Africa: The Shrine of Football

There are four major religions in Africa: Traditional African spiritual beliefs, Christianity, Islam and Football. Of these, Football is by far the most widespread and commonly practiced. It has millions of adherents spread across all 53 African countries. In many respects, Africa is the most diverse continent on the face of the earth. But a love (or more accurately, a reverence) for Football is one of the major unifying elements in this vast and diverse continent.

On the face of it, sport is all about a contest played within an agreed set of rules. In fact, it is about a lot more than that. A whole more. Sporting achievement represents something deep within the human psyche. That is why great champions of sport command respect and financial rewards seemingly out of all proportion to their prosaic sporting activities: Usain Bolt running in a straight line; Michael Jordan inserting an orange ball in a bottom-less basket; Tiger Woods striking a small white ball into a cup in the middle of a raised lawn; Pele kicking a football through a large rectangular frame; and so on. I think Bill Shankly, the legendary Scottish manager of Liverpool Football Club, put it best when he said: "Some people believe football is a matter of life and death. I'm very disappointed with that attitude. I can assure you it is much, much more important than that."

Sport is not just about the prosaic activities carried out by sportsmen (and women) on the field of play. It is drama, real-life drama, with moments of comedy and tragedy; with blood, sweat, tears, grit, pain, determination, despair, triumph, disaster, ecstasy, agony. And yes, even life and death at times. Sport is human life played out on the football field, the golf course, or the athletics track. It is about honour and, occasionally, villainy. It is the human condition writ small, but played large.

And in Africa Football is even more than the sum of all these things because it is the universal, though unofficial, religion, the only continent where this happens to be the case.

So it is fitting that this year, 2010, Football is finally coming to its spiritual home: Africa. It's true, Football's historical home is England, but it is only in Africa that Football has attained the status of a universal religion.

Hello World! Welcome to Africa, The Shrine of Football.

Create the pipe, Control the tune

"He who pays the piper calls the tune."

True.

"He who creates the pipe controls the tune."

Also true. And infinitely more important.

Consider the recent spat between Apple and Adobe over the alleged unsuitability of Adobe's Flash technology for the iPhone. This is really a battle over what will become the dominant standard (or the "pipe") for video and animations for small screens (smartphones, PDAs, tablet PCs, and so forth). And who gets to create and control that "pipe".

What happens after debt cancellation?

"Why should the devil have all the best tunes?"
--William Booth

The campaign for the complete cancellation of the sovereign debts of the poorest countries in the world has been one of the great global issues of the last two decades. Bono and Kenneth Kaunda, the former President of Zambia, have been among its most famous and active supporters. And it has been largely successful--the sovereign debts of many countries, including Zambia, have been cancelled as a direct result of this campaign. The cancellation of these debts, the campaigners said, would give heavily indebted poor countries the chance to start afresh and, in effect, "move forward into [the] broad, sunlit uplands" of Churchillian rhetoric.

At least that's how the story and the song went.

How have things actually panned out? Take the case of Kaunda's own Zambia. Ng’andu Magande, Zambia's finance minister from 2003 to 2008 and a highly respected economist in his own right, gave his assessment of Zambia's current debt situation earlier this week. It was not pretty.

The lesson for those on the right side of any public policy issue, be it "climate change", or "financial reform", or what have you, is this: It is not enough to be right; you have to be effective. And to be effective, you have to be able to match your opponents: idea for idea, story for story, tune for tune.

Weapons of mass creation

In a paper published yesterday in Science (available online), J. Craig Venter and his colleagues describe how they have successfully created the first self-replicating synthetic bacterial cell. This research has profound scientific and ethical implications. The most interesting ideas in the area of the scientific and ethical implications of synthetic life have not come from scientists, or ethicists, but rather from science fiction writers. Isaac Asimov, for instance, in his Robot series, explores many techno-ethical problems involving the interaction of humanoid robots and human beings.

21 seconds to go

OK, so I'm out by a factor of 86,400, but 21 seconds sounds better. There are actually 21 days to go before the Big Daddy of world sporting events hits South Africa.

Predictions? I'm from the Yogi Berra School of Prognostication: "It's tough to make predictions, especially about the future." So I'll pass, thank you very much. But I will say this: The two teams that will produce the most surprises will be South Africa and Argentina.

Without Masks

"Why, Sir, you find no man, at all intellectual, who is willing to leave London. No, Sir, when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford."
— Samuel Johnson

He might as well have been talking about Johannesburg. So, when you've assembled the largest collection of Afro-Cuban contemporary art in history, where do you first exhibit it? Where else, but at the JAG in the heart of Johannesburg. I'm not a big fan of contemporary art, but from what I've seen and heard, this might be worth a look.

Do mobile phones cause cancer?

An international team of scientists address this question in a paper published yesterday in the International Journal of Epidemiology. A press release was also, erm, released. This is the largest and longest study of its kind. However, as you will see, the results are inconclusive.

Tis the season to be financy

...Fa la la la la, la la la la.



Dr. Doom, a. k. a. Nouriel Roubini, s. b. k. a. (should be known as) Dr. Realist, has just published a new book, co-authored by Stephen Mihm, entitled (wait for it) Crisis Economics. There's an excerpt on The New York Times website. The Good Doctor also hangs out on facebook and twitter.

Mobile services innovation in Africa

Africa's mobile operators have network infrastructure as good as any in the world. They are also highly innovative in terms of the services offered over their networks, as demonstrated by this recent Frost & Sullivan award to Sasatel, a new Tanzanian mobile operator.

A lean and hungry look

Let me have men about me that are fat;
Sleek-headed men and such as sleep o' nights:
Yond Cassius has a lean and hungry look;
He thinks too much: such men are dangerous.
--Julius Caesar, Act 1, Scene 2

The Black Swan Reloaded

Just out this week from Random House: the second edition of The Black Swan by Nassim Nicholas Taleb. As I'm currently reading the first edition, it will be interesting to "compare and contrast" once I get my hands on the second edition.

The dedication (identical in the two editions) is both interesting and revealing:

To Benoît Mandelbrot,
A Greek among Romans

Fact and fiction

Reading:
Excerpt from Master and Commander:

As it could not for the moment find any outward expression, his anger took on the form of melancholy: he thought of his shipless state, of half and whole promises made to him and broken, and of the many schemes he had built up on visionary foundations. He owed his prize-agent, his man of business, a hundred and twenty pounds; and its interest of fifteen per cent was about to fall due; and his pay was five pounds twelve shillings a month. He thought of men he knew, junior to him but with better luck or better interest, who were now lieutenants in command of brigs or cutters, or who had even been promoted master and commander: and all of them snapping up trabacaloes in the Adriatic, tartans in the Gulf of Lions, xebecs and settees along the whole of the Spanish coast. Glory, professional advancement, prize-money.

A wonderful tale, very well told (as you can see from the above). The first book in Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey/Maturin series. Somewhat reminiscent of C. S. Forester's Hornblower books. The movie's not too shabby either.

