amusements

Boxing Day Madness Generator

AS i traditionally do, once again we bring you this year’s King William’s College General Knowledge Paper 2022-23.

According to Wikipedia: Since 1904, the College has set an annual general knowledge test, known as the General Knowledge Paper (GKP). The pupils sit the test twice: once unseen on the day before the Christmas holidays, and again when they return to school in the New Year – after spending the holiday researching the answers. These days, however, pupil participation is voluntary.

The quiz is well known to be highly difficult, a common score being just two correct answers from the list of several hundred. The best scores are 40 to 50 for the unseen test and about 270 out of 360 for the second sitting.

The quiz is always introduced with the Latin motto Scire ubi aliquid invenire possis, ea demum maxima pars eruditionis est, “To know where you can find anything is, after all, the greatest part of erudition.”

You can find this year’s GKP on the King William’s College website at https://kwc.im/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Questions-2022-23-email.pdf.

As usual, at a first reading, I have fairly few clues!

amusements, history

December Quiz Answers

OK, so here are the answers to this month’s quiz questions. All should be able to be easily verified online.

December Quiz Questions: 17th Century England

  1. John Aubrey and John Evelyn were fellows of which organisation founded in 1660? The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, aka the Royal Society
  2. Who married the 15 year old Elisabeth Marchant de Saint Michel in December 1655? Samuel Pepys
  3. How is Matthew Hopkins (c.1620-1647) better known? Witchfinder General
  4. What discovery did William Harvey publish in 1628? The workings of the circulatory system
  5. Which influential work on political theory did Thomas Hobbes publish in 1651? Leviathan

Answers were correct when questions were compiled in late 2021.

quotes

Monthly Quotes

Our monthly selection of recently encountered quotes – and this time we have lots of short quotes.

It’s frightful that people who are so ignorant should have so much influence.
[George Orwell]

Wrong does not cease to be wrong because the majority share in it.
[Leo Tolstoy]

The highest form of knowledge is empathy, for it requires us to suspend our egos and live in another’s world.
[Plato]

Whenever one person stands up and says “Wait a minute, this is wrong”, it helps other people to do the same.
[Gloria Steinem]

Both optimists and pessimists contribute to society. The optimist invents the aeroplane, the pessimist the parachute.
[George Bernard Shaw]

You won’t learn anything if you think you know everything already. Humility is necessary for growth.
[Richard Feynman]

The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.
[Ecclesiastes 1:9]

The sign of intelligence is that you are constantly wondering. Idiots are always dead sure about every damn thing they are doing in their life.
[unknown]

To achieve justice without losing compassion, what’s important is to avoid doing harm. Helping sentient beings can be a source of great satisfaction. All of us, animals as well, have basic rights that we need to protect.
[Dalai Lama]

Life has no place from where it comes. It’s like putting on your pants. However, our face is solemn. Therefore it is said, the 10,000 things return to the one. Death has no place to go. It is like taking off one’s pants. However, our traces are dropped away. Therefore it is said, to where does the one return? At this very time, how is it? From the beginning, life and death do not involve each other. Offense & happiness are both empty with no place to abide.
[Eihei Dogen]

If a book told you something when you were fifteen, it will tell you it again when you’re fifty, though you may understand it so differently that it seems you’re reading a whole new book.
[Ursula K Le Guin]

If you’re resting but you’re shaming yourself for not being productive the whole time, that’s not actually rest. If you find that you’re chronically tired, this could be why.
[Iris McAlpin]

There’s a fine line between a butler and a stalker.
[unknown]

You should never he ashamed to admit you have been wrong. It only proves you are wiser today then yesterday.
[Jonathan Swift]

I think sometimes we need to take a step back and just remember we have no greater right to be here than any other animal.
[David Attenborough]

Satire is meant to ridicule power. If you are laughing at people who are hurting, it’s not satire, it’s bullying.
[Terry Pratchett]

Nobody figures out what life is all about and it doesn’t matter. Explore the world. Nearly everything is really interesting if you go into it deeply enough.
[Richard Feynman]

There is no harm in doubt and skepticism, for it is through these that new discoveries are made.
[Richard Feynman]

books, medical

Book Review: Anatomical Oddities

Alice Roberts
Anatomical Oddities
Simon & Schuster; 2022

How much do you know about your insides? Most of us have an idea of how our bodies work; for some it is fairly sketchy, but for others there’s a bit more detail. But unless you’re a medic you’re unlikely to understand the minutiae and you need an anatomist to point out the nooks, crannies and curiosities.

