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Plato writes: "It is a confusing path, hard to follow without a thread, but, provided [you are] not devoured at the midpoint, it leads surely, despite twists and turns, back to the beginning." Mazes and labyrinths can be found on artifacts from the ancient world; from the Bronze Age in Spain, to Ireland and India; from North Africa to the American Southwest. In these cultures — and many others — the labyrinth conveyed ideas about a meandering, perhaps obstacle-filled, journey toward enlightenment.
"But you are not only a writer, you are also a human being living among your fellow human beings in your society, in your country. You're enclosed by the laws of that country. You're enclosed by the morals and attitudes of the people around you. You have to be in relation to that as well, take your responsibility of being a human being in a human society."
Interview: Nadine Gordimer Nobel Prize in Literature
November 11, 2009 Johannesburg, South Africa
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Your novel Burger's Daughter portrays a family deeply involved in the liberation st…
Julia Sneden writes: The fad for matched napkin rings has grown and nowadays even the catalogues feature such sets. They weren't meant for decor, and they certainly weren't meant to match. They were simply a means of identification that allowed us to reuse our napkins, usually for a week at a time. In the days before miracle laundry machines, before detergents with or without bleach, (never mind cold-water soaps or power boosters) people didn't toss napkins into the laundry after every meal.
"Recent research suggests that red is an aphrodisiac for men viewing women. Men viewing women on a red background or in red clothing find them more attractive and sexually desirable, intend to spend more money on them, and choose to sit closer to them." One experiment situation: "Imagine that you (are interested in casual sex with a guy. You) decide to join a dating website because you have heard that it is a good way to find a guy (for this type of relationship). The website allows you to post one picture, and you decide to take a picture of yourself using your cell phone."
Just after 10:18 p.m. on July 17, 1944, UC Berkeley seismographs measured what looked like a 3.4-magnitude earthquake. Far from a routine temblor, though, this was a seismic event of a different kind: a ferocious explosion at the Port Chicago naval base, the worst stateside disaster of World War II. The explosion led to the six-week trial — and dismayingly swift conviction — of 50 black sailors, whose refusal to return to loading ammunition was judged by the Navy to be mutiny.
In the course of greeting thousands of visitors a year, Rangers on National Wildlife Refuges find that natural—world denizens invariably make some people flinch or go EWWW. Whether it's because today’s visitors tend to live more indoor lives than past generations or watch too many TV survival shows, fears of nature are flourishing — in all ages. "The older they are, the harder it is," says one ranger. "I have had the most trouble with adult chaperones."
With a career encompassing the birth of modern art in Paris, to revitalizing the arts scene in Glasgow after the outbreak of World War II, Fergusson is the most international and diverse of the Scottish Colourists. The only Colourist to make sculpture, he was also involved with the performing arts through his partner, the dance pioneer Margaret Morris. He is best known for his depictions of women.
Sandra Smith writes: Egrets. Add an R and it becomes regrets. Is it possible to speak of regret, birds, women friends, and youth in the same post? We sat in the shade under the awning with other visitors and took turns using the viewing scopes to spy on courting rituals, egret eggs, and fuzzy babies. An hour passed quickly and it was time to leave.
The US Supreme Court decision allowing for-profit businesses to opt out of the contraceptive mandate in the new health care law has raised questions about what the ruling might mean for businesses, for future challenges to the contraception mandate, and even for the future of church-state law. The Pew Fact Tank posed these questions to Robert Tuttle, one of the nation’s experts on church-state issues such as: Are there other aspects of the Affordable Care Act that are likely to face religious-liberty challenges?
"We’re seeing the demographic impact of two booms," Census Bureau Director John Thompson said. "The population in the Great Plains energy boom states is becoming younger and more male as workers move in seeking employment in the oil and gas industry, while the US as a whole continues to age as the youngest of the baby boom generation enters their 50s." The nation’s 65-and-older population surged to 44.7 million in 2013, up 3.6 percent from 2012. By comparison, the population younger than 65 grew by only 0.3 percent.
Joan L. Cannon reviews: After too many novels whose focus seems (if the reader is honest with herself) to be on the sexual antics and sensations involved with falling and being in love, this is a welcome rendition that allows for how real people after the flush of youth must behave. It seems likely that it would take a writer of Quinlen’s reputation to be allowed to have her two main characters act as they do. You will believe it all, and really root for a happy ending.