Excerpt from The Black Swan:

This is a book about uncertainty; to this author, the rare event equals uncertainty. This may seem like a strong statement--that we need to principally study the rare and extreme events in order to figure out common ones--but I will make myself clear as follows. There are two possible ways to approach phenomena. The first is to rule out the extraordinary and focus on the "normal." The examiner leaves aside "outliers" and studies ordinary cases. The second approach is to consider that in order to understand a phenomenon, one needs first to consider the extremes--particularly if, like the Black Swan, they carry an extraordinary cumulative effect.

Not much to say except this is an unusual book by an unusual man.

PASSD

I'm suffering from an acute case of PASSD (Post Arsenal Season Stress Disorder). That's what happens to you when your supposedly high-flying football team goes five (yes, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, five!) straight seasons without winning a single trophy, not even that dubious prize, the Football League Cup.

Going, Going,...

Gone:

Gordon Brown resigned as British Prime Minister earlier this evening, ending 13 years of the "New Labour" experiment.

This picture shows Mr. Brown making his resignation speech in front a phalanx of camera-men (or perhaps, more correctly in these sensitive times, camera-persons). Phalanx being a macabrely appropriate word, for the scene has the look of a man in front of a firing squad. And this article by Michael White of The Guardian briefly and artfully explains the event and its significance.

Smart TV

Fareed Zakaria GPS:

• One hour.
• Substance, not sound-bites.
• Current, with historical perspective.
• Ideas, policy, trends.
  
• Discussion, debate, dissent.
• Books, articles, scholarly papers.
• Even homework ("Question of the week").

What more could anyone want?

Limited knowledge, Boundless imagination

I am enough of the artist to draw freely upon my imagination. Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.

Einstein said these now famous words at his Berlin home in the course of an interview with George Sylvester Viereck that was published in The Saturday Evening Post of October 26, 1929. (There's a full copy of the original article here). Here's the quote in its original context:

[Viereck:] "If we owe so little to the experience of others, how do you account for sudden leaps forward in the sphere of science? Do you ascribe your own discoveries to intuition or inspiration?"

[Einstein:] "I believe in intuitions and inspirations. I sometimes feel that I am right. I do not know that I am. When two expeditions of scientists, financed by the Royal Academy, went forth to test my theory of relativity, I was convinced that their conclusions would tally with my hypothesis. I was not surprised when the eclipse of May 29, 1919, confirmed my intuitions. I would have been surprised if I had been wrong."

[Viereck:] "Then you trust more to your imagination than to your knowledge?"

[Einstein:] "I am enough of the artist to draw freely upon my imagination. Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world."

The whole interview is full of similar insightful glimpses into the mind of Einstein. This, for instance, on what motivates him:

Einstein's struggles with fate have left no bitterness on his tongue. Every line of his face expresses kindliness. It also bespeaks indomitable pride. Some friends and admirers learned that he had decided to build a summer house with his hard-earned savings. They offered him a princely gift of land. But Einstein shook his head. "No," he said; "I could accept a gift from a community. I cannot accept such a gift from an individual. Every gift we accept is a tie. Sometimes," he added with Talmudic wisdom, " one pays most for the thing one gets for nothing."

Although the most-talked-about scientist of the world, Einstein absolutely refuses to capitalize his reputation. He laughed when he was asked to indorse an American cigarette. The money offered for his name would have paid the expense of his summer house. Knowing that fame has set him apart from other men, he feels that he must preserve at all cost the integrity of his soul. He escapes the interviewer by every possible device. His shyness dictates and his wife abets his seclusion. Unable to check the avalanche of offers and requests which overwhelm him, he leaves most letters, even from celebrities, unanswered. But he never ignores even the smallest note from a friend. He turned down princely offers to exploit his theories and his life in a book for popular consumption. "I refuse," he said again and again, " to make money out of my science. My laurel is not for sale like so many bales of cotton."

[...]

"I am happy because I want nothing from anyone. I do not care for money. Decorations, titles or distinctions mean nothing to me. I do not crave praise. The only thing that gives me pleasure, apart from my work, my violin and my sailboat, is the appreciation of my fellow workers."

Reminds of me a contemporary man of genius who has consistently turned down prizes, fame and money, explaining in relation to one such prize: "It [is] completely irrelevant for me. Everybody [understands] that if the proof is correct then no other recognition is needed.”

It seemed like a good idea at the time

One way of summarising the history of bad ideas:

"It seemed like a good idea at the time."

Take the euro for instance...

The Lion in Winter

In his 75th year, Wole Soyinka reflects on what has been, for a writer, an unusually eventful life. Towards the end of the interview, Soyinka is asked the inevitable "advice" question: What advice does he have for the young and aspiring?

Soyinka answers:

That question comes up again and again, and I say that I don't really know. I think it's up to people to decide what they want to extract from what I've done, or left undone. But the advice I always give to my young children, or to young writers, or those who want to be activists in some way, who come to me and say, "What shall we do about this situation? How can we contribute?" I just say, "Follow your instincts." Don't feel you have to follow the paths of others, because you may not be temperamentally fitted for it. And so you'll just harm yourself and your cause and others. But just follow your instinct, and don't ever pretend to be what you're not.

Wise words.

Probably the best sitcom of all time

Blackadder, that is.

A morsel of proof-producing pudding:

Blackadder: Personally I thought you were the least convincing female impressionist since Tarzan went through Jane's handbag and ate her lipstick, but I'm clearly in a minority.

Behold: The vast Blackadder quote generator.

Funny, what?

First, a rather geeky joke:

"There are 10 kinds of people in the world ...
those who understand binary, and those who don’t."

And this, apparently, is the world's funniest joke:

Two hunters are out in the woods when one of them collapses. He doesn't seem to be breathing and his eyes are glazed. The other guy whips out his phone and calls the emergency services. He gasps, "My friend is dead! What can I do?". The operator says "Calm down. I can help. First, let's make sure he's dead." There is a silence, then a shot is heard. Back on the phone, the guy says "OK, now what?"

Simon says

Simon Singh is a well-known science writer, one of the best in the business indeed. I found his books on cryptology and Fermat's Last Theorem both enlightening and entertaining -- a difficult combination to pull off at the best of times. I recommend them highly.

On 19 April 2008, Singh published a now (in)famous article in The Guardian criticising certain scientifically unfounded claims made by some chiropractors. The third paragraph of Singh's article, the paragraph that got him into trouble, specifically mentions the British Chiropractic Association (BCA):

You might think that modern chiropractors restrict themselves to treating back problems, but in fact they still possess some quite wacky ideas. The fundamentalists argue that they can cure anything. And even the more moderate chiropractors have ideas above their station. The British Chiropractic Association claims that their members can help treat children with colic, sleeping and feeding problems, frequent ear infections, asthma and prolonged crying, even though there is not a jot of evidence. This organisation is the respectable face of the chiropractic profession and yet it happily promotes bogus treatments. [Italics added]

The BCA sued Singh under the United Kingdom's notoriously onerous defamation laws (onerous for the alleged defamer, that is). In his judgement of 7 May 2009, Mr Justice Eady, a senior High Court judge, ruled in favour of the BCA. Singh later secured permission to appeal Mr Justice Eady's ruling in a judgement by (the rather aptly named) Lord Justice Laws on 14 October 2009. Singh's appeal was heard on 23 February 2010 by three of the UK's most senior judges: (the equally euonymous) Sir Igor Judge, the Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales; Sir David Neuberger, the Master of the Rolls; and Lord Justice Sedley. In their ruling delivered on 1 April 2010, the three judges unanimously upheld Singh's appeal. On 15 April 2010, the BCA announced that it had decided to discontinue its libel action against Singh.

