If all history were this well written, everyone would be a historian. War Made New: Weapons, Warriors, and the Making of the Modern World by Max Boot is a joy to read. His writing is clear. That’s rare enough to be notable. I can summarize the five themes in his four military revolutions because he’s…

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Like everyone else, I got the “we’re shutting down Newsburst” email on December 12th. Sigh. I pushed and prodded to build this web-based reader service, and poured a lot of energy into its creation. But you can’t change some things, and it’s smart of CNET to shut this down gracefully and move on. See all…

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Since I’m disappointed with our Sony digital camera, I pay attention to roundups like this one: “Looking beyond megapixels” But I get annoyed when the links leading to the NYTimes branded version of CNET don’t lead straight to the right camera, though. The Fujifilm FinePix f50fd looks like a possibility. (I wasn’t impressed that the…

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The boy joined me this morning for the first road race using his own muscles. (His earlier efforts were riding in the jogging stroller, not always happily.) The “Miracle Mile” was the right distance in the right location (Golden Gate Park). The crisp, clear weather (40+ degrees) meant hat and gloves for the boy —…

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Knocked Up was great, but it never worked out to see Superbad in the theaters this summer. But it meant I could put the movie in my Netflix queue, and we watched it Friday night. Seth Rogen, lead in Knocked Up, was one of the writers and actors for Superbad. There are many other connections,…

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Wednesday night, we saw Juno. Small, funny, brief and worth every minute. Metacritic score of 81. Teenage pregnancy doesn’t stand out as a laugh-out-loud topic, but…they make it work here. Like Youth Without Youth, we saw Juno at Sundance Kabuki. I’ll say more about this new theater chain separately (pros and cons).

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Youth Without Youth is Francis Ford Coppola’s first film in a decade. All the press attention shines on Coppola himself, and that’s revealing. I saw the film last Sunday, on the opening weekend. Why the rush for a film in limited release from an acknowledged master? Because even here in San Francisco, the center of…

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Sarah Andrews’s Bone Hunter has a dinosaur skeleton on the cover, and drags “forensic geologist” Em Hansen into the Utah desert to solve a mystery. Yes, this was one of the lighter reads. If you need the elevator pitch, it’s “CSI meets paleontology meets the Mormons, with an edge of romance to tease.” (OK, that’s…

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Patton lingered on the shelf for months, but three hours last weekend finally appeared. I know nothing, historically, about the General, so my knowledge is now based on this fictionalized account. The film is compelling enough, though. Metacritic wasn’t around in 1970, but for Oscar winners, they’ve gone back in time: 91 is the score.…

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It took longer than expected, but secure bike storage at work is once again a reality. (Thanks, Laura!) I biked to work and home again today for the first time in 6 months. Just in time, too, as I’m signed up for the San Bruno Hill Climb on New Year’s Day.

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