Three TED Talks

07 Monday May 2012

Posted by Richard in Escapes and Pleasures, Misc

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Jer Thorpe, Sherry Turkle, Susan Cain, TED Talks

Three TED Talks, by Elizabeth Miller

During the month of April, I tried to watch 30 TED talks in 30 days. TED, for those who don’t know, is an annual gathering of some of the world’s leading thinkers and doers out in Long Beach, California. Standing for Technology, Entertainment and Design, the conference usually consist of 50+ talks over four days that allows speakers and attendees to discuss a wide variety of topics. Most talks are about 20-25 minutes long.

Touted as “the ultimate brain spa” and a “4-day journey into the future,” the original conference has grown to include TED-sponsored activities all over the world and on a variety of more specialized topics (the environment, young people etc).

The conference has come a long way since it first debuted in 1984. You can read more abut TED’s history online. These days, it posts most of the talks by featured speakers online (though not right away), which is what motivated me to watch them from the comfort of my own home.

I didn’t quite get to 30 talks in 30 days. I probably watched more like 15, but these are my three favorites, on quite different topics.

Articles of Interest.3

30 Monday Apr 2012

Posted by Richard in Misc

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Here is the third in a series of links to recent articles I’ve found ‘of interest.’

The first three articles, in various ways, ‘talk’ about what has happened and is happening in the world about us. Then there is an article about a modern attempt to follow Odysseus’ Mediterranean ‘jaunt.’ And finally, a very short ‘review’ about a topic that continues to interest me – the brain and how we come to believe what we believe.

Articles of Interest.2

22 Sunday Apr 2012

Posted by Richard in Misc

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Aging, Articles of Interest, Book Reviews, Long Reads

Enough folks seemed to like the idea of my posting Articles of Interest, and so I will continue along. Let me know what kinds of articles most interest you. Until then, you’ll get a smattering of my eclectic reading.

For Articles of Interest.2, you’ll find one article relating to food/eating out, one on travel, two book reviews, a column for those who are aging or helping someone who is, and the 2012 Pulitzer Prize winning article for feature writing.

1. Six Rules for Dining Out by Tyler Cowan in The Atlantic Monthly, May 2012. Cowan has a slightly different slant than many restaurant writers.

2. You’re Welcome: Couch-Surfing the Globe, by Particia Marx in the April 16 New Yorker. Another slightly different way of looking at something, this time on traveling (especially if you’re a bit younger than I). Don’t be put off by the title. Hat tip to friend Sal Gaimbanco for alerting me to this article.

3. Wish You Were Here, a new novel by Graham Swift, lovingly reviewed by Washington Post’s fiction editor Ron Charles. I haven’t read it, but the review is intriguing.

4. India Becoming by Akash Kapur, reviewed Mar. 11 in FT Magazine by David Pilling. Another book I haven’t read, but one that also intrigues me, following along on Katherine Boo’s Behind the Beautiful Forever.

5. Too Many Pills for Aging Patients, a column by Jane Brody in The New York Times, Apr. 16. If you are aging or helping someone who is, check out Brody’s article and recommendations.

6. The Bravest Woman in Seattle, by Eli Sanders in The Stranger, a Seattle Weekly. Sanders recently won a Pulitzer Prize for Feature Writing for this article. (Note: strong and disturbing content)

As always, please let me and others know of your comments or thoughts on any of the above articles.

Also, do alert me to any article(s) that you think others might find of interest.

Articles of Interest.1

16 Monday Apr 2012

Posted by Richard in Misc

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One of the wonderful benefits of the Internet is the access it allows to a wide range of articles, videos, etc., on many, many subjects. One could spend, for example, an hour a day just reading articles on say the Boston Red Sox, much more than was previously available on one’s local sports page where there might be only a few lines and a box score.

Now that I have more leisure to follow my interests (not only the Red Sox, but as you know from MillersTime, escapes and pleasures, family and friends, local, national and global issues, etc.), I come across numerous articles each week that I never would have seen prior to the advent of the Internet and my own retirement from my professional life.

Some of these articles I mention on the website, and some of you have written that you appreciate these links as you never would have seen the article(s) otherwise. But there are many more ‘articles’ I find and read/watch, etc. that don’t necessarily fit into a blog post.

The thought occurred to me that perhaps once a week, perhaps more irregularly than that, I could simply post links to a half dozen or so articles on a variety of topics, that might have interest for MillersTime readers. I’m not sure if this ‘addition’ to the website will pan out over time nor exactly into what form it may morph. (For example, I might include original writing from folks who want a place to post something they have written.)

An Open Invitation to MillersTime Readers

18 Tuesday Oct 2011

Posted by Richard in Misc

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You may have seen over the past year or two that every so often there has been a posting from someone other than moi.

I wanted to make it known to everyone that I am open to posting ‘articles’ from all of you. More than open, I encourage folks to consider writing for MillersTime. You can review movies, books, plays, restaurants, comment on political and social happenings, push an idea, ask or answer a question, describe an interest, write about a trip, a hobby or even something about baseball. You can also send pictures or brag about someone in your family.