Category Archives: random musings

Believe It or Not

Posted on May 5, 2018 by

I really wish I could stop insulting people’s religions. It doesn’t feel good. My fantasy series has a couple of evil religions in it, but they’re fictional — and that’s all you’re going to read in this post about writing. … Continue reading →

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Are We Being Creative Yet?

Posted on March 31, 2018 by

Creativity is when you create something. Something that didn’t exist before. That’s glaringly obvious — or so one would think. Oddly enough, classical musicians seem a bit confused on the subject. Writers of fiction have no trouble understanding it. If … Continue reading →

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R.E.S.P.E.C.T.

Posted on August 9, 2017 by

It’s a curious and depressing fact that while religious people very generally expect that their beliefs will be respected, they seldom show much inclination to respect the views of others. It sometimes happens that someone makes a statement about “God.” … Continue reading →

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In the Dark

Posted on June 20, 2017 by

In the 18th century, physicists were trying to understand what happened when things burned. It was theorized that combustible substances such as wood and coal contained something called phlogiston, which was released during burning. This theory seemed to explain some … Continue reading →

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Long Ago & Far Away

Posted on June 19, 2017 by

Tonight I’m reading From Eternity to Here by Sean Carroll. It’s another of those books on physics and cosmology for the layperson — no math, just occasional diagrams. The book’s mandate or organizing principle is to attempt to unravel what … Continue reading →

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Phun with Physics

Posted on June 4, 2017 by

As I suggested yesterday, human intuition gives us a lousy set of tools with which to understand the underlying nature of physical reality. The English language supplies a few pitfalls too. Last night I started reading Black Holes & Time … Continue reading →

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Nuts & Bolts

Posted on June 3, 2017 by

Books for the interested layperson on the theory of relativity are not in short supply. The local library has a shelf full of them, and I don’t think that’s entirely because I live in Livermore, with an important national laboratory … Continue reading →

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