-------- MANTEX NEWSLETTER --------
Number 115 - April 2006 - ISSN 1470-1863
Rhymes - Words - Literature - Film - Technology
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0--- 'Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes' - new book
Here's the answer to any poet's prayers. If you're
stuck for a rhyme, you look up the word and are given
a whole range of possible rhyming options. Not only
that, you also get examples from famous poets, tips
on how the words are pronounced, and more. Review at -
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/oxf-rhymes.htm
0--- Pub quiz - Question #1
Do they have a 4th of July in England?
0--- Latest Technology - Fake Model Photography
You might have seen photographs recently which
show views of the world as if it had been
constructed as a miniature model.
This tutorial on Christopher Phin's Receding
Hairline blog shows you how it's done - using
the gradient tool and masks in Photoshop.
http://recedinghairline.co.uk/tutorials/fakemodel/
0--- Pub quiz - Question #2
How many birthdays does the average person have?
0--- 'Podcasting: Pocket Guide' - new book
It's one of the latest technologies which is
taking off in a big way. Believe me, you'll
see it more and more.
A podcast is an audio file which you download
and listen to via some media device - typically
an MP3 file in an iPod. But you don't just listen.
You can broadcast your own recordings too.
All you need is a microphone attached to your PC,
and you could be broadcasting your thoughts, rants,
and jokes to the nation in less than an hour. And
it's all f.r.e.e.
This pocket guide is all you need to get up and
running. It explains how to subscribe to podcasts,
how to listen to them, and how to record and
broadcast your own. Full review at -
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/mcelhearn.htm
0--- Pub quiz - Question #3
Some months have 31 days. How many have 28 days?
0--- The Brick Testament - Good for a Laugh
The Bible Story - Old and New Testaments,
illustrated in comic-book Lego scenes -
complete with ratings: N = nudity;
S = sexual content; V = Violence; and
C = cursing. Genesis gets all four.
http://www.thebricktestament.com/
0--- Pub quiz - Question #4
How many two cent stamps are there in a dozen
0--- 'PCs - The Missing Manual' - new book
Do you want to know how your computer works? or how
you can repair or upgrade it? or how to make all its
parts work successfully with each other?
Best-selling author Andy Rathbone has put together
a manual which really *ought* to come with every
computer sold. Lots of good photos illustrations too.
He tells you - and *shows* you - how it all works.
There are also lots of tips on printers, CD burning,
using the Internet, and recovering from crashes.
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/rathbone.htm
0--- Pub quiz - Question #5
Is it legal for a man in France to marry his widow's sister?
0--- 'Bloomsbury Concise English Dictionary' - new book
This is actually more than just a dictionary.
It combines its basic 220,000 word definitions
with encyclopedia type entries on people and
places, plus quick explanations of subjects
such as periods of architecture or scientific
concepts.
It's also illustrated, and wherever appropriate
information is conveyed in maps, diagrams, and
tables.
Concise doesn't mean 'small' by the way. This is
a big desktop reference book. Full review at -
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/bloom-cond.htm
0--- Latest Technology - blog networks
First there was email; then there was instant
messenging; then photo and video sharing. Now
the latest craze is to combine all these services
into one - and call it social networking.
Users subscribing get a home page, and can post
whatever they wish - including lots of pop music.
http://www.myspace.com/
Bebo seems to be aiming at recruiting from
schools and colleges. Sign up here.
http://wwww.bebo.com
0--- Pub quiz - Question #6
Divide 30 by one half and add 10. What's the total?
0--- Great Writers Updated - Mikhail Bulgakov
We've added biographical notes and comments on
the work of this great Russian modernist.
His best known work is 'The Master and Margarita',
a modern masterpiece which combines the story of
the arrival of the Devil in Moscow with two other
stories - one concerning Pontius Pilate and the
crucifixion of Jesus Christ, and the other related
to an artist and his relationships with his art
and his lover. All three layers of the story are
blended with spellbinding imaginative force.
There are many other shorter novels and stories,
together with Bulgakov web links at -
http://www.mantex.co.uk/ou/a319/bulgakov-00.htm
0--- Pub quiz - Question #7
If there are three apples and you take away two,
how many have you got?
0--- Musical Interlude - on video
Watch this guy play George Harrison's song,
"My Guitar Gently Weeps" - on a ukulele!
Sounds corny and gimmicky doesn't it? Well
watch right through to the end - and be amazed.
Thanks to the guys at www.b3ta.com for this one.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1352016870638076087
0--- 'Bloomsbury Recalled' - new book
Quentin Bell is the son of David and Vanessa Bell, and
the nephew of Virginia Woolf, whose biography he wrote.
These are his personal reminiscences of Bloomsbury and
its characters - his parents Clive and Vanessa Bell,
Lytton Strachey, John Maynard Keynes, Ottiline Morrell,
Duncan Grant, David Garnett, Roger Fry, E.M.Forster,
and even the spy and art historian Anthony Blunt.
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/bell-3.htm
0--- Pub quiz - Question #8
A doctor gives you three pills and tells you to take
one every half hour. How many minutes would the pills last?
