Iceland’s early settlement and history was a bit messy and difficult, as might be expected when attempting to settle a land with little wood for fuel or building, low temperatures even in summer, and winters of near-perpetual darkness. The proto-country never developed central rulership.
Tag Archives: essay
Why did Treebeard say that nobody cares for the woods?
Treebeard seems to think he got a bit of a raw deal. He says: I am not altogether on anybody’s side, because nobody is altogether on my side, if you understand me: nobody cares for the woods as I care for them, not even Elves nowadays J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The TwoContinue reading “Why did Treebeard say that nobody cares for the woods?”
Tic-Tac-D’oh
In the days when Sussman was a novice, Minsky once came to him as he sat hacking at the PDP-6.“What are you doing?”, asked Minsky.“I am training a randomly wired neural net to play Tic-Tac-Toe” Sussman replied.“Why is the net wired randomly?”, asked Minsky.“I do not want it to have any preconceptions of how toContinue reading “Tic-Tac-D’oh”
A Thought For Strange Times
Art can teach us about life.
The Rings of Power
Hi! This essay is now hosted at https://tolkienessays.com/rings I hope you enjoy reading it over there!
The Simple Pleasure
One of my favorite things to do on a lazy Saturday afternoon is to browse a used bookstore.
On No
My wife absolutely loves Mindy Kaling, a writer, actress, and comedian. I say “loves” charitably, because writing “is obsessed with” seems a little creepy. So in 2014, before we were married, I bought her first book, entitled Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns). I’m not entirely sure what I expected from it,Continue reading “On No”
Identity and Labels
Meet Ben.
Orcs
Hi! This essay is now hosted over at https://tolkienessays.com/orcs I hope you enjoy reading it over there!
Easter 2020
When I was a kid, I remember reading a book about Antarctic explorers. These intrepid explorers lived and sometimes died in a frozen wasteland. I was reading this book over the Summer, and I remember feeling acutely the cognitive dissonance between a sweltering, humid summer and the descriptions of the dry, cold land I wasContinue reading “Easter 2020”
Strange Tales for Strange Times 