silva rerum

About suffering they were never wrong

I suppose, now, that I was being slightly over-optimistic in thinking that I would be updating this blog as frequently as I had hoped. Still, that this blog is still alive and kicking months after I started is some indication of a triumph! Having already started blogs and quit them less than a month later, I was resigned to believe that I had commitment issues. Hurrah, then, to see how I continue to write!

Work’s steadily increasing and BIOL 334 is encroaching upon my idyllic vacation. People are returning from their vacations now and it really feels like summer’s ending! What a shame, because it’s only just begun.

Lately, I’ve been reading some interesting articles and thought I should share them here:

“The Origin of Stories: Horton Hears a Who” by Brian Boyd
In this well-written, thoughtful article, Boyd proposes “an evolutionary explanation first for art, then for narrative, then for fiction.” Drawing upon different bodies of knowledge (including psychology and literary theory), Boyd stresses that Cultural Critique of literature is not enough, that understanding works as contributors to evolution (yes, evolution – a biological term) may offer much more insight than previously could be garnered.

“Time as an Illusion” by Paul S. Wesson
Now, I hardly have any formal training as a spacetime physicist (though the name conjures up visions of Star Trek now), but I thought this was a really great (if lengthy) article about time, space and spacetime. Wesson argues that, “all moments in time exist simultaneously, butthey are ordered to create the illusion of an unfolding experience by some physical mechanism,” from the abstract and continues in some gory detail by exploring theories of relativity.

Climbing the Hierarchy of Masculinity: Asian American Men’s Cross-Racial Competition for Intimacy with White Women by Kumiko Nemoto
This article is about Asian-Americans but I’m sure the findings can be extrapolated to Asian-Canadians as well. It’s really interesting, Nemoto argues that “Asian American men’s relationships with white women serve as a vehicle for either the men’s challenge of or ascension within the internal dimension of hegemonic masculinity.” Through the article, Nemoto documents interviews and finds that “Asian American men’s cross-racial competition utilizes four distinct processes: detesting white masculinities; approximating to white masculinities; eschewing white masculinities; and failing in the attempt to maneuver white masculinities.” Very interesting!

Less academically, I’ve really been hooked on Agatha Christie no Meitantei Poirot to Marple, an anime adaptation of some of Christie’s most treasured stories. The summary is as follows:

Young Mabel West is the daughter of mystery writer Raymond West, who wants her to lead a normal life. Rebelling against this, Mabel wants to be a great detective, and sets out for London to become assistant to none other than Hercule Poirot, the great Belgian detective who resides there. She finally wins the reluctant approval of her father, and embarks on an exciting life of mystery and suspense – his only demand being that she occasionally spend some time with her great-aunt, Jane Marple, in the small village of St. Mary Mead.

All in all, highly enjoyable, and a good foil for while I’m reading Three Act Tragedy.