This is where Alice Roberts comes in. She is first and foremost an anatomist, with an incredible artistic ability. So just the person to explain the idiosyncrasies of our anatomy – which this delightful book both does and doesn’t.

Every part of the human body has a name, and a story (or several). Roberts has selected just under 60 pieces of anatomy; some known to us all; some totally unseen; but all with a story of language and/or discovery. The text is concise and clear; we’re treated to one-page sketches of the people who unearthed the anatomical secrets, and the meanings of the words used to describe them; with, on the facing page, an original illustration by Roberts.

So this book is an artistic and linguistic adventure taking us on a journey to discover some hidden landscapes of our bodies. The text is more about language, the derivation of the names of things, and their discoverers, than it is about form and function. I love these explorations of the language and names, but felt slightly cheated at the frequently superficial explanation of medical function.

In this context I also felt Roberts’s lovely art needed some explanation and annotation to show exactly what we’re looking at – it’s not always obvious which part of a drawing is the structure under discussion or how it fits into its surroundings. Nonetheless Roberts’s original art is interesting: quirky and bizarre, but always beautiful.

Roberts explores the quirks of evolution which have given us the weirdest and most wonderful pieces of anatomy – most of which we’ve never heard of – in an immensely readable and well produced book. Like all her books, this is a delight.

Overall Rating: ★★★★★

books, food+drink

Book Review: Understanding European Wines

Charlie Boston
Understanding European Wines
Charlie Boston; 2022
Ordering details on http://www.charlieboston.com/

How many clues do you have when choosing a bottle of wine in a restaurant? If you’re like most of us, not very many, which is a state of affairs Boston sets out to help you correct. As he says …

I have always had an interest in wine, especially European wine, so I decided to write this book about European Wines.

Nowadays people so often assume the best value wines come from the southern hemisphere and, whereas Australasian and South American wines are frequently very impressive, in my opinion, they do not offer better value than European wines. Furthermore, in this day and age when we should all be concerned about “carbon foot prints”, it is hard to justify importing wines from the other side of the world, particularly when the best wines are right here on our doorstep.

The aim of this book is to allow those faced with the responsibility of choosing a wine from a wine menu to make an educated choice. There is no guarantee that the wine you choose will live up to expectations, but at least you will have expectations.

There you have it in a nutshell. This is a book for the amateur enthusiast who wants something European and enjoyably drinkable, with or without a meal.

Boston started off his working life in the wine trade, so he knows what he’s talking about; and this leads to some good hints and highlights, and some equally strong opinions. He doesn’t impress easily. Many (although I’m not one of them) will no doubt disagree with him over his hatred of the over-hyped and over-fashionable Prosecco. Amongst other scything comments we are treated to:

The fact is all the finest white wine in the world is made in the Côte de Beaune and all of it is made from Chardonnay. Accordingly, anyone who likes white wine and says they do not like Chardonnay is, I’m afraid, an idiot.

Retsina is considered to be the traditional wine of Greece. It has its origins in ancient times when the pots in which the wine was matured (“amphoras”) were sealed with pine resin. Nowadays, resin from the Aleppo pine is added to the must during fermentation to produce the distinctive resinated style. It is very much an acquired taste which, in my opinion, is not worth acquiring.

Naturally enough Boston concentrates on France, with Italy, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Spain and Portugal all getting their own chapters. There is then a chapter on sparkling wines; another on pudding wines; and notes about other countries in a further chapter. I found this slightly puzzling: why give Austria and Switzerland their own chapters, but not Greece, which in my limited experience has equally as many, and as good, wines? For me, Italy and Spain produce just a much good wine as France (which still produces the very top-most wines), with the added bonus that it is usually slightly cheaper.

This is a easy and often fun read, and I found I kept turning the pages and reading the next chapter. Boston’s style is light and chatty, but informative, although I did feel it to be a little lacking in detail – I wanted to know more; but that’s not the book’s aim.

Sadly my biggest gripe is the maps. Boston provides maps of most of the major wine areas. Many are excellent, whereas others are barely readable: either with tiny type (originals too much reduced in size) or very fuzzy. That’s a shame as they are otherwise quite interesting and useful. The maps, plus the glossing over of Greece, lost the book a star.

Otherwise this is well produced and and enjoyable read with some useful tips.

Overall Rating: ★★★★☆

memes, words

Ten Things: December

This year our Ten Things each month are words with particular endings. Clearly this won’t be all the words with the nominated ending, but a selection of the more interesting and/or unusual.