This court ruling and subsequent climb-down by the BCA marks an important victory for common sense and scientific freedom. I blogged recently about an unfortunate case in Zambia where a man, who was probably drunk, was jailed for defaming the President. I need not mention that Zambia's highly retrogressive defamation laws were largely inherited from the British legal system.

Such onerous defamation laws limit freedom of speech and are an insidious form of censorship.

The three learned judges correctly described the eventual state of a society that embraces, or even tolerates, such laws: Orwellian.

Things that go bump in the light

A bumper sticker I saw this morning:

I HAD a life...but my job ATE it.

Mapanje's Musings

Jack Mapanje, who hails from Malawi, is one of Africa's most distinguished living poets. His poems are constructed with great skill and subtlety and suffused with delicate humour and deep humanity. Mapanje's delivery in person is as impressive as it is on the page, as amply demonstrated by these four online recordings.

Nervous Conditions

Nervous Conditions, the debut novel by the Zimbabwean writer and film-maker Tsitsi Dangarembga, starts like this:

I was not sorry when my brother died.

You'll be hard-pressed to find a more arresting opening line.

The Sword of Cicero

Cicero's sword was his razor-sharp mind, tongue and pen. Cicero's biography by Plutarch (John Dryden's translation, 1683) notes that "to make his orations more striking, he neglected decorum and dignity. [...] To use this sharp raillery against opponents and antagonists in judicial pleading seems allowable rhetoric. But he excited much ill feeling by his readiness to attack anyone for the sake of a jest."

Plutarch supplies numerous examples:

• When Munatius, who had escaped conviction by his advocacy, immediately prosecuted his friend Sabinus, he said in the warmth of his resentment, “Do you suppose you were acquitted for your own meets, Munatius, and was it not that I so darkened the case, that the court could not see your guilt?”
  

• When from the Rostra he had made an eulogy on Marcus Crassus, with much applause, and within a few days after again as publicly reproached him, Crassus called to him, and said, “Did not you yourself two days ago, in this same place, commend me?” “Yes,” said Cicero, “I exercised my eloquence in declaiming upon a bad subject.”
  

• At another time, Crassus had said that no one of his family had ever lived beyond sixty years of age, and afterwards denied it, and asked, “What should put it into my head to say so?” “It was to gain the people’s favor,” answered Cicero; “you knew how glad they would be to hear it.”
  

• When Crassus expressed admiration of the Stoic doctrine, that the good man is always rich, “Do you not mean,” said Cicero, “their doctrine that all things belong to the wise?” Crassus being generally accused of covetousness.
  

• One of Crassus’s sons, who was thought so exceedingly like a man of the name of Axius as to throw some suspicion on his mother’s honor, made a successful speech in the senate. Cicero on being asked how he liked it, replied with the Greek words, Axios Crassou.

• When Crassus was about to go into Syria, he desired to leave Cicero rather his friend than his enemy, and, therefore, one day saluting him, told him he would come and sup with him, which the other as courteously received. Within a few days after, on some of Cicero’s acquaintances interceding for Vatinius, as desirous of reconciliation and friendship, for he was then his enemy, “What,” he replied, “does Vatinius also wish to come and sup with me?”
  

• When Vatinius, who had swellings in his neck, was pleading a cause, he called him the tumid orator; and having been told by someone that Vatinius was dead, on hearing presently after that he was alive, “May the rascal perish,” said he, “for his news not being true.”

• Upon Caesar’s bringing forward a law for the division of the lands in Campania amongst the soldiers, many in the senate opposed it; amongst the rest, Lucius Gellius, one of the oldest men in the house, said it should never pass whilst he lived. “Let us postpone it,” said Cicero, “Gellius does not ask us to wait long.”
  

• There was a man of the name of Octavius, suspected to be of African descent. He once said, when Cicero was pleading, that he could not hear him; “Yet there are holes,” said Cicero, “in your ears.”
  

• When Metellus Nepos told him, that he had ruined more as a witness, than he had saved as an advocate, “I admit,” said Cicero, “that I have more truth than eloquence.”
  

• To a young man who was suspected of having given a poisoned cake to his father, and who talked largely of the invectives he meant to deliver against Cicero, “Better these,” replied he, “than your cakes.”
  

• Publius Sextius, having amongst others retained Cicero as his advocate in a certain cause, was yet desirous to say all for himself, and would not allow anybody to speak for him; when he was about to receive his acquittal from the judges, and the ballots were passing, Cicero called to him, “Make haste, Sextius, and use your time; tomorrow you will be nobody.”
  

• He cited Publius Cotta to bear testimony in a certain cause, one who affected to be thought a lawyer, though ignorant and unlearned; to whom, when he had said, “I know nothing of the matter,” he answered, “You think, perhaps, we ask you about a point of law.”
  

• To Metellus Nepos, who, in a dispute between them, repeated several times, “Who was your father, Cicero?” he replied, “Your mother has made the answer to such a question in your case more difficult;” Nepos’s mother having been of ill repute.
  

• [Metellus Nepos'] son, also, was of a giddy, uncertain temper. At one time, he suddenly threw up his office of tribune, and sailed off into Syria to Pompey; and immediately after, with as little reason, came back again. He gave his tutor, Philagrus, a funeral with more than necessary attention, and then set up the stone figure of a crow over his tomb. “This,” said Cicero, “is really appropriate; as he did not teach you to speak, but to fly about.”
  

• When Marcus Appius, in the opening of some speech in a court of justice, said that his friend had desired him to employ industry, eloquence, and fidelity in that cause, Cicero answered, “And how have you had the heart not to accede to any one of his requests?”

• Marcus Aquinius, who had two sons-in-law in exile, received from him the name of king Adrastus.
  

• Lucius Cotta, an intemperate lover of wine, was censor when Cicero stood for the consulship. Cicero, being thirsty at the election, his friends stood round about him while he was drinking. “You have reason to be afraid,” he said, “lest the censor should be angry with me for drinking water.”
  

• Meeting one day Voconius with his three very ugly daughters, he quoted the verse,

  He reared a race without Apollo’s leave.

• When Marcus Gellius, who was reputed the son of a slave, had read several letters in the senate with a very shrill, and loud voice, “Wonder not,” said Cicero, “he comes of the criers.”
  

• When Faustus Sylla, the son of Sylla the dictator, who had, during his dictatorship, by public bills proscribed and condemned so many citizens, had so far wasted his estate, and got into debt, that he was forced to publish his bills of sale, Cicero told him that he liked these bills much better than those of his father.
  

