Author. Thinker. Other things.
For some reason, known only to my former website hosts, my blog has met an untimely demise. Frustrating, as it was the product of a lot of work and years of Saturday mornings' writing. Gone are the posts about Paul the Octopus, ant mercenaries, the Fountain of Youth, carnivorous plants and vampire moths. Gone are the links to my... Continue Reading →
I just discovered, while doing some research, that the Dutch East India Company had a private army. I was surprised to discover that, assuming it had been more like Macy's meets David Livingston. But it makes sense. Given their acquisitive agenda, coupled with the (quite reasonable) opinion of local people that they would rather keep... Continue Reading →
In my last post, I wrote about immortality. It occurs to me, however, that I left out one of the most important aspects of this phenomenon occuring in popular culture - vampires. The most recent Twilight series (which I haven't seen, I have to admit) is only the latest point in a long history that... Continue Reading →
"Modding", for the noncognicenti (of which I count myself one), is making everyday objects into works of art that fit into some genre. Steampunk is where I've come across this at, in my opinion, its most inventive. As an example at random, here's an X-Box unit cleverly modded to reflect a 19th Century steam-powered contraption,... Continue Reading →
A few years ago I was fortunate enough to be asked to give a talk at the 95th birthday of Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer. Anybody who isn't a science geek could be forgiven for not knowing who she was. Let's say it would be like a budding fashion designer being asked to give the keynote speech at... Continue Reading →
This post was catalysed by my friend Dale, who sent me a web link for BrewDog Beer, featuring a pair of taxidermied animals fashioned as beer bottle covers. The point they're making with the bottles is that they're beer is so finally crafted (and presumably unique) that they can afford to create these one-offs to... Continue Reading →
ERIC DORFMAN 