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MartyA

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jan 5, 2024
117
381
74
Iowa
I just finished reading "The Heavens On Earth" by Aubin, Bigg, and Sibum. I bought it because the description said that it was about 19th century observatories, but instead of what I was expecting,,, descriptions of observatories, telescopes and other equipment, astronomers, etc, it was more about the sociological impact of various observatories in different countries, mapping, etc. An interesting take, each chapter written by different sociologists. Interesting, and worth reading, but some chapters were rather difficult sledding. Many sociologists seem to write more to impress other sociologists instead of writing for clarity.

OK, that's my personal opinion, but still worth reading.
(I put the layer of cardboard on my swinging chair because I'm dealing with a rather nasty bout of sciatica.)
 

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Sig

Part of the Furniture Now
Jul 18, 2023
514
2,414
Western NY
I'm currently reading.......um........a........brain fart........
I believe it's called "Blood and Thunder".
It is an amazing "non-fiction" book mainly about the exploits of Kit Carson and a few other absolute badasses from the 1800s.
They don't make guys like these anymore.
I knew a lot of badasses when I was in the Army deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq. Guys like Kit Carson make my fellow Rangers look like school girls. :)
I'm kidding.......sort of.
 

kcghost

Lifer
May 6, 2011
15,141
25,691
77
Olathe, Kansas
I read the second of Lillian Jackson Braun's delightful series title "The Cat Who Ate Danish Modern". Not as good as the first book it was a pretty good read.

3/5


The Cat Who Ate Danish Modern (The Cat Who... Series #2) by Lilian ...
 

MartyA

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jan 5, 2024
117
381
74
Iowa
I just finished "The Life and Correspondence of Abraham Sharp" by William Cudworth, 1889. I'd held back on reading this old thing for awhile, because it looked a little daunting, maybe partly because of the simple physical size of the thing. As it turned out, it was an extremely enjoyable book, full of old letters and historical detail. A perfect pipe smoking book. A few times I had to check up on English history from the 16 and 17 hundreds to understand the background.

Abraham Sharp was the first assistant of John Flamsteed, the first Astronomer Royal. He only worked for him for a couple years, but they remained lifelong friends and kept up a correspondence... So the book is almost as much about Flamsteed as it is about Sharp. Full of interactions, between legendary astronomers and mathematicians, sometimes adversarial but always formally "polite," as was the custom among the educated class of the day. I'd never personally known it, but the sainted Isaac Newton could be a back-stabbing, egotistical, asshole. Flamsteed also said that Edmund Halley talked, swore, and drank brandy like a ship captain. Fascinating stuff. :)
 

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