Plutarch concludes: "By this habit [Cicero] made himself odious with many people."

Cicero lived by his sword and he died by it:

In the aftermath of the assassination of the Roman dictator Julius Caesar on 15 March 44 BC in a conspiracy led by Brutus and Cassius, Mark Antony, a close associate of Caesar, assumed control of Caesar's political and military forces. Meanwhile, Cicero, a stauch republican, was thrust into the role of leader and spokesman of the Roman Senate. Octavian, Julius Caesar's 19-year-old great nephew, adopted son, and designated heir, arrived in Rome on 6 May 44 BC and set about trying to wrest control of Ceasar's legacy from Mark Antony. Cicero saw this as an opportunity to divide the anti-republican Caesarean faction. In 44 and 43 BC, he made a series of scathing speeches denouncing Mark Antony (the so-called Philippics) and threw in his support with Octavian. Cicero quipped: "laudandum, adolescentem, ornandum, tollendum" ("the young man should be praised, honoured, and then done away with"; the last word "tollendum", meaning either "to be done away with" or "to be exalted"). It was a quip Cicero would live, and die, to regret.

Cicero's plan back-fired. Octavian and Mark Antony reconciled and, in alliance with Lepidus, formed the Second Triumvirate on 26 November 43 BC. The three men drew up a list of more than 200 people who were to be killed. Cicero's name was at the top.

Cicero, an elderly man of 63 by this time, half-heartedly fled Rome. He was caught by his assassins on 7 December 43 BC, as he was leaving his villa in the Mediterranean resort of Formiae on a litter (a covered, curtained couch carried by slaves), on his way to catch a ship to Greece. His last words are said to have been, "There is nothing proper about what you are doing, soldier, but do try to kill me properly." Cicero was Ciceronian to the very last.

Plutarch records a poignant incident that occured long after these events (Loeb Classical Library edition, 1919):

I learn that [Octavian], a long time after this, paid a visit to one of his daughter's sons; and the boy, since he had in his hands a book of Cicero's, was terrified and sought to hide it in his gown; but [Octavian] saw it, and took the book, and read a great part of it as he stood, and then gave it back to the youth, saying: "A learned man, my child, a learned man and a lover of his country."

Simply the best

The greatest player in the history of football was, and remains, Diego Armando Maradona. But in this evening's UEFA Champions League quarter-final second-leg match between Arsenal FC and and FC Barcelona at the Camp Nou, I, we, saw the man who might, just might, wrest that accolade from Maradona: Lionel Andrés Messi.

Arsenal lost 4-1, despite taking an early lead 19 minutes into the match with a goal by the Danish striker, Nicklas Bendtner. Barcelona responded with four stunning goals, all from the boot of Messi. Barcelona won the quarter-final tie 6-3 on aggregate, having drawn 2-2 with Arsenal in the first-leg at the Emirates last week. Messi's dazzling performance confirmed what Barcelona and Argentina hoped (and perhaps knew), and their rival teams feared: that Messi, at just 22, is indisputably the best football player in the world. As an Arsenal fan, I was of course disappointed to see Arsenal fail, yet again, in its bid to win the European Cup, but who can begrudge Messi his moment of glory and not applaud what can only be described as a masterclass in the art and science of football?

The only question yet to be answered is this: Can Messi reproduce his incredible club form for his country at the World Cup in two months' time?

We shall see.

Geniuses and morons

From the entry on "Racism" in The Ayn Rand Lexicon:

Racism is the lowest, most crudely primitive form of collectivism. It is the notion of ascribing moral, social or political significance to a man’s genetic lineage—the notion that a man’s intellectual and characterological traits are produced and transmitted by his internal body chemistry. Which means, in practice, that a man is to be judged, not by his own character and actions, but by the characters and actions of a collective of ancestors.

Racism claims that the content of a man’s mind (not his cognitive apparatus, but its content) is inherited; that a man’s convictions, values and character are determined before he is born, by physical factors beyond his control. This is the caveman’s version of the doctrine of innate ideas—or of inherited knowledge—which has been thoroughly refuted by philosophy and science. Racism is a doctrine of, by and for brutes. It is a barnyard or stock-farm version of collectivism, appropriate to a mentality that differentiates between various breeds of animals, but not between animals and men.

Like every form of determinism, racism invalidates the specific attribute which distinguishes man from all other living species: his rational faculty. Racism negates two aspects of man’s life: reason and choice, or mind and morality, replacing them with chemical predestination.

[...]

A genius is a genius, regardless of the number of morons who belong to the same race—and a moron is a moron, regardless of the number of geniuses who share his racial origin.

Who doesn't want to be a millionaire?

Does the following statement mean anything to you:

If a compact 3-dimensional manifold M^3 has the property that every simple closed curve within the manifold can be deformed continuously to a point, does it follow that M^3 is homeomorphic to the sphere S^3?

That statement is the Poincaré Conjecture, a famous mathematical problem that was first formulated by Henri Poincaré in 1904.

The Conjecture was only solved almost a century later, in 2002 and 2003, in a series of three revolutionary papers by the Russian Jewish mathematician, Dr. Grigori Perelman.

In recognition of his monumental achievement, Dr. Perelman was awarded a Fields Medal in 2006 and, about two weeks ago, the first Clay Mathematics Institute Millennium Prize. The Fields Medal is the most prestigious prize in mathematics, whilst the Clay Millennium Prize is the most lucrative with prize money of US$ 1 million.

All that is remarkable enough.

What is even more remarkable is that Dr. Perelman has turned down both prizes, the first and only person ever to do so.

Why?

The answer, complete with all the relevant background and key players, is told in a long and fascinating article by Sylvia Nasar and David Gruber that was published in The New Yorker in August 2006.

Something Ngugi this way comes

New from Ngugi wa Thiong'o: Dreams in a Time of War: A Childhood Memoir

Ngugi is one of Africa's finest writers. But I profoundly disagree with some of his political ideas, particularly his notion of "the problematic interaction between dominant languages and marginalized ones." The interaction and intermingling of languages has been a feature of human society for thousands of years and needn't be viewed as "problematic". What emerges as the "dominant" language is not necessarily a result of anyone setting out to centralise or marginalise any particular language. The most widely used language in the Roman Empire, for instance, was not Latin, but Koine ("common") Greek. This was simply a function of the preceeding history of the ancient world and the huge diversity of peoples who lived under the Empire. Any attempt to impose Latin as the dominant language would have faced formidable, if not impossible, odds. Ngugi abandoned writing in English (the "dominant" language) in favour of Kikuyu (the "marginalised" language). Apparently, he now only translates his works into English after they have been written in Kikuyu.

The fact remains though: if Ngugi's work were only available in Kikuyu, we would never have heard of Ngugi wa Thiong'o and we would not be having this discussion. That's just a existential fact which it seems to me unwise to ignore.

