Book Review: Dark Matter and the Dinosaurs

Dark Matter and the Dinosaurs: The Astounding Interconnectedness of the Universe, by Lisa Randall

If I have this right, this is what this book proposes:

Dark matter, which we know is out there but cannot see, includes some particles that interact, however weakly, with each other. They also might interact with particles included in regular matter. (These particles are called weakly interacting massive particles, or WIMPs. And you think scientists don't have a sense of humor.)

Assuming these dark matter particles interact with regular matter particles, the interactions are really, really small. So small they cannot be measured except on a galactic scale, and even then, only with precise equipment studied by people who know what they are looking for and what they are doing.

Further assuming these particles interact, they could possibly form a small, flat, dark matter disk in the center of the Milky Way. This disk, which remains theoretical, could then interact, however weakly, with our solar system as it revolves through and around the Milky Way. Over a period of years -- again we are talking large scale, so it's over millions of years -- the dark matter disk causes a wobble in the Oort Cloud, which circles around the outer edge of our solar system. That wobble may knock material out of its orbit, pushing it into the sun's gravitational pull, where it heads toward the earth.

Theoretically, this should happen every 30 million to 35 million years or so -- let's put it approximately at every 33 million years. It could be happening now.

Which means that sometime around, say, 66 million years ago, that dark-matter-caused wobble sent some Oort Cloud matter hurtling toward the sun, and such matter struck earth, causing the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, which snuffed out the life of 75 percent of the earth's plants and animals, including -- you guessed it -- the dinosaurs.

Or, to put it in haiku form:

WIMPs in dark matter

Thin disk in Milky Way, then:
Dino extinction

See how all this is connected? At least, it is in theory. And this is what Dr. Randall explains in her well-written and intriguing book. And she explains the science far, far better than I do.

If this kind of stuff interests you, and you want to know more, go out and buy the book.

Black Friday: Books and tea

Although I am far from a shopping aficionado, I did have my own little excursion this Black Friday.

I drove some 60 miles from where I was visiting at my brother's house in upstate New York to my favorite small town -- Millerton, N.Y. -- to partake in tea and books.

My first stop was, of course, Harney & Sons tea shop. It's a great tea company with its headquarters in town, and it has a store/restaurant right on Main Street. While waiting for a table where I would soon order a cuppa and snack on scones, jam, and clotted cream, I perused the small shop and put in my semi-annual tea order.

Afterward, I strolled across the street to one of my favorite bookstores in the country, Oblong Books & Music. This store is a gem. It has a children's toy and book shop downstairs. Climb the stairs, past the Harry Potter Wall -- or enter from around the corner -- and you will find one of the widest array of books in the smallest of spaces. OK, it's not that small, but it is cozy.

And here is what I love about it: Instead of carrying dozens of copies of best sellers or books by authors one can find at your local Wal-Mart, the store will have a few volumes by hundreds of different writers, both well-known and those waiting to be found. I discovered the Irish writer Kevin Barry here. Last year, I found a compelling book, Submission, by Michel Houellebecq, on its shelves.

This year, I was pleased to find The Obama Inheritance in the store. Ever since I heard the review on NPR recently, I have searched in several bookstores but have been unable to find this treasure. All the stores claimed not to carry it, and I began to wonder: Was the book that told stories about the various conspiracy theories surrounding President Obama a conspiracy in itself? Barnes & Noble did confirm it existed, but mysteriously told me it was unavailable -- even on its website.

But now I hold a copy in my hands, and I am eager to start reading it.


But that's was only part of my haul. I also picked up Artemis, a story of moon colonization by Andy Weir, the author of Martian; Elmet, a Man Booker Prize finalist, by Fiona Mozley; and A Line Made by Walking, by Irish novelist Sara Baume.

The next day, while treating my daughter to her visit to The Drama Book Shop in midtown Manhattan -- where she hauled in her own collection of books -- I picked up Uncommon Type, the collection of short stories written by actor Tom Hanks.

Yep, I believe in shopping small and shopping local -- even if that local shopping is hundreds of miles from my home.