"When universities fail to respond adequately to campus sexual assault, they may be forcing the affected students to attend school in a sexually hostile environment. This environment deprives them of their freedom to go to class without being re-traumatized by a perpetrator sitting a few seats away, walk on campus without being harassed by a perpetrator’s friends, attend a party on-campus, or even feel safe in their own dorm rooms."
Roberta McReynolds continues her cake decorating saga: Holding the frosting nail in my left hand, I examined the blob with a critical eye, noting it tended to resemble a hunchback slug more than the emergence of a rose bud. I brushed it off into the bowl and tried again. This time I made a giant amoeba, with all the charm one could expect from a protozoon sagging upon a frosting nail.be impossible for one of my classmates; her homework for last week was flawless. The…
Doris O'Brien writes: When the weekend ended, I told myself that the 60th reunion would likely be my swan song, my last hurrah. But who knows? Five years from now I might consent to have my arm twisted, if that body part and others are still intact. Besides, I have a feeling that Hillary and Madeleine would want me to give it the old college try.
To commemorate the centennial of the outbreak of World War I, the MHS has organized the exhibition Letters and Photographs from the Battle Country: Massachusetts Women in the First World War, focusing on two of the hundreds of women from the Commonwealth who went to France as members of the US armed forces, the Red Cross, and other war relief organizations.
A bill to enhance the consideration of sex differences in basic and clinical research; a bill to prevent domestic abusers from possessing or receiving firearms; a bill to provide authority for sole source contracts for certain small business concerns owned by women. Criminals now target smartphones not likely to be equipped with a kill switch, increasing the importance of implementing the technology across all manufacturers.
Editor's Note: We attended the traveling exhibit at the DeYoung Museum in San Francisco three times, once with our grandchildren; now we hope to visit the refurbished museum in The Hague. Val Castronovo reviewed the exhibit for SeniorWomen.com during its visit to New York City's Frick Museum. And, do not forget to visit the Museum's Shop.
The New Series: After Tommy died, I halted our Sunday routine and stayed away from Dapper's, our usual breakfast place, believing it would be too painful for me to enter without him. But this Sunday, I had to shop at Target in the same mall as the restaurant, so I figured it'd be a good opportunity to test a revisit.
The number of migrating Monarch butterflies sank to the lowest recorded population level in 2013-14, and there is an imminent risk of failed migration. Avoid modern hybrid flowers, especially those with "doubled" flowers. Often plant breeders have unwittingly left the pollen, nectar, and fragrance out of these blossoms while creating the "perfect" blooms for us.
Rose Madeline Mula writes: To go with that one-piece bathing suit was the inevitable cap — that scalp-hugging, hideous, rubber helmet worn today only by competitive swimmers to reduce drag and increase speed. Back in the day we girls all wore them, even if we just waded in the surf (which was my speed) to keep our hair dry. It wasn't pretty. The caps made us look like bald old men. Furthermore, they didn't really keep our hair dry.
"We know from brain imaging studies that when people compete against one another, they actually engage in two distinct types of learning processes. One type involves learning purely from the consequences of your own actions, called reinforcement learning. The other is a bit more sophisticated, called belief learning, where people try to make a mental model of the other players, in order to anticipate and respond to their actions."
David Tennant stars as a defense lawyer with a perfect record of courtroom wins and a perfect family to go with it — until things go horribly wrong. Written by thriller master David Wolstencroft, The Escape Artist airs in two ... should we say ... nail-biting episodes.
Lilacs are just as famous for their scent as their color. There are dozens of varieties that can smell sweet or spicy, cloying or calming. Berries are full of antioxidants, fiber, and Vitamin C, among other beneficial properties. While these particular berries are not on The Dirty Dozen list of foods that are the most contaminated by pesticides, organic berries have been shown to have more of the health benefits than non-organic berries.
Since 2007, there have been four major airline mergers. Baggage and reservation change fees collected by US airlines increased from about $1.4 billion in 2007 to $6 billion in 2012. Unlike prior recoveries when airline capacity growth undermined the ability to charge profitable fares, airlines since 2009 have restrained capacity growth even though demand for air travel has risen with the economic recovery.
"Careful cleaning and removal of several layers of aged and yellowed varnish which had been added to the painting much later ... What was revealed was a true depth of colour, much more detail and a three-dimensional appearance to the fabric in Rembrandt’s cloak which had previously been obscured and detracted from the quality of the work in the eyes of the Rembrandt Research Project."
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A Puzzle in Washington, DC: The National Building Museum's Big Maze
Woman of Note, Interview With Nadine Gordimer: "I don't think happiness is possible without freedom"
