None of the things I expected from seeing The Force Awakens was to recognize the location where the last scene was filmed, because I’ve been there myself. I’m being careful not to utter spoilers here…but I’ve been to the western coast of Ireland, in County Kerry, in a place called Fahan. And in that place,… Continue reading Beehive huts to the stars!
Month: December 2015
Comparative language difficulty for English speakers
This morning I found a copy of the chart the Foreign Services Institute uses to grade the comparative difficulty of world languages for acquisition by an adult monoglot English speaker. I have an unusual perspective on this list for an American. I’m a low-grade polyglot; I have spoken three languages other than my birth English… Continue reading Comparative language difficulty for English speakers
A short course in counter-terror theory
In the wake of the San Bernardino shootings, more Americans than before are trying to grapple with questions about the nature of terrorism, terror activity versus rampage killings, and what can be done to prevent these bloodlettings. I have been studying these questions for years as part of my self-training. I learned some of the… Continue reading A short course in counter-terror theory