Book Review: Smile

Smile, by Roddy Doyle

First of all, let me say Doyle is a great writer, and this book proves it. And he tells a great story, as he does again in this book.

But ...

But I'm not really sure if I liked this novel. I'm not sure what the story is.

As he closes out the book, Doyle brings into question everything he has written. I don't know what happened and what didn't. Yes, I realize this is fiction, but I still expect the story that I just read is true in the world it is set, and is not simply a tale that meant nothing. Because if it's the latter, then what is the point?

The book stars Victor Forde, a recently separated, middle-aged Irishman. He's had a charming life, it seems, marrying a beautiful woman well above his standing, and working as a guest on radio chat shows, pontificating in the issues of the day. He's writing a book, but it seems he's been writing the book for most of his life, and hasn't quite finished it yet.

After his separation, Victor moves into a small apartment in Dublin, and he decides to hang around a nearby pub, to make it "his place." The first man he meets there, however, is a fellow by the name of Fitzpatrick, whom he takes an instant dislike to. But Victor presently settles in with a group of friends, and Fitzpatrick falls by the wayside, although he continues to show up here and there.

We are then told, in flashbacks, the story of Victor's life, including flashbacks that Fitzpatrick seems to draw out of him. Our narrator doesn't like the remembrances, and he doesn't like what they seem to be doing to his life as he knows it.

It's a disturbing story, if well told. But we are left to wonder: Is it real? Or did any of it happen?

Book Review: Strange Weather

Strange Weather, by Joe Hill

In one of the short novels -- or long short stories -- in Joe Hill's latest collection, a man lands on a  magic cloud.

Its magic is shown when Aubrey wants to take off his flight suit, and a cloudy coat rack appears. When he wants to sit down, a fluffy chair awaits him. And when he wants to go to bed, a fluffy cloud bed, with a fluffy cloud pillow and a fluffy cloud comforter, show up. It all made me want to lie down and snuggle in it.

Such it the power of Hill's words and description. Although his stories deal in reality mixed with imagination, it's his descriptions that keep you reading. This book, with four stories loosely tied to abnormal weather, showcases his talents.

In Snapshot, a man with a camera has the ability to remove people's memories, and a fat kid in a torrential thunderstorm helps an old lady in his neighborhood. In Loaded, the shooting of a black child is re-visited 20 years later during another shooting in California's fire season. In Aloft, the magic cloud appears in the cold, leading to memories for the poor guy stuck on it. And in Rain, the rain is not mellow drops of water, but hard crystals and nails Try dealing with that.

But all of those backdrops are set up to tell the stories of the people involved. Ordinary, distinct people who represent America, are put into impossible situations and told to deal with it.

How they do it, and how it is told, show Hill's greatness. As his father once wrote, "It's not the tale, but he who tells it."

Hill tells them well.

Review: Going into Town: A Love Letter to New York

Going into Town: A Lover Letter to New York, by Roz Chast

I was browsing  through my local bookstore today when I picked up this illustrated book.

So I looked inside, and saw it was more a love letter to Manhattan. As a native of upper Manhattan, born and reared, I was OK with this, but wanted to see how much attention my neck of the woods received. When I say upper Manhattan, I mean upper Manhattan -- I grew up on 207th Street -- and that part of the borough is ignored so much it often is cut off on maps of the city.

I started perusing the book, chuckling over a number of drawings and observations. Then I got to this comment about the city's crowded streets, "The main drawback is getting stuck in a herd of out-of-towners, who, for some reason, always seem reluctant to cross against the light." I looked at the next page and saw this.

See that frustrated person shouting? That's me. Seriously. I am that guy. I may be older, with less hair, but otherwise, that's me.

So I bought the book.

Totally worth it.








This book is funny, mostly true, and a nice homage to the city and its people and places. The drawings are wonderful, often with little inside jokes or asides. If you're an out-of-towner, you might even learn something about the city and its people. If you're a native, you'll get a new appreciation for the greatest city in the world.

Even if my part of town was, once again, ignored.