But anyway, not to spoil the party: Ngugi's new book is a memoir, a childhood memoir. It is sure to take its place alongside the childhood memoirs of two other giants of African literature: Ake: The Years of Childhood by Wole Soyinka and The Education of a British-Protected Child by Chinua Achebe.

Tribute: Augustine Lungu (12 December 1970 - 19 March 2010)

Augustine Lungu (in the baseball cap) and Benne Banda in Footers (Source: Visiting Arts UK)

There's a story told about a famous Zambian who died. Thousands of mourners turned up at his funeral. One of the funeral orators was just reaching the climax of his impassioned eulogy, which had been met with the equally enthusiastic if necessarily muted approval of the crowd, when suddenly everyone's attention was drawn to the casket by an unmistakable cough. In the following moments, the corpse opened his eyes, muttered some inaudible words and climbed out of the coffin. The dead man walked calmly over to the astonished (and speechless) eulogist and took the microphone into his until-just-a-minute-ago-lifeless hands. The deceased motioned for the vast throng to be silent so that he could address them. By this time, all the wailing, tears and sombre expressions of the mourners had been replaced, first by incredulity, and then by indignation. "Just like him to be so arrogant and self-centred on an occasion like this," they said, "and shamelessly use it as an opportunity for self-promotion."

In truth, there's no such Zambian story. I just made it up for two reasons.

The first reason is it captures and illustrates something of the peculiarities of Zambian culture: the unstated rule that the eminent must be modest about their achievements; the generally unexpressed (to the living, at least), but nonetheless genuine, admiration for those achievements; the not-always-ingenuous respect for the dead; and, of course, the absurdist sense of humour with more than a hint of the macabre.

The second reason is I think it's a joke that Augustine Lungu, one of Zambia's most eminent and versatile artists and humorists, would have enjoyed. Augustine died, of an undisclosed illness, on the 19th of March 2010. He was only 39. At the time of his death, Augustine was Director of Programmes at Muvi TV, a private television station in Zambia. He is survived by his wife and four children. (And yes, as it happens, there were hundreds, and according to least one report I've seen thousands, of mourners at his funeral.) My blog has a special connection to Augustine because its title, Perfect for Biltong, was coined by him, albeit for an altogether different purpose: a Zambeef advert, as I recall.

Augustine Paul Lungu was born on the 12th of December 1970. (Augustine, here's another one. Question: Who said "Never trust a man with three names"? Answer: Francis Ford Coppola.) He was educated at Chelston Primary School and Kabulonga Boys Secondary School in Lusaka. It was at school, both primary and secondary, that Augustine's multi-faceted artistic talents began to flourish. He proved to be a natural and supremely gifted performer.

After school, Augustine went on to establish himself as one of Zambia's most accomplished artists and humorists. He was certainly the most versatile. During his career, he played many different roles, in both the functional and theatrical sense, each with distinction: actor, director, producer, writer, broadcaster, arts administrator and activist; comedy, tragedy, tragi-comedy, poetry; you name it, Augustine did it. As an actor and voice-over artist, he performed in (and probably wrote, co-wrote or directed) countless radio and television advertisements, including several instant classics that have become part of Zambian language and culture. He was a delightful mimic and could impersonate the voices and gestures of virtually anyone at will. He worked in and mastered all of the different media: theatre, film, radio, television, print, and latterly even the so-called new media. He was also a much sought after master-of-ceremonies for all kinds of functions like weddings, beauty pageants, corporate events, and so forth. He was equally adept in English, several Zambian languages, and various hybrids thereof, including Zanglish, or Zambian English. There are some fine examples of Augustine's comic writing in his "Just Musing" columns in Zambian Analysis magazine. His verbal and linguistic dexterity was just one of the weapons in a formidable arsenal which also included: a deep, sonorous and highly distinctive voice; large, expressive eyes; a face capable of displaying the most nuanced mood or emotion; a keen intelligence; and a seemingly inexhaustible creativity.

Perhaps his versatility, too, was reflective of the contemporary Zambian condition. For one can ill-afford to specialise in a country where "just" being an actor, or "just" being a director, or "just" being a writer, is unlikely to provide a sustainable income. And so, the typical Zambian thing is to generalise: to do a bit of this, and a bit of that, and a bit of the other thing in order to make ends meet. The surprising thing in Augustine's case is that he seemed to excel at virtually everything he did.

Augustine's finest hour internationally came in 2003, when he and Benne Banda starred in a two-man play entitled Footers at the Edinburgh Festival. Footers, or Headers and Footers as it was billed in Zambia, was written by the Irish playwright, Shay Linehan, who lived and worked in Zambia for many years before moving back to Ireland. Augustine and Benne played Zeddy and Yoyo, two uneducated and unemployed youths who have to live by their wits on the mean streets of Lusaka. The play is supposed to be satirical, and so it is. In many ways, though, it is an all too realistic and painful portrayal of the daily lives of many promising youngsters in Zambia. Footers was the first Zambian production ever to play at the Edinburgh Festival.

However, the most remarkable thing about Augustine's repertoire of skills was probably that they were all largely self-taught. He had no formal training to speak of, no diploma from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, or the New York Film Academy, or their Zambian equivalents (for none exist, in any case). But what he did have in abundance was talent, aptitude, determination, and an insatiable and indiscriminate love for the arts. He also had what every great artist must have: a personal taste and style all his own. He was--and is--inimitable in that respect.

I had the great privilege of seeing and hearing Augustine perform in a variety of formats, including one incredible evening spent watching Headers and Footers.

But for me personally, the most memorable performance that Augustine ever gave must have taken place some 11 or 12 years ago. Augustine was already by then a household name in Zambia. I had gone to visit a friend, a mutual friend as it turned out, in Rhodes Park, one of the suburbs of Lusaka. I didn't know that Augustine was staying over at our mutual friend's house. Our friend had just let me into the lounge, when Augustine emerged from one of the corridors with both hands proferred in greeting. He had an extremely grave look on his face. I recognised him immediately and must have appeared somewhat bemused. Without missing a beat, Augustine shook my hand warmly and said: "Hello, I am Auntie Josephine!" The ice, such as it was, was instantly broken and I collapsed in an uncontrollable fit of laughter. Pure Augustine.

Augustine had the ability to make anyone that came into contact with him experience joy and laughter, a priceless gift in this world surely. I'd give my eye-teeth--now there's an Augustinian seed for a joke if ever there was one (what kind of word is eye-teeth anyway?)--but I digress (now, where was I?)--(oh yes) my eye-teeth to have heard what Augustine said to Saint Peter at the Pearly Gates. But that's a story for another life and another world.

Augustine, Zambia will miss you. Thank you for the unforgettable joy and laughter. Rest in Peace.

--Mjumo Mzyece, 28 March 2010.

Works every time

I never get tired of watching all 120 seconds of this (the mellifluous voice at the end, incidentally, is that of Garrison Keillor):

I am become Death, the Destroyer of worlds

Doug Mills/The New York Times

Story (The New York Times)

A sad day for democracy in Zambia

Yesterday, Darius Mukuka, 35, a driver and father of four, was sentenced to 18 months in prison with hard labour by the Chief Resident Magistrate in Ndola, Zambia.

