“I shall never forget how I was roused one night by the groans of a fellow prisoner, who threw himself about in his sleep, obviously having a horrible nightmare. … I wanted to wake the poor man. Suddenly I drew back the hand which was ready to shake him, … At that moment, I became intensely conscious of the fact that no dream, no matter how horrible, could be as […]
Read moreCategory: History
“Apology” by Plato
Socrates, Plato’s teacher, was accused of impiety and corrupting the Athenian youths, and had to defend himself in court against his accusers. He refused to beg for mercy, defended his way of life and his character with dignity, a tad of irony and defiance, and received a death sentence with tranquility and showed no trace of fear of death. Quotes: “The unexamined life is not worth living” Envy and detraction […]
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“Phaedo” by Plato
The Trial and Death of Socrates Four Dialogues of Plato provide an account of the trial and death of Socrates, “Euthyphro“, “Apology“, “Crito” and “Phaedo“. Socrates, falsely accused of impiety and corrupting the Athenian youths, was condemned to death by poison. In “Euthyphro“, he discourses on piety and tears apart the covering of a man who professes to know all about piety; “Apology“ is his speech before the Athenian judges, […]
Read more“Traitor to His Class” by H.W.Brands
A detailed account of FDR’s life and times. It covers FDR’s personal life (his relationships with his mother, wife and mistress), his apprenticeship in politics under Woodrow Wilson, whose internationalist idealism inspired FDR to lay down the foundation for the United Nations, his fight against polio, his economic policies emphasizing government regulation and intervention (the New Deal) during the Depression, and his international leadership in forming an alliance with Churchill […]
Read more“Losing My Virginity” by Richard Branson
The subtitle of the original version reads, “How I’ve Survived, Had Fun, and Made a Fortune Doing Business My Way”. Branson certainly delivered the goods. I can’t imagine anybody else having more fun doing business than he has. He described his strategies and adventures in such a straightforward and engaging manner, that I’m convinced this is how all business should be done. Life is a series of challenges for Branson, […]
Read more“Guns, Germs and Steel” by Jared Diamond
Why are wealth and power unevenly distributed among the nations? Jared Diamond asks the intriguing question in the Prologue, and then proceeds to review the geographical, ecological and agricultural environment of the ancient societies and argue that geographical and ecological factors affect food production, the diffusion of crops, ideas and technologies, and ultimately the distribution of wealth and power. Summary Domestication of wild animals and plants are necessary for food […]
Read more“Galileo’s Daughter” by Dava Sobel
Because Sobel collected numerous materials from Galileo’s own writings (his personal letters and published works), she revealed much about him through this book, not only his keen intellect, but also his wit and tact, his manifold interests and talents, his loving relationship with his devoted daughter, who comforted and sustained him during the trying years of his life. Through the correspondence of his daughter, a nun of the order of […]
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