Ten Words ending with -ca

  1. yucca
  2. saltimbocca
  3. angelica
  4. basilica
  5. majolica
  6. wicca
  7. erotica
  8. verruca
  9. sambuca
  10. alpaca

Your challenge, if you choose to accept it, is to write a story in at most three sentences using all these words correctly. Post your attempt in the comments before the end of the month and there’s an e-drink for anyone who I consider succeeds.

amusements, history

December Quiz Questions

This year we’re beginning each month with five pub quiz style questions, with a different subject each month. They’re not difficult, but it is unlikely everyone will know all the answers, so hopefully you’ll learn something new, as well as have a bit of fun.

December Quiz Questions: 17th Century England

  1. John Aubrey and John Evelyn were fellows of which organisation founded in 1660?
  2. Who married the 15 year old Elisabeth Marchant de Saint Michel in December 1655?
  3. How is Matthew Hopkins (c.1620-1647) better known?
  4. What discovery did William Harvey publish in 1628?
  5. Which influential work on political theory did Thomas Hobbes publish in 1651?

Answers will be posted in 3 weeks time.

personal

Unblogged November

Tue 1 Another month. Another Prime Minister, but the same old faces round the Cabinet table, although having played musical chairs. And the same old obfuscation, deceit and self-interest.
Wed 2 Definitely much better and taking hardly any painkillers. GP pleased with progress when we talked yesterday, but prescribed a fourth round of antibiotics just to be on the safe side. Cellulitis is a real bugger to get rid of and is prone to recur.
Thu 3 A knackering day of work, trying to catch up on stuff I’ve ignored. How did I ever manage to do this every day?
Fri 4 What is wrong with the universe? It’s Friday. And for once it doesn’t feel like Saturday, but more like Monday or Tuesday – and anonymous ones at that.
Sat 5 Remember, remember the 5th of November, when you can easily flash a demi-singe (which you can’t really afford) up in smoke and scare the bejesus out of every living thing within 5 miles. And all in celebration of a terrorist! When are people going to realise that this is just another conspicuous consumption which does nothing but wreck your finances and the planet?
Sun 6 It’s no wonder we get depressed and suffer from SAD when you look at today. Grey, dark, dismal, wet – I’m not even sure it got properly light all day! Well what do you expect in November?
Mon 7 It’s monthly household finances day – again! And it was one of those where everything was awkward and nothing would reconcile easily. Still at least we’re still solvent, despite splashing money on a new laptop.
Tue 8 Not liking that Elon Musk has made Twitter his private fiefdom. Been exploring Mastodon, which seems the most popular alternative. But it’s impossible to see how the hell it works for the average Joe User. It’s just too convoluted and opaque.
Wed 9 Left on my own for much of the day, as N was out at dawn for check-up at Royal Free Hospital. She wasn’t back until getting on for darkrise. So I had to wear my hearing aids all day (can’t hear the doorbell otherwise), and for once they were not being uncomfortable.
Thu 10 Is it just me (well both of us, actually) or is it bloody cold, even for mid-November. I’m not normally cold – never have been – but I’m definitely feeling colder this year than I remember previous years. I suppose I must be getting old. 😟
Fri 11 I can only think that the people who pick the grocery orders can’t read, can’t see (poor lighting?), or are just slapdash. We order 5 Bramley apples. How many do we get? One! Just one! What use is that, pray?
Sat 12 “Crazy plants! During the summer we bought two small plants of Pineapple Sage, Salvia elegans. It is a sage, but not of the stuffing kind; more of the add it to your Pimms kind. One plant was put into one of the raised beds (about 1m square); the other in a large pot. They’ve gone mad. The one in the raised bed has taken over the whole area, and the potted one is trying to catch up with it. And now, in late autumn, they’re rampant with spikes of bright red flowers.pineapple sage flowers
Sun 13 Awake early, so got up, and left N sleeping until 09:30 gone. Then had to rush round to make ourselves decent and have some breakfast as we were expecting the gardener. But the gardner didn’t show, and as usual didn’t bother to tell us! Gah!
Mon 14 What a wonderful misty/foggy morning; in fact its been like this most of the night. It isn’t very thick, visibiliy probably 2-300m – not really quite dense enough! I love fog; and I remember enjoying foggy mornings as a kid – mind they were thick then and nastily smoggy — but they were great at muffling the sound. And that’s part of what makes fog so mystical and magical.
Tue 15 Afternoon trip to the dentist for check-up and hygienist. First time I’ve worn shoes & socks in 6 weeks. Pleasantly surprised at how well the feet survived – nowhere nearly as uncomfortable as I expected, although I had acquired a pair of soft shoes. Definite progress.