He had been charged and convicted under Chapter 87 of the Laws of Zambia ("The Penal Code Act"), Division I ("Offences Against Public Order"), Section 69 ("Defamation of President"):

Defamation of President

69. Any person who, with intent to bring the President into hatred, ridicule or contempt, publishes any defamatory or insulting matter, whether by writing, print, word of mouth or in any other manner, is guilty of an offence and is liable on conviction to imprisonment for a period not exceeding three years.
(No. 6 of 1965)

On the evening of Sunday, March 22 2009, Mr. Mukuka had apparently been in a bar in Ndola when an item concerning the Zambian president had come on the ZNBC evening news. According to reports in The (Zambia) Post, the Zambia Daily Mail and the Times of Zambia, Mr. Mukuka had then referred to the President by a highly derogatory Bemba epithet and expressed his opinion about the President's conduct and performance. Literally translated this is what Mr. Mukuka said: "This [Bemba epithet referring to the President]...what is he saying...he's lying to people...he's failed to govern the nation."

Was Mr. Mukuka insulting towards the President? Undoubtedly. There is no ambiguity about the Bemba epithet that he used and the way in which he used it. However, in the legal context, an insult in and of itself does not constitute defamation.

Was Mr. Mukaka defamatory towards the President? Possibly. Defamation in the legal sense must exhibit all of the following characteristics: (1) publication (to third parties); (2) falsehood; (3) malicious intent; and (4) reputational or other damage.

Characteristic (1) is not in dispute: Mr. Mukuka definitely made his remarks in the presence of, and for the apparent benefit of, several other people present at the scene. Characteristics (2), (3) and (4) are not so clear-cut.

Characteristic (2), falsehood: Mr. Mukuka's statement about the President "lying to people" was in apparent reference to earlier remarks made by the President in the news item. Mr. Mukuka's statement would therefore have to be considered in the light of those earlier remarks and judged accordingly. On one end of the scale, Mr. Mukuka's statement could well have been justified simply on the grounds of human fallibility (on the President's, or perhaps his speechwriter's, part)--someone could have made an innocent mistake. And there are numerous other possibilities between that and the other end of the scale (malevolent purpose).

Characteristic (3), malicious intent: Was it Mr. Mukuka's "intent to bring the President into hatred, ridicule or contempt". Perhaps, but there appear to be mitigating factors in this respect. For instance, Mr. Mukuka was apparently under the influence of alcohol at the time.

Characteristic (4), reputational or other damage: Did Mr. Mukuka's in fact "bring the President into hatred, ridicule or contempt" and thereby damage his reputation or good standing? Recall that all of these damaging effects are with reference to that legal factotum, the "right-thinking" or "reasonable" person. Would any right-thinking, reasonable person's estimate of the President have been lowered if he had heard Mr. Mukuka's words on that Sunday evening? Or would he have instead, for example, dismissed them as the words of a man who had had a little too much to drink?

Evidently, there is a great deal for good lawyers to play with on both sides of this case.

It's also worth noting that, apart from the crude Bemba swearword, in many ways Mr. Mukuka's words are quite tame compared to the everyday rhetoric of Zambian politicians, including the incumbent President.

But all of that is beside the point.

The point is this: In a liberal, pluralistic democracy, leaders can and should expect to be subjected to constant scrutiny and criticism. This is not to lend support to gratuitous insults, but rather to recognise that a free society must tolerate, and indeed cultivate, dissenting opinions, some of which may be expressed in ways that certain people, perhaps even most people, will find unpalatable. And public persons, particularly leaders, should expect (if not necessarily enjoy) a lot of comments and opinions on their conduct and performance. This is the price society must pay for freedom and accountability--and progress. The alternative is ghastly and one that Zambians are well acquainted with from Zambia's comparatively short independent history: a leadership that becomes increasingly aloof and unaccountable and a people that become increasingly disenchanted and despondent.

Update (26 May 2010):

Apparently, the President has pardoned Darius Mukuka for his offence. This is highly commendable. However, the dodgy defamation law is still on the books. It should be scrapped.

Lords of Finance

I'm reading Lords of Finance by Liquat Ahamed. A beautifully written book about the fascinating times and events of 1929 onwards and the four fascinating men at the centre of them. It is also a profoundly disturbing book for the times, events and actions of the men are eerily reminiscent of those of 2007 onwards.

The first chapter is available online.

Mind the gap

"Sometimes there is a gap between theory and practice. The gap between theory and practice in theory is not as large as the gap between theory and practice in practice."
--Anonymous (via Jeff Case, author of SNMP)

A Royal 350

The Royal Society, the world's oldest scientific body, celebrates its 350th aniversary this year. This interactive timeline shows some of the seminal papers published in the Society's journals over the last 350 years, together with brief commentaries from relevant experts.

Do all the good you can

Do all the good you can,
By all the means you can,
In all the ways you can,
In all the places you can,
At all the times you can,
To all the people you can,
As long as ever you can.

--Attributed to John Wesley (Although there is apparently no evidence that he ever said it. However, he did use the first phrase, "Do all the good you can", in several of his writings.)

Hereditary conditioning

On page 35 of How to Win Over Worry (2009, Harvest House Publishers) by John Edmund Haggai:

A Democrat from the South asked a man living in Vermont, "Why are you a Republican?"

The Vermonter answered, "My father was a Republican, my grandfather was a Republican, and therefore, I am a Republican."

The Southerner said, "Suppose your father had been a fool and your grandfather had been a fool. Then what would you be?"

"Oh," the man replied, "in that case, I'd be a Democrat."

Phish and chips

Ross Anderson and his colleagues have successfully, if that be the right word, broken the EMV (Europay, MasterCard, and Visa) security protocol, popularly known as "Chip and PIN". This technology is widely used in Europe and other parts of the world, including South Africa, to secure bank cards. For more see:

• The blog entry
• The press release
• The FAQ
• The technical paper (to appear at the annual IEEE Symposium on Security and Privacy in May 2010)

Anderson's book is still the best available general text on the engineering issues around information and network security.

His unconquerable soul

Twenty years ago this month, a 71 year old man walked out of the gates of a prison in Cape Town, South Africa. He had been incarcerated for over 27 years. He walked slowly, much as you'd expect any man of his age to walk, let alone one who had just emerged from a lengthy jail term, a good deal of which included hard labour. His left hand clasped the right hand of his wife of 32 years. His right hand was clenched and held aloft in the famous African National Congress amandla ("power") salute. In some ways, the man who left the South African prison system that day was undeniably different from the man who had entered it: his advanced physical age being the most obvious way perhaps. But in one way he was unmistakably the same: unconquered, unbowed, unafraid.

These are the qualities extolled in Invictus (Latin for "unconquerable" or "invincible"), a poem by William Ernest Henley that provided much inspiration to Nelson Mandela and his fellow inmates during their imprisonment as Mandela confirms in this 2007 interview in Reader's Digest. Mandela has drunk deeply at the fountain of the world's great literature.

