Author Archives: furthernewsfromtheshire

Putting the Bam! in Bamberg

Kay and I are on a river cruise in Bamberg in Bavaria. Last night, Kay had planned a pub crawl through the old city. We didn’t quite make it to every pub; they serve their beer in half-liter mugs, and if you keep drinking them, you’ll end up crawling, yes sirree. I know the stereotypeContinueContinue reading “Putting the Bam! in Bamberg”

Jet Lag, Pork and Beer in Wurzberg

Today was a very, very long day that started pretty well, became very stressful, and ended much better. We got to the airport without incident. The business class lounge was nothing special: some ham and cheese slices, bread, muffins, and a good espresso machine, plus they would give you all the beer and mixed drinksContinueContinue reading “Jet Lag, Pork and Beer in Wurzberg”

Kay and Eric Go to Germany

It’s Sunday evening, and Kay and I are making final preparations for our trip. I’ve gotten better at packing. My trip to Japan taught me that light is the way to go. A couple pairs of pants, some tee shirts, a hoodie, a rain jacket, and plenty of socks and underwear. As long as IContinueContinue reading “Kay and Eric Go to Germany”

Sake, or Something Like it

I might have to come up with a new category for this blog: recipes. I have a bunch I have collected over the years. I was going through some of my old possessions and found an exam book I bought when I was going to New College, Oxford, back in 1974. Don’t be too impressed;ContinueContinue reading “Sake, or Something Like it”

But For Vaccines, You Probably Wouldn’t Be Reading This Post

If you’ve followed my blog, you know that I didn’t get into this to change the world. There I was in Japan, with my little Samsung tablet and a cheap Bluetooth keyboard. On my own on the other side of the world, in the most foreign place I’ve ever been. I wanted to send someContinueContinue reading “But For Vaccines, You Probably Wouldn’t Be Reading This Post”

A Meditation on Beer

I trundled off to graduate school in New York City back in 1978. Things were very different in Manhattan in those days. My first “apartment” was a basement in a townhouse on Carmine Street in the West Village. I’m not talking about a basement apartment; I mean an actual basement. The only piece of furnitureContinueContinue reading “A Meditation on Beer”

Fluoride

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttlIuyMFwRw Sometimes, just by chance, events line up. My last post was about the ivermectin controversy and the way science can be distorted, either unintentionally or with malice. Then, right after I posted the piece, Robert Kennedy Jr. rolled out his “Make America Healthy Again” initiative. That led me to other views RFK Jr. hasContinueContinue reading “Fluoride”

Ivermectin, COVID, and the Politics of Medicine: A Case Study in How Science Works (and Sometimes Doesn’t)

I’ve avoided writing about politics—who needs the tsurris? But when science and policy collide, I can’t look away. Case in point: a group of New Hampshire legislators is pushing a bill to allow people to buy ivermectin without a prescription, presumably to treat COVID. So let’s take a closer look. What is ivermectin? Why didContinueContinue reading “Ivermectin, COVID, and the Politics of Medicine: A Case Study in How Science Works (and Sometimes Doesn’t)”

Fun with AI, Literary Style

I’m sure that I’m not the only one who finds AI, in its multiple forms, fascinating. I started with ChatGPT and then tried several others: Claude, Gemini, and Copilot. I eventually subscribed to Perplexity AI. I’m on a listserv for board-certified forensic psychologists and Perplexity seemed to be the best for researching topics related toContinueContinue reading “Fun with AI, Literary Style”