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Book Reviews - General

Discussion in 'Book Lovers' started by Iravati, Sep 28, 2017.

  1. sokanasanah

    sokanasanah IL Hall of Fame

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    I was referring to your dietary habits, as documented here extensively.o_O:lol:
     
  2. Iravati

    Iravati Platinum IL'ite

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    My prodigal dietary habits have robbed a micro-nation of their gardening produce.

    Yes, I have recklessly documented such unwholesome munches of mine here. But, trust me, I am reformed for May. I intend to cut down on my sweets and cheese and probably save that micro-nation from filing for bankruptcy over my profligate diet.

    (My meal pill would have to be the size of a soap bar.)
     
  3. Iravati

    Iravati Platinum IL'ite

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    Last edited: May 12, 2018
    kaniths likes this.
  4. Iravati

    Iravati Platinum IL'ite

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    Tick in the wishlist.

    upload_2018-5-17_20-49-24.png


    Next,

    upload_2018-5-17_20-51-55.png

    I was casually flipping the Zebra book when I noticed ,

    "If you want to be the life and soul of any social situation, it helps to have a supply of startling biological phenomena up your sleeve. In this section you will find all the necessary ingredients for future social success, from the funny to the suspenseful, and from the poetic to the downright terrifying."

    There's a slew of psychology books to boost confidence and cultivate the aptitude to captivate a crowd. But here's a just-so story book loaded with animal facts that claims to be a better and surefire approach to garner attention. How could I not vet the claim for a boost or a bluff. So, I read the book. Light read and funny facts. I don't know if next time in the cocktail party I recite that dung beetle navigates dung using Milky Way as GPS coordinates, I would be scoffed at or praised on.

    "Navigating by the sun? Easy. By the stars? Not so easy. In fact, only a handful of species are known to be capable of doing it: common seals, blackcaps, black flycatchers and, of course, humans. But by the Milky Way? Currently only a single species has shown it can pull it off – the dung beetle."

    The researchers then performed the experiment again. But this time they did it in a planetarium, where they could simulate night skies that were either starry or completely dark, and with or without the Milky Way; basically, the scientists had fun creating a range of conditions in order to test how the dung beetles used light to guide themselves across the savannah on moonless nights. The results observed in the planetarium matched those in the field: even when they had only the Milky Way to guide them, the dung beetles still managed to crawl in a straight line.

    -- Chapter 9, Dung Beetle Navigation
     
  5. Iravati

    Iravati Platinum IL'ite

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    Excerpts and musings from these books in Ning Nang.


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  6. Iravati

    Iravati Platinum IL'ite

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    Beyond Confucius and Laozi, if you intend to explore Ancient Chinese philosophy, go for Zhuangzi aka Chaung Tzu.

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    Elaborate yet sharp ruminations on practical and counter-intuitive wisdom.

    Like, chapter#10,

    "To guard yourself against thieves who slash open suitcases, rifle through bags and smash open boxes, one should strap the bags and lock them. The world at large knows that this shows wisdom. However, when a master thief comes, he simply picks up the suitcase, lifts the bag, carries off the box and runs away with them, his only concern being whether the straps and locks will hold! In such an instance, what seemed like wisdom on the part of the owner surely turns out to have been of use only to the master thief!"

    The Book of Chuang Tzu (Penguin Classics)" by Chuang Tzu, Martin Palmer

    Isn't that common sense flying in the face of popular wisdom? Surely, the most secured suitcase has the telltale signs of valuable goods and come-hither seduction for a roving thief. On your next travel, make your suitcase as shabby as if you were hauling coal and not gold in it.
     
    Last edited: May 27, 2018

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