As one of the relative few (apparently) who followed Sarah Palin’s career before the vice presidential nomination thrust her onto the national stage, I was baffled that she became a focus of social and cultural conflict during the presidential campaign. As a gubernatorial candidate and as governor of Alaska, she was far more interested [...]

Drippy faucets offer lesson in physics — Science Daily, 6 Feb.
Police to drivers: No snow-covered windshields — CBC Nova Scotia, 4 Feb.
To live longer, kidney patients should move to Denver — Booster Shots (L.A. Times Health Blog), 3 Feb.
Buying experiences, not possessions, leads [sic] to greater happiness — EurekAlert, 7 Feb

An escalating power struggle between president Marc Ravalomanana and Andry Rajoelina, charismatic former mayor of Madagascar’s capital Antananarivo, has led to rioting, looting, and violence in recent weeks.
Today police opened fire on a peaceful march by Rajoelina supporters. At least 30 are reported dead.
“The crowd was walking peacefully, then all of a sudden the [...]

The Christian church flourished in the Middle East and Asia for over a thousand years. In the 14th century, however, Syriac Christianity came under attack in a series of adverse events—most importantly, Islamic rulers began a wide-ranging and sustained persecution of Christians.
The church was forced to retreat to remote mountainous regions and borderlands, where small [...]