South Africa has been reflecting this month on the meaning and significance of Mandela's and the country's long walk to freedom. In Mandela's own assessment, recorded in the final words of his autobiography, that long walk was not the end, only the beginning; not an achievement, only an opportunity:

When I walked out of prison, that was my mission, to liberate the oppressed and the oppressor both. Some say that has now been achieved. But I know that that is not the case. The truth is that we are not yet free; we have merely achieved the freedom to be free, the right not to be oppressed. We have not taken the final step of our journey, but the first step on a longer and even more difficult road. For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others. The true test of our devotion to freedom is just beginning.

I have walked that long road to freedom. I have tried not to falter; I have made missteps along the way. But I have discovered the secret that after climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb. I have taken a moment here to rest, to steal a view of the glorious vista that surrounds me, to look back on the distance I have come. But I can rest only for a moment, for with freedom comes responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk is not yet ended.

The Arch Helix

An interesting paper was published in Nature this week presenting the first complete genome sequences of Khoisan and Bantu individuals. The four Khoisan individuals are !Gubi, G/aq’o, D#kgao and !Aı (the unusual spellings are due to the click sounds found in the Khoisan languages); the Bantu individual was one Desmond Mpilo Tutu, Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town, or The Arch as he's affectionately called in South Africa. Incidentally, his middle name Mpilo means "life" in Sesotho. Appropriate, wouldn't you say? This has got to be the most unusual cover story ever involving The Arch.

Enjoy:

Complete Khoisan and Bantu genomes from southern Africa, Nature, 463, 943-947 (18 February 2010)

Crouching Lion, Hidden Dragon

Interesting debate on The Economist website about Africa and China:

This house believes that China's growing involvement in Africa is to be welcomed.

From Z to A

Bharti Airtel has entered in exclusive negotiations with Zain to acquire Zain's African unit (previously known as Celtel). This is Bharti Airtel's third attempt to enter the African market, after two previous unsuccessful attempts to acquire MTN. The sale price is in the region of US$ 10.7 billion. MTC of Kuwait (the precursor of Zain) acquired Celtel for US$ 3.4 billion in 2005.

The lesson here is about works in Africa. Free markets work. Free hands work. Free minds work.

The Guild of Whores

Just in case you've ever wondered why Einstein described academia as the guild of whores (see p. 153 of Einstein: His Life and Universe by Walter Isaacson or this post), read these two pieces by Pallab Ghosh, a BBC science correspondent:

• Journal stem cell work 'blocked'
• The corruption of science?

The Importance of Being Honest: A Serious Triviality for Comedic People

"To lose one parent, Mr. Worthing, may be regarded as a misfortune; to lose both looks like carelessness."
--Oscar Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Comedy for Serious People

Another day, another scandal involving the IPCC's scientific claims.

Five of the Best

These are five of the best movies that I saw in 2009:

1. Up
   Pixar Animations Studios' The Incredibles is one of my all-time favourite movies (I even keep a small Mr. Incredible figurine on my desk). It's my favourite Pixar movie by quite some distance. I had concluded, with regret, that Pixar would never be able to equal, never mind exceed, what they had achieved in The Incredibles. Until Up came along. Up tops The Incredibles in all departments, but most notably in the emotional intensity and authenticity of the characters and the story. The Oscar for Best Animated Feature is in the bag. Again.
   
2. Disney's A Christmas Carol
   Jim Carrey can act. That's not something that comes out too strongly from his previous work. Oh, he can play the fool all right. He can face-pull, slap-stick and wise-crack with the best of 'em. But act, really act? No evidence of that whatsoever. But here, in Robert Zemeckis' version of Dicken's classic 1843 novel, Jim Carrey demonstrates that he is more than just a jester. The use of 3D in this movie is judicious, not gratuitous as in so many movies that have jumped on the 3D bandwagon.
   
3. The Hangover
   Sometimes a movie sneaks up on you and surprises you. The Hangover is one of those. I wasn't expecting it be as funny and as well made as it turned out to be. The script is an absolute zinger: witty, twisty (in a nice way) AND it has Mike Tyson in it (No, I'm not telling). It was a huge box office hit (much to the surprise of the people who made and funded it I'm sure). So that probably means a not-so-good sequel is about to go into production. A pity really because I think this film deserves to stand on its own as a modern comedy classic.
4. White Wedding
   The eyes of the world will be on South Africa this year because, as anyone who hasn't been comatose over the last 12 months knows, the world's biggest sporting event, the World Cup, will be hosted here. But what sort of a country is South Africa anyway--I mean beyond the usual, lazy headlines and cliches? This beautiful and funny little film provides as good a starting point as any for anyone who's interested in finding out. And that includes both those that are familiar with this unique country (or think they are) and those that aren't. Somewhere in the starting credits I saw the name Ken Follett and thought "Wait a minute, is this that Ken Follett?" And so it was. Turns out our Ken is the director's step-father. But anyway, this movie is definitely worth a watch and if there's any justice in this world it should get nominated for a Best Foreign Language Oscar this year.
   
5. The Great Debaters
   An odd choice because The Great Debaters came out in 2007, not last year. So what is it doing here? Well, since I'm discussing the best movies I saw in 2009 and I only saw this movie in late 2009 (thanks MS), it stays. Denzel Washington stars (in a supporting role) but the real stars of this movie are the scripting, the casting and Washington's own tender directing. A great film.
   
   

How to Read Wittgenstein

I'm reading (among other things) How to Read Wittgenstein (2005) by Ray Monk, author of Ludwig Wittgenstein: The Duty of Genius (1991). The Duty of Genius is still the best biography available on Wittgenstein. It is a fascinating and beautifully written account of the life of a fascinating man who, in Monk's words, "was by universal agreement one of the greatest and one of the most influential philosophers of the twentieth century." And yet, if you asked the proverbial man on the street what Wittgenstein's ideas are: (a) he probably wouldn't know who you're talking about; and, (b) if he did happen to know of or about Wittgenstein, he would probably be quite hazy on the substance of Wittgenstein's ideas. The Duty of Genius solves the first problem; How to Read Wittgenstein solves the second. To get a full and accurate picture of Wittgenstein, both books should be read together.

It is a surprising fact that Wittgenstein's published output during his lifetime consisted of just three works: one book review (1913), one book (1921), and one article (1929).

Monk has also written a two-volume biography of Bertrand Russell, Wittgenstein's philosophical "mentor". (The reason for using inverted commas around the word mentor should be readily apparent if you are acquainted with the facts of the relationship between Wittgenstein and Russell. If you're not, read this.) I found Monk's biography of Russell hugely disappointing. However, this may well be a consequence of (unfairly) comparing those two books with the brilliantly executed The Duty of Genius.

Monk is currently working on a biography of J. Robert Oppenheimer. It will be interesting to see how he fares with that task.

