11 December
2020
11 December
2020
Book Review: How We Got To Now by Steven Johnson
As mentioned before (see here) this is a book recommended to me by Avi Basu. As I had mentioned there, the author’s basic premise is that while we remember an invention for its immediate effect, in reality, there are a lot more profound downstream effects that we do not pause to realize. One example he talked about was how the printing press led to telescopes and microscopes. In a fashion that you will fail to connect – even after I tell you that one led to the other.
He calls this the “hummingbird effect”.
The six “inventions” the author focuses on are Glass, Cold (as in air conditioning), Sound (recreation of sound), Clean (-liness), Time and Light.
To me, the book starts on a high note, maintains the level of excitement for a couple of more chapters but towards the end (Time and Light), I found the discussions to lose the energy and sometimes the point the author was trying to make to be a little abstruse.
But that should not take away any merit from the very interesting and unique way Steves has tried to tie together the tapestry of various inventions.
Did you know that the world renowned glass making island of Murano (we visited in 2015 and got this from there) was a result of protecting public safety? (the glassmakers were banished there)
Did you know the origins of air conditioning included cutting up huge ice pieces from lakes in Massachussetts and then shipping them to the tropics? The invention of air conditioning not only circulated air molecules, it circulated people too! Hitherto barren lands – now called Texas, Florida and California rapidly saw people move there due to the tolerable temperatures that could be created inside. Florida went from less than a million people in 1920s to the Top 4 populous state in under 50 years!
This has had a very interesting effect – on Presidential Elections!! The redistributing of electoral colleges that air conditioning effected decisively moved election attention to the Sun Belt.
The ability to recreate sound quickly gave rise to the radio and then jazz. The author asserts that jazz – which created overnight celebrities (mostly Africa-Americans) led to a profound breakthrough – for the first time, white America welcomed African-American culture into its living room. Eventually paving the path to the birth of the civil rights movement.
In another interesting example, the author traces how a dangerous and unauthorized experiment with chlorine (lime) released into a New Jersey water tank proved the thesis a John Seale had – chlorine disinfects water of its contamination – and how that eventually led to people taking daily showers (a rather modern less-than-100-year practice in the USA). Which then led water to be used for as social entertainment – the swimming pool – which then led women to shed multiple layers of clothing that was the common practice to exposing almost all skin in public in a very short period of time!!
Go figure!!
One interesting point in the book – while we remember a person for an invention (Edison for light bulb, as an example), it is rarely one person who actually invents anything. (In fact, Edison did not invent the lightbulb but that is a story for another day). All inventions are fundamentally built on work (and other inventions) done by others and sometimes within a small period of time, multiple people invent the same thing. The time and forces of nature are just right at that point.
Easy reading. Recommend it.
10 December
2020
Great family evening… with a new guest!!
Work went a little late and by the time I wrapped up dinner it was nearly 9 PM. The sharp cold in Atlanta has somewhat abated. It was a good day to sit around a fire. Which is what Sharmila and I did.
After some time, we heard a familiar meow. I say familiar because yesterday, we had a cat show up at our door. Natasha had tended to it while I tried to find out from the neighbors if any were short of cat count by one. (None were). The cat would not come indoors. So, Natasha left food, water and a cozy bed in the garage and settled it there. The garage door had to be kept open. Everytime she tried closing it, the cat would dart out.
In a few hours, the cat was gone! This morning, got a call from somebody about a mile away that it is their cat (I had posted a picture in the local bulletin) and that it is not exactly lost. It is an outside cat, does not like to come indoors and will generally hang around for some time and then leave.
Well, that cat was back!! Now, I am not big into cats – in fact, I get an allergy attack (in the eyes mainly) if a cat comes too close to me. But Natasha loves them. Well, a quick call later, all five us settled down by the fire. The cat would not leave Natasha! Interestingly, it came to make friends with the dog. The dog just simply ignored it!! (And they say it is a spaniel and terrier mix! My left foot, it is!).
After about a couple of hours, Natasha went inside. The cat, on a cue, left our property. I waited for the embers to simmer down and then came inside myself.
Nice family evening!
9 December
2020
Now up to 6 language alphabets
Acquired a passing acquaintance with Farsi letters. To be sure, I still cannot get the right pronunciation for “ghein” or “qaf” (identical pronunciations, I am told). And I know only isolated letters. But it was good enough to read a signboard inside the local Bezoria restaurant yesterday. (Needless to say, normally I would have no idea what the word meant but the context was helpful in understanding the word “shawarma”).
So, here are the six language alphabets that I have learnt arranged reverse chronologically of when I learnt them.
Thinking of learning Thai letters next. They almost look like notes on a music sheet (another thing I cannot read, of course).
8 December
2020
It was a cold evening outside!!
6 December
2020
The isolated Farsi alphabets
Have now learnt all the Farsi alphabets and how to write them. To be sure, when I say “writing”, I mean as the letters would be written by themselves. When actually written in cursive handwriting, the shapes can differ depending on whether they are the first letter, somewhere in the middle or the last letter in a word. I have not learnt those. I need more practice still. (If I can rattle off and write backwards – meaning last letter to first letter, I feel I have memorized well enough).
The two letters in red have the same pronunciation but I cannot pronounce them. See a funny suggestion from Anand here.
5 December
2020
Weekend relaxation
5 December
2020
From the bartender’s corner – Lady Leon
This has equal parts Gin (I used Bombay Sapphire), Galliano, Dry Vermouth and Orange Curacao. You stir it with cracked ice and then pour in a champagne flute.
On the sweeter side due to the Orange Curacao and Galliano, it has a distinctive nose derived from Galliano.
I could not find the origin of this recipe.
5 December
2020
Farsi alphabet lessons
Took the motorbike to Ballground for a ride and coffee. While there, had a call with my good friend Anand’s wife Firouzeh (who is from Tehran, Iran) to fine tune the proper pronunciation of the Farsi alphabets. I think I am within striking range for most of them. Other than the two alphabets “ghain” and “qaf”. They are pronounced identically – and I can’t get it.
In Bengali and Hindi, we have a letter for “gh”. There is no single English letter for it but it is pronounced like “gh”ost. I asked Anand (who knows Bengali and Hindi pronunciations) if he could gauge how close the pronunciations were.
He said something to the effect of if Sharmila were to strangle me and I were to try pronouncing “kh” (the second letter in Bengali/Hindi), then I might come close. On second thoughts, I will give it a pass…
5 December
2020