Wed 16 Squirrel antics. There’s a tray hanging under the birds seed feeder to catch debris; otherwise pigeons trample the grass to death. Squirrel wants to get on the tray. Up the pole and down the seed feeder – cheeky nibble on the way down. Tray tilts precariously. Rinse and repeat. Until one of the hanging chains detaches. Tray now at 45° angle. Squirrel tries again: down the feeder, but ooops it can’t grip on this tray and falls off. And again. And again.
Thu 17 CT scan this morning. Why is everywhere in every hospital a 5 mile hike from the main entrance, with a single glacially slow lift in the middle? Just as well I arrived 15 minutes early. Once at Imaging, the scan took literally seconds – conjunction of canula and hand took longer than the actual scan! Appointment at 10:00, out the door before 10:30; as it should be.
Fri 18 Actually managed to cook tea tonight – for the first time since mid-September; that’s how bad I’ve been. It was a bit of a trial, especially as I’ve lost some of my touch – but I did it! And we shared a bottle of wine for the first time in 7 weeks. Now to recover the touch etc.
Sat 19 We’ve got a fixed rate, fixed term bond maturing in a couple of weeks time. It’s earning a pathetic amount of interest. But roll it over for a couple of years and we get something approaching a decent rate: almost 5%! Well, that’s before the Chancellor gets his hands on it.
Sun 20 I blame November for another Meh day. Dark, grey, drizzly and not very warm. As observed before, it’s no wonder so many of us have SAD. Light therapy is supposed to be the fix. Not here it isn’t.
Mon 21 Small (5x3cm) bruise in the crook of my right elbow from where I had the catheter inserted for my CT scan last Thursday. Beginning to fade now, but has been all sorts of pretty shades of black, blue, purple, and yellow.bruise
Tue 22 Had a couple of crusts of garlic bread left last night, so they were thrown out on the lawn. Surprisingly nothing purloined them – I can only assume foxes don’t like garlic! – and they were still there this morning. That was until squirrel hopped along!
Wed 23 A very odd light this afternoon: obviously sunshine, but not obviously sunshine; very dark but golden; really showing up to autumnal leaves on our trees. And it was raining, that very fine but persistent rain. So the most magnificent rainbow I’ve seen for many years; really bright with clear colours, although my eyes could only just see the violet. (Photos taken through some rather grubby glass.)sun on trees
rainbow
Thu 24 Saw a brilliant trick for peeling apples quickly using a power tool and a vegetable peeler. For once, not too good to be true; I tried it; it works a treat. With not much practice you can peel an apple in under 5 seconds. OK you still have to core and slice it, but that’s relatively quick. Great if you need to do a lot of apples. Video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1hTKfkJtzM
Fri 25 Adnams New England IPA. I’ve had a few small cans in stock for a while – I think it was a one off brew last winter. It’s a curious beverage. A cloudy beer which tastes a cross between very bitterly hopped and (pine) loo cleaner. I don’t mind the cloudiness, but loo cleaner isn’t really my taste. But Adnams do lots of other fab beers: Southwold Bitter, Ghost Ship, Dry Hopped Lager to name but three.
Sat 26 Sat for a long time over dinner with a bottle of good wine and a liqueur. Mostly spent discussing the eccentricities of all our friends’ kids. They’re an interesting bunch; all very different; but all delightful and slightly eccentric in their own way – as are their parents.
Sun 27 While it is lovely to have the Tilly Cat on my desk – stretch, wriggle, chirrup, purr – it does hamper work because she’s almost invariably lying on the papers I need! Find me a cat owner who doesn’t understand this!
Mon 28 About 100 yards up the road, at the bottom of a garden, is a large tree – I think a sycamore – about twice the height of the houses. Right at the very top, on a long straight branch, is a tree rat. Said squirrel then decides to run, full speed, down the branch, in similitudine a ball-bearing down a steep slope.
A few minutes later the Boy Cat was out hunting down by the pond. He sat on the path edge; quite conspicuously white. But there’s a squirrel, scurrying to and fro, not 10 feet in front of him, sure in the belief it was quicker than the cat.
Squirrel athleticism and agility just defies belief.
Tue 29 Zoom meetings can be brilliant, in many ways. But hybrid meetings, with some in a room together and some joined by Zoom, really don’t work. The remote people get excluded, if only because they can never hear the room conversations fully and clearly. And two hours of it is exceptionally painful.
Wed 30 A magnificent golden, autumnal, oak tree (and silver birch) bathed in sunshine this afternoon. The photo really doesn’t do it justice!
rainbow