18+ hour, 49+ min ago  (353+ words) I did one of my favorite shopping expeditions today, stocking up on groceries in Chinatown. A giant supermarket opened there in the last couple of years, and it has everything one would want for Chinese food, including the hoisin sauce,…...

23+ hour, 21+ min ago  (207+ words) Why Evolution Is True Bill Maher continues his defense of Israel on the country's birthday by pointing out the pervasive Israel-dissing of the mainstream media, adding that there is one thing that the American Left and Right agree on: Israel…...

23+ hour, 25+ min ago  (488+ words) My co-authors and I just released the largest survey of physicists ever done. In conjunction with the American Physical Society we got more than 1600 replies to our Big Mysteries Survey. On the fine tuning argument the most popular answer" was…...

1+ day, 28+ min ago  (505+ words) Here is another batch of pictures from my hikes in the Central Catskills this April and May. They are not too artistic, given the fast pace that a weekend backpacking hike demands, but they give a sample of what common…...

1+ day, 33+ min ago  (1728+ words) Welcome to the Sabbath for gentile cats: Sunday, May 17, 2026, and also National Pack Rat Day." Pack rats are really, according to Wikipedia, "any species"in the North and Central American rodent"genus"Neotoma." You can see where they get their…...

1+ day, 21+ hour ago  (1081+ words) Buzz Feed has a story about NASA's Artemis II mission and cats, all told through tweets. You can access the story by clicking on the headline below: The story starts with this: Before we get there, let's talk socials. NASA's…...

3+ day, 1+ hour ago  (1734+ words) It's also Endangered Species Day, International Conscientious Objectors Day (I was one), National Chocolate Chiop Day, Jerusalem Day, and NASCAR Day. Readers are welcome to mark notable events, births, or deaths on this day by consulting the May 15 Wikipedia page....

2+ day, 20+ hour ago  (352+ words) Two friends who have good taste in books recommended'Raising Hare, and I didn't look up any reviews before I read it. Now I will, so I've just read the NYT review here.' An excerpt: Despite less-than-encouraging words from a local…...

3+ day, 23+ hour ago  (1759+ words) Welcome to Thursday, May 14, 2026 and International Dylan Thomas Day. (Curiously, the great poet was neither born nor expired on May 14, but Google tells me that "This date marks the anniversary of the first stage reading of his famous play, Under…...

5+ day, 43+ min ago  (1747+ words) It's also Cough Drop Day, International Hummus Day, Leprechaun Day, National Apple Pie Day, National Fruit Cocktail Day, Tulip Day, and World Cocktail Day (the Rusty Nail, a mixture of Scotch and Drambuie, was a favorite of Frank Sinatra). Here's…...