Archive for 2010
Dissecting Celebrity with Help from Euripides & Co.
Why exactly do we care about our current (or any) crop of famous people? Euripides’ Iphigenia at Aulis explains. (HT Sean Cobb). The link is here.
Ancient Greek Computer…Legos-Style
HT Joe Leonioni Watch this incredible video demonstration of a replica of an ancient Greek computer…built out of legos! Those Greeks sure were smart. And they would have *loved* legos.
The Peloponnesian War: The Soundtrack
Music makes everything better. Ever wish that the Peloponnesian War had its own soundtrack? Now it does! This indie band based in Austin put Thucydides to *music*! Click here to listen to their songs, which are free and downloadable.
The Colosseum Finds a Patron
Out from the rubble of the bad news about collapsing Roman ruins comes a bit of good news: An Italian shoe tycoon has offered to provide the entire 25 million euro (£21 million) cost of renovating the Colosseum after the project failed to attract the support of any international sponsors. Diego Della Valle, the head […]
Ten timely leadership lessons from Cleopatra
Contemplating a career in the public eye? Look no further than this NY Times op-ed for sage advice on what to do and not do. The link is here. LET’S say you can’t readily lay your hands on “Leadership Secrets of Attila the Hun” or those of Winnie the Pooh. And let’s say the political […]
Italian Ruins Further Ruined By Government Negligence
It’s been a bad year for ancient Roman monuments–particularly gladiator-related ones. Last May, part of the roof of the Colosseum fell in. The three chunks of mortar plummeted to the ground around dawn on Sunday, a few hours before thousands of tourists tramped through the gladiatorial arena. They crashed through a wire protection net which […]
Dick Van Dyke = Modern Day Arion
According to Herodotus, Arion was a famous lyre player who was kidnapped by pirates and saved by a dolphin when he leapt overboard. More than 2 1/2 millenia later, Dick van Dyke (star of Mary Poppins and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang) was rescued by porpoises after he fell asleep on his surfboard and drifted […]
SUNY Albany Eliminates Classics and Other Humanities Departments
On hearing that the State University of New York, Albany eliminated five humanities departments, including classics, Prof. Gregory A Petsko from Brandeis University wrote an article addressed to the university’s president. It’s long but worth a read–especially at a time when budget cuts force us all to ask: What the worth of a college education, a […]
Kathy Gaca
(This is a bit late–apologies) Professor Kathy Gaca from Vanderbilt University delivered a talk entitled “Warfare Beyond the Battle in Classical Antiquity” at Gustavus on Thursday, October 21st. Her talk challenged the dominant notion of warfare as armed man-to-man violence, looking instead at practices that attacked women and girls. Professor Gaca is a nationally renowned scholar of women […]
Ted Turner: “Classical Snob” and “Jackass.” Or “What My Classics Major Can Do For Me”
http://thechoice.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/11/03/major/ A New York Times piece on the real significance of a college major begins with this quote from a letter written by Ted Turner’s father: I am appalled, even horrified, that you have adopted Classics as a major. As a matter of fact, I almost puked on my way home today. … I am a […]