Science and you

I've started reading the Canon by Natalie Angier. The subtitle is A Whirligig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science, which pretty much says it all. In this book, Angier attempts to do several things. First, she wants to convince her reader that science is worth knowing about. Of course, her reader already agrees because he has bought the book. That being beside the point, she makes a good argument. Second, she describes with humor and easily understandable terms some of the most important topics in science (according to the scientists she interviewed). So far, I have learned about atoms, measurement, and statistics. All in all, it is an interesting book. I am a little peeved at her flip-flop take on the infallibility of science. First, she states emphatically that science is not perfect. In fact, the scientific method states that one cannot prove a hypothesis correct, only prove the other hypotheses incorrect. So, why does she feel the need to poke fun at others who disagree with mainstream science? Seems a little hypocritical. Oh, well. As I said, I am enjoying the book. Maybe I can impress someone with my new knowledge of physics at a party. Maybe it is best I keep it to myself. More later.

Beginning

I am an avid reader, as you may have guessed by the title of my blog. To some, reading is a means to an end. Once they reach the end, whether that be entertainment, knowledge of a subject, or completion of a list, they are complete. They may wish to start again, perhaps on another subject or genre, but that too may end. I, on the other hand, cannot see an end to my reading. It is an addiction. The more I read, the more I realize that I can never come to an end. Each book convinces me that the gap in my understanding of the world and its contents is larger than I realized before I began. Perhaps some of you understand this obsession. If so, join me as I explore the world of books and uncover knowledge I never knew I did not have.
I will begin with the last book I read, The Second Dream of Sor Juana by Alicia Gaspar de Alba. It is, after all, my inspiration for this blog. Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz was a woman living in Mexico in the 17th Century. She was a poet, a philosopher, and a genius who had the great misfortune of being born with an intellect greater than that which was thought prudent for a woman. Sor Juana rose to fame quickly. She had chosen the life of a nun over that of a wife, for those were the choices her contemporaries had, so she could persue learning. And her learning earned her adulation not only from New Spain but also across Europe. Her views were truly revolutionary, especially for a woman, and even more revolutionary considering her vocation. In the end, her fame could not save her. She was a victim of the Inquisition, and she lived the remainder of her days in silence. This book is a fictionalised account of Sor Juana's life. I recommend it highly for anyone interested in feminism, Mexican history, poetry, or philosophy. Sor Juana is a little known soldier in the long battle for equality for women.
If you would be so kind as to indulge me, I would like to write my favorite quote from the book. It is a poem written by Sor Juana herself...

World, why do you persist in persecuting me?
How do I offend you, when all I seek
is to place beauty in my mind
and not my mind on beauty.
I do not value wealth nor treasures
and thus, it causes me more joy
to place riches in my thoughts
rather than thoughts on riches.
I love not loveliness which, despoiled
by time is vanquished,
nor does false finery deceive me,
instead, my truth of truths
is to consume the vanities of life
rather than consume my life on vanities.

And so, I begin this blog. I hope to check in every few days to update you, fellow readers, on my progress. Again, I say, Join me!