Uncategorized
I've made two mistakes – both concerning Orson Scott Card's quadrology and both nominal – in today's post, and which I have now rectified. I ask that you revisit/refresh that post to read the updated text. The book I first quoted was Children of the
Uncategorized
I've missed writing my posts for three days straight. 🙈 I don't know about you but I've certainly let myself down. I have a trove of excuses but I'm sure none of them qualify. Today is Higgs Day. I'm not sure
Uncategorized
In the middle of a conversation this morning, my friend wondered aloud as to whether there were any advantages to teaching history forward in time (i.e. with causality) instead of backward. Neither of us being historians… rather, both of us being far too quantitative in our thinking to be
Uncategorized
I started writing this as today's post but at some point it morphed into an article for The Wire, to be published tomorrow morning. Sharing it here in full nonetheless. Earlier this week, a team of neural networking algorithms beat a team of five human players at a
Uncategorized
These days, I can't remember either the good news or the bad news. When someone talks about the good news – likely a centrist or someone who hasn't thought their political views through – I nod along, keen to counter them but just feeling so tired. When someone
Uncategorized
There's a new book by Alan Lightman out, titled Searching for Stars on an Island in Maine. Irrespective of others' appreciation of it, I expect to find the book preposterously dull if Michael Shermer's review in the Times is anything to go by. "Does
Uncategorized
Climate change is gradually turning the abundance of space into privilege, at least if it already wasn't before. In a warmer world, in which we will surely prize the efficient use of resources, physical isolation will be a luxury. Not everyone will forswear all the land they have
Uncategorized
Yesterday, I travelled first class in the Shatabdi Express, from Chennai to Bengaluru. I'd been looking forward to the journey because of the extra legspace in the offing, and the ability to sit in a train for five hours without having to manspread, curl up (to the extent
Uncategorized
xkcd does the best nerdy comic but oglaf is the comic I never knew I needed – and it's probably the best ever. It's wry humour + sex, often featuring erotic fungi and The Blind Gibberer, and even more oftenly situated in the sort of medieval setting that
Uncategorized
Laura Vanderkam writes in Fast Company about a three-minute habit that changed her life: keeping track of how she spends her time during her waking hours, with a spreadsheet. Much of her piece is directed towards mitigating parental guilt – that Vanderkam might not be spending too much time with
Uncategorized
Rolling Stones has published a fabulous profile of Johnny Depp, written by Stephen Rodrick. It's about 15 minutes' worth of reading long and I highly recommend you read it right now. The profile's power comes from excellent writing and a narrative that makes you come
Uncategorized
I'm sorry, my dear followers, to have to disappoint you (or, quite possibly, induce a sigh of relief) but today's blog post will have to be just these lines. My laptop died yesterday, I got a cold, lots of anxiety, a mild fever and a migraine,