Uniformity, creativity and the employee handbook

George Hartzog, the greatest leader of National Park Service understood that creativity can be crushed in the name of “standards.” He killed the employee handbooks and set his people free.

Child of Geneva or Child of God

The phrases “child of God” and “child of Geneva” had very particular meanings in Reformation Geneva. How those two phrases get deployed elucidates a fundamental tension in Reformation Geneva.

Andrew Beattie, A Cultural History of the Alps (review)

Not a bad book, but if you’re looking for a serious and deep cultural history of the Alpes, or the mountain areas of Europe in general, this is probably not what you’re looking for.

Secure Alternatives to Dropbox

Dropbox has come under fire for not being as secure as we’ve perhaps been led to believe, but Secret Sync and Spider Oak promise more secure alternatives.

A Dwarf’s Life in Sixteenth-Century Geneva

We don’t have much detail on the life of the dwarf, Michel Die, but one can’t help but notice the concern that he be treated “humanely,” suggesting that outcome was very much in doubt.

John Muir, Antoine Saunier and the Perception of Mountains in Past Times

John Muir spent his first winter as a shepherd on the plains of the Central Valley. His comments merit some comparison with Antoine Saunier’s description of Geneva in his 1538 prospectus for the Genevan school. Taken together, we have a sense of how the perception of mountains changed in the 300 years between Saunier and Muir and has changed again since Muir’s day.

EPA and DHA for vegetarians (Omega-3 Fatty Acids)

Everyone is talking about Omega-3s, but few people talk about the *variety* of Omega-3s and what that means for vegetarians. Short answer, you need EPA and DHA and algae-based capsules are the only vegetarian way to get significant quantities. That’s the same source fish use… but without all the mercury and overfishing.