Mr Gates goes to Cyberton

Before last week, Bill Gates, the posterman (let's face it, at 54 he can hardly be a posterchild) of the PC revolution, had exactly one official personal website in the public domain: the Microsoft one. Last week, he added three more: Facebook, Twitter and the Gates Notes. The Gates Notes website is particularly revealing about what makes the world's richest man tick.

Some extras:

• BillG dancing last Saturday at a Sundance Film Festival party?!
• BillG on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
• BillG's Foundation's 2010 Annual Letter

Dangerous Non-science

"A half truth is a whole lie."
--Yiddish proverb

The anthropogenic climate change movement has been dealt some hard and potentially lethal blows recently. First, there was the Climategate scandal in November 2009. Then there was the much-hyped United Nations Climate Change Conference held in Copenhagen in December 2009. And now this: Glaciergate.

That the earth's climate undergoes changes at various times is undisputed. That certain of these changes are due to human activities is unproven. In spite of this, some African governments have swallowed the anthropogenic climate change agenda hook, line, sinker, fishing rod, fisherman and fisherman's boots. For example, this year (2010) the Zambian government has introduced an annual carbon emissions tax on all motor vehicles. This can only be detrimental to economic and social development.

Prerequisite to Prosperity in Africa

From Vol. 4, No. 1 (Winter 2009) of Innovations on the theme "Mobilizing Markets":

"Prerequisite to Prosperity: Why Africa's Future Depends on Better Governance" by Dr. Mo Ibrahim.

Extras:

• 2008 Time 100 Profile
• Two-part interview (1 and 2) with Karl Moore of McGill University (22 April 2009)
• Interview with Mark Milstein of Cornell University (27 April 2009)

Einstein: His Life and Universe

I recently finished reading Einstein: His Life and Universe (2007) by Walter Isaacson.

A superb book. Einstein's life and work, as we all know, is the stuff of popular myth and legend. But what was the real Einstein like?

Here's what struck or surprised me about the man behind the myths and the legends:

• His tenacity;
• His sense of humour;
• His childlike sense of wonder and curiosity;
• His unshakeable faith in the orderliness of the universe;
• His intellectual courage and boldness;
• His human frailties.
  

In 1909, some four years after his annus mirabilis, and after numerous failed attempts, Einstein finally got offered an academic position (at the University of Zurich). "So, now I too am an official member of the guild of whores,” he remarked.

100 Years of Drucker

Had he lived to this day, Peter F. Drucker would have turned 100 this week. A host of events have been organised worldwide to commemorate the Drucker centenary. There have been numerous tributes to Drucker from numerous sources: Havard Business Review put him on the cover of its November issue and asked "What would Peter do?"; The Economist pays him fulsome praise in it's latest Schumpeter column; The Wall Street Journal assesses his lasting legacy; Inc surveys some of his contributions from A to Z.

But the simplest, sincerest, most personal and most poignant tribute that I have come across is from one of Drucker's countless students, a man whose life was literally (and positively) transformed by his contact with Drucker. Drucker's deep humanity and wisdom shines through in this story. But I'll let Opoku Acheampong tell us the story for himself.

Alcoholics Synonymous

From Chapter 3 ("Reclaiming Your Creativity") of Creative Design of Products and Systems (John Wiley & Sons, 2009):

A man comes to a bar and orders three glasses of beer, sits alone, and drinks from the three glasses one sip at a time. the bartender goes to him and says: " Sir, why don't you order one glass at a time so that your beer will be cool and fresh?" The man says: "I have two brothers that are not here. We used to drink together all the time. I am doing this as if they were here, drinking with me." This goes on until a few weeks later, when the man comes in and orders only two glasses. The bartender later goes to him and says: "I am really sorry for the loss of one of your brothers. You must really miss him." The man replies: "Oh, no. They are fine. It is that I have just decided to quit drinking."

Who said engineering textbooks have to be boring?

The Clarke Orbit: When I'm 64

This month is the 64th anniversary exactly of the paper by Arthur C. Clarke that set out the principles of geostationary orbits and geostationary satellites. Extra-Terrestrial Relays was published in the October 1945 issue of Wireless World.

Dr Mo says No

Today we learnt of the not-too-surprising decision that the Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership will not be awarded this year. Apparently, this is due to a lack of worthy candidates for the prize.

A fine series by a Feynman

Fresh from the philanthropic bounty of Bill Gates comes a very fine series of seven lectures (the 1964 Messenger Lectures at Cornell University) on physics by Richard P. Feynman, that rarest of rare combinations, a great researcher who is also a great communicator. Mr. Gates bought the rights to this great series of lectures from the BBC in order to make them freely available to everyone online.

The whole scheme is called Project Tuva. Why Tuva? Well, that's another story altogether.

Enjoy and Be enlightened.

Aside: A thought, a palpable thought: you'll notice Feynman's distinctive New York accent (and, it has to be said, New York manner). The key to understanding Feynman is that he was a quintessential New Yorker.

A Most Wanted Man

Just finished reading:

A Most Wanted Man by John le Carre.

Review to follow.

Introducing Okonkwo

Okonkwo was well known throughout the nine villages and even beyond.

--The very simple, very memorable, first line of Chinua Achebe's 1958 literary masterpiece Things Fall Apart.

The problem of attribution or the problem of appropriation?

How India missed another Nobel Prize

(See The Dilemma of Attribution)

2009 Nobels

We now have the complete list of this year's Nobel laureates.

The biggest surprise by far was the award of the peace prize to Barack Obama "for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples". The nomination process for the Nobel peace prize is described here, but here's the relevant excerpt about the deadline for submission of nominations:

The Committee bases its assessment on nominations that must be postmarked no later than 1 February each year. Nominations postmarked and received after this date are included in the following year's discussions. In recent years, the Committee has received close to 200 different nominations for the Nobel Peace Prize. The number of nominating letters is much higher, as many are for the same candidates. [Emphasis added]

Barack Obama took the oath of office on 20 January 2009, 12 days before the submission deadline. The citation could not have possibly have been referring to these 12 days, which raised the question of what exactly Mr. Obama's nominators nominated him for.

The literature prize, again, went to an obscure writer nobody had heard of before last week.

The Is have it again

Institutional economists this time.

It: The 2009 Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel, popularly but inaccurately, known as the Nobel Prize in Economics.

All I can say is: the pendulum swings. The work being recognised is firmly rooted in the real world. Which is more than can be said for a lot of contemporary economics.

Diego Armando Maradona

The question of who is the greatest footballer of all time is one that has occupied, and will continue to occupy, the minds of football fans for many decades. Two players, from two different eras of the game, usually end up at the top of most people's lists as arguably the best in the history of football with apparently very little to choose between them: Pele and Maradona. And, indeed, a good case can be made for either man.

But for me personally (and the tautology is quite deliberate) Maradona, and not Pele, is the greatest player ever to have played the game of football. Why? Well, before I discuss what puts Maradona at the head of this two-man class, let me deal with the similarities between the two players. Both wore the number 10 jersey, which traditionally denotes the role of playmaker, and both were the finest exponents of the playmaker's art and science. Both were iconic talismen for club and country, frequently looked to produce moments of divