Linkblogging

[tarigwaemir]

Haste Street, on the Feast of St. George

Berkeley Repertory's 2008-2009 season features, among other intriguing plays, a production of The Arabian Nights, directed by Mary Zimmerman! Also, a stage adaptation of Crime and Punishment.

Some links of interest:

1. Via Lifehacker, How to Make a Folded Paper CD Case: I wrap most of my CDs with printer paper, but this particular version seems nicely self-contained without requiring the Post-It flap I usually use.

2. Also from the same source, Slimmy: The Slimmest Front Pocket Wallet on Earth

3. Wired's special feature on 12 Hacks That Will Amp Up Your Brainpower: I know most of them sound really gimmicky and/or self-evident, but I liked Caffeinate With Care, Embrace Chaos, and Slow Down. Have duly brought thermos and green tea bag along to lab.

4. Via Reading Copy, We Tell Stories: Six experimental stories posted online by Penguin.

5. In the New York Times, The All-Natural Taste That Wasn't: Pinkberry releases its yogurt ingredient list, and alas, it is not all-natural.

6. Via color_blue, essay in the New York Times Magazine, Why Bother? by Michael Pollan: I haven't read The Omnivore's Dilemma, but now I want to. I also like the idea of having a garden. A vegetable garden isn't exactly feasible, but I think I'd like to grow herbs at my desk (our windows face west). I don't know how much that will reduce my carbon footprint, given that I don't even use herbs in cooking, but plants are nice to have around.

7. Speaking of food, via The Old Foodie, Cake In Imitation of a Haunch of Lamb from 1895

8. On The Mumpsimus, This Is Not a Poem: On the Queen's English Society defining a poem strictly as something with rhyme and meter.

9. Via Reading Copy again, the New Scientist article on Life-changing books: Recommendations from 17 leading scientists: These interviews are fascinating! Take, for example, Steve Jones' description of reading Farthest North:

The funny thing is that my memories of reading it are so clear. I would go to the library in the dismal Merseyside suburb of Lower Bebington where I used to live. My mum was always ringing up and shouting at the librarian to send me home, or send me out and make me go and play football. But I'd sneak back into the library.

I remember standing in the icy cold inside that municipal library, pressed up against one of those old-fashioned thick radiator pipes, just about keeping warm. Day after day after day I'd stand there reading the book, putting it back on the shelf and then coming back the following day. It must have taken me ages.

Or Peter Atkins' description of Handbook of Mathematical Functions:

Unlike a novel, it withstands infinities of rereadings. Its "characters", the orthogonal functions, the spherical Bessel functions, the Legendre polynomials, and so on, behave in such a variety of ways they make even the Sopranos look like wooden posts. There are infinite, unpredictable twists to the "plot", with sudden revelations of "kinship" as if you had discovered a Soprano was in fact second cousin to a Walton.

I really want to read the other books in the list (well, excepting the ones I've already read).

10. Just in, jaebi_lit posts about Grosse Fuge, the penultimate movement to Beethoven's String Quartet no. 13 in Bb maj, op. 130, which is a double fugue. I didn't even know Beethoven composed fugues until Cat raved about it to me last Thursday after dinner. (Bach has double and triple fugues in his Art of Fugue, but as expected, Beethoven is much more modern in his themes and use of counterpoint.)

Yours &c.

Post-script: Oh, I meant to mention, I watched Planet B-Boy, a documentary about the international breakdancing competition in Germany, with Steve and his friend last Friday. I highly recommend it; even if you're not a fan of hip hop, the acrobatic stunts and dance moves are amazing. The showcases that the teams performed were incredibly artistic, with gravity-defying pommels and seemingly frictionless spins, and the personal stories of all the teams were pretty engrossing as well.

Comments

[clocklike.livejournal.com]

My mom has her own way of making a CD case, but I bookmarked the page you gave me. <3 Lots of other cool links, too~

Yeah, I know close to nothing about B-boying, but their performances fascinate me so much. It really makes me realize how far a human body can go if the human were to try *__*!

(Edit: I fail at grammar. XD;)

[troisroyaumes]

Isn't it nifty? I'm going to try it next time I need to make a CD case.

You'll like the movie! There are two South Korean teams (the defending champions plus another team to represent the country) in the competition, and both of them win! ^_^

[jaebi-lit.livejournal.com]

Heard:Große Fuge in Bb maj, op. 130, by Ludwig van Beethoven

Muahahaha you are listening to it, too! *dances gleefully*

IT IS SO AMAZING!

[troisroyaumes]

It is, it is! ::needs to listen to it twenty more times:: ^_^

[starlighter.livejournal.com]

The CD case will certainly come in handy and I read the Wired feature, which was fascinating! (And just when I had cancelled my subscription to Wired, too :) Everything else has to wait for the weekend but thanks for the great links :)

[troisroyaumes]

No problem! I don't regularly read Wired, but now I think I'll have to. ^_^

[angrybabble.livejournal.com]

so they're saying my consumpton of the green tea frappuccino is more effective than just getting a huge 4-shot cappuccino? hurrah! \o/ (well I know that's not exactly the case but whatever, I love the damn thing. Also the vanilla bean miniscones. KURSE U STARBUCKS.)

[troisroyaumes]

Yes, apparently. I've never tried the vanilla bean miniscones at Starbucks...now I'll have to see if the local one has them. XD

(Long time no see! How have you been?)

[canis-m.livejournal.com]

Omnivore's Dilemma is great--I'm teaching it this semester. Worth reading, for sure.

I've been meaning to make a massive Food Issues reading/linkpost one of these days...

[troisroyaumes]

I'll be interested to read that post. ^_^

[sub-divided.livejournal.com]

#3 makes me feel better about being a slooooooow reader.

[troisroyaumes]

Haha, yes, it's good justification for how slowly I process papers. >_>;;

[tryogeru.livejournal.com]

The paper folding thing is neat, though I'm paranoid and probably will still reinforce with tape.

Funny thing about that wallet, is that their slogan is "Simply the best for people who love change," yet there's no place to put change. ;_;

[troisroyaumes]

I don't keep change in my wallet though, so it looks awfully tempting. Will probably not actually buy it though.

[tryogeru.livejournal.com]

Oh, totally random, but recently my mom keeps saying "What China needs, is a Zhu Ge Liang," in that we need someone who can communicate, promote logic & reason, etc, in response to what's going on in China right now.

I keep giggling a little on the inside, and think of you. XD

[troisroyaumes]

I agree, the world needs a Zhuge Liang. XD

[angelyrique.livejournal.com]

I knew I liked Red Mango better

[troisroyaumes]

Haha, yes. (Are you still up?)

[ldmoonflower.livejournal.com]

I think anyone who's ever had formal composition training has been made to write fugues, so it's not surprising to find use of the technique in many a post-Baroque piece. I believe there's a double fugue in the Credo section of Beethoven's Missa Solemnis, which I'm performing next week; I'm sad you're too far away to come, seeing as you'd be one of the few of my friends who'd be interested in this kind of thing. At least it sounds like you're getting no dearth of culture in Berkeley.

[troisroyaumes]

There is? Oh, is it a sung fugue? *_* I'm sad that I can't attend either; I would love to come listen.

The nice thing about the Bay Area is that cultural events are affordable. Almost every ticket I've bought has been $20-25. ^_^

[ldmoonflower.livejournal.com]

I'm jealous!