0--- Film reviews - new feature
Yet another new section of cultural goodies on
the Mantex web site - film reviews. We're going to
feature reports on both classics and the latest
releases - with links to Amazon where you can
buy or rent the DVD.
We kick off with reviewer Bill Jones' hot tip
on "Crash" which won the Oscars a week after
he made his recommendation. It's a series of
interlocking narratives which focus on the
issue of race in contemporary America. See it here:
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/haggis.htm
My own contribution is on Stephen Daldry's
"The Hours". This too features three stories
which eventually merge into one, but the common
thread is suicide and the work of Virginia Woolf.
Outstanding performances by Nicole Kidman,
Julianne Moore, and Meryl Streep.
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/daldry.htm
And for rock fans we've also got Bill's account
of Obi Tournier's documentary "Dig" which looks
at life on the road with two bands - one successful,
the other determined to be radical and slowly
going down the toilet.
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/timoner.htm
Another recent box office quasi-success was
Ron Howard's film "Cinderella Man", starring
Russell Crowe as Jimmy Braddock - an Irish
immigrant boxer from New Jersey. Bill had
guilty pleasures enjoying the bouts. Three stars.
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/howard.htm
0--- Pub quiz - Question #9
A farmer has 17 sheep, and all but 9 die. How many are left?
0--- Bypassing web site sign-ups
I picked up this nifty trick from Andy Rathbone's
book (see above).
You reach a site which asks you to sign up with
your full personal details - but either you feel
they haven't yet earned so much respect, or you
don't anticipate returning to the site very often -
so you don't feel inclined to give them your details.
Here's what to do.
You give them somebody else's details, voluntarily
listed at the Bug Me Not site:
http://www.bugmenot.com
The alternative is to set up a secret email account
with Yahoo, Hotmail or Gmail that you don't actually use.
Any commercial spam will be sent there, leaving your
real mailbox unharmed.
0--- Pub quiz - Question #10
How many animals of each sex did Moses take on the ark?
0--- 'Word Origins' - new book
John Ayto is a lexicographer and etymologist
working for the Bloomsbury English Dictionary.
This is a specialist dictionary which explains
the complex and often deep historical roots
underlying the meaning of terms in English.
For instance, he gives as an amazing example
the linguistic connection between the two
apparently dissimilar terms 'bishop' and 'spy'.
Further details and review here:
http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/ayto.htm
0--- Pub quiz - Question #11
Who wrote "The Case of Comrade Tulayev"?
0--- Fonts News - Web 2.0 Logos
Interesting article on the blog at FontShop
concerning typography and logos on the 'new'
style pages emerging as part of Web 2.0
A clear trend in new identities is the use of
soft, rounded typefaces dominated by VAG Rounded
(AKA Rundschrift), but also including Helvetica
Rounded, Arial Rounded, Bryant, and FF Cocon.
All of these lend a modern friendliness to what
might otherwise be a cold trademark. FontSop
calls the 'The Softies'. See the fonts at -
http://digbig.com/4gxaq
0--- Fun Stuff - Weird Buildings
This is a great little selection of modern
architectural follies. Plus lots of pretty
cool video links.
http://www.uniquedaily.com/articles/TMULBOOEE.html
0--- Quotable quotes
"You should make a point of trying every
experience once, except incest and folk-dancing."
Lytton Strachey
0--- Readers' Letters + Corrections
- - It's All Greek to Me - -
Elpiniki Vavritsa writes to say -
"Once again i will correct you on the matter of
Greece and the Euro. This time it concerns one
of your readers quotes which (once again) you
haven't bothered double checking. As I have stated
in my previous email Greece joined the EU in 1981
and not in 2001. I would appreciate it if you
mentioned it in your next newsletter. It might
not be important to you (and believe me I'm no
nationalist) but when historical facts are falsely
stated I think one should correct them."
0--- PUB QUIZ - ANSWERS
#1. Do they have a 4th of July in England?
Answer: Yes - it comes after 3rd July
#2. How many birthdays does the average person have?
Answer: Just one
#3. Some months have 31 days. How many have 28 days?
Answer: 12 - all of them
#4. How many two cent stamps are there in a dozen
Answer: Twelve
#5. Is it legal for a man in France to marry his widow's sister?
Answer: No - because he is dead
#6. Divide 30 by one half and add 10. What's the total?
Answer: 70 (30 divided by a half is 60)
#7. If there are three apples and you take away two,
how many have you got?
Answer: Two - you took them, remember
#8. A doctor gives you three pills and tells you to take
one every half hour. How many minutes would the pills last?
Answer: Sixty minutes
#9. A farmer has 17 sheep, and all but 9 die. How many are left?
Answer: Nine
#10. How many animals of each sex did Moses take on the ark?
Answer: Moses didn't have an ark. It was Noah's.
#11. Who wrote "The Case of Comrade Tulayev"?
Answer: Victor Serge
0--- COMING SOON
'At Home with Books'
'Among the Bohemians'
'Synonyms and Antonyms'
'Web Services Essentials'
'Oxford Spellchecker and Dictionary'
'eBay - The Missing Manual'
'Penguin Dictionary of Jokes'
'Yahoo! Hacks'
(c) Copyright 2006, MANTEX
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News-115-April-2006
ISSN 1470-1863
The British Library