
August 6, 2008
Our Distant Cousins Many Times Removed
August 2, 2008
SiteMeter Crashes Windows Explorer
July 29, 2008
Our Earthquake Damage
July 27, 2008
Mathematics and the Intellectual
July 26, 2008
Auto Insurance and Akkadian Loanwords
July 20, 2008
A Good Person is Hard to Find
July 17, 2008
Some Questions About Unpublishing
July 12, 2008
Quotation of the Week
July 3, 2008
Top 100 Liberal Arts Professor Blogs
June 27, 2008
The Memeology Meme