Posts by: zakbos

A note from Lord Nelson

October 3, 2016 at 2:44 pm

Our “Lord Nelson” — Prof. Nelson, director of Core, on sabbatical this year while the ship is being helmed by Acting Director Prof. Diana Wylie — is in Ireland, away from the academic high-mindedness (and occasional hijinks) of the Core office. Thinking that we wouldn’t want her to miss out, we wrote her a quick […]

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From The New Yorker: “Are we really so modern?”

September 13, 2016 at 3:00 pm

Down in New York, reviewing the new book The Dream of Enlightenment by Anthony Gottlieb, critic and poet Adam Kirsch has penned a longand wide-ranging essay that considers our modern moment. Are we really as alienated from history in the year 2016, and as disrupted by technology from our cultural forebears, as it is sometimes […]

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From the BBC: The History of the Book

August 27, 2016 at 7:36 pm

From http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20160822-the-mysterious-ancient-origins-of-the-book: The book is changing. Electronic books, or ebooks, are more portable than their paper counterparts, capable of being carried in their hundreds on a single reader or tablet. Thousands more are just a click away. It can be argued that ebooks are more robust than paper ones: an ebook reader can be stolen or […]

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From the BBC: “Syria’s secret library”

August 1, 2016 at 11:15 am

Erin Rubin (Core ’08, CAS ’10) brings to our attention this article at the BBC website, about “Syria’s secret library”: When a place has been besieged for years and hunger stalks the streets, you might have thought people would have little interest in books. But enthusiasts have stocked an underground library in Syria with volumes […]

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Postcards to the Core: From Italy, July 2016

July 20, 2016 at 11:33 am

Our latest postcard has flown into Core from peninsular Italy, specifically the  ancient walled city of Urbino. It was sent by Prof. Gabrielle Sims, who as an Italianist writing from Italy unsurprisingly opened her note with an Italian greeting: Cari tutti nel Core [“Dear everyone in Core”], I write to you from the former Duchy or […]

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Postcards to the Core: From London, July 2016

July 17, 2016 at 5:41 pm

Our latest postcard comes to CAS 119 from the North End — for you see, Prof. Stephanie Nelson had been in London, had visited the National Portrait Gallery there, but didn’t get the chance to find a post box and drop the memento postcard she bought for us into the mail before she had to […]

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Tao in the Core

July 5, 2016 at 10:36 am

We had a brief Taoist chat in CAS 119 this morning. Where else but the Core office? A summer student had stopped by, asking for directions to the ISSO office. We directed him to his destination, and he thanked us, but as he turned to leave he noticed the framed calligraphy painting on the wall. […]

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June’s last batch of free books

June 29, 2016 at 10:35 am

Before June evolves into July, take a look at the most up-to-date list of our books for free give-away. We invite you — students, alumni, and friends of the Core — to peruse the list of books below. If you would like any of them, they are yours for the asking! All you have to […]

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Postcards to the Core: From Athens, June 2016

June 27, 2016 at 9:28 am

Our latest postcard comes to CAS 119 courtesy of the Hellenic Post, straight from Athens Greece. It was sent by Marguerite McHale (Core ’11, CAS ’13), a Polytropos winner and former office staffer. She writes: Hello Prof. Nelson and the rest of the Core! Hope you’re all doing splendidly. I’m enjoying Athens very much. It’s […]

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Postcards to the Core: From Italy, June 2016

June 25, 2016 at 11:09 am

Our latest postcard arrived last week, after making the transoceanic journey from Europe. It comes from Prof. Stevens, of the Core Natural Sciences. She writes: Dear Core: I’m halfway through my tour of Italy. Right now I’m in Siena (Tuscany region), which is famous for the cathedral on the front [of the postcard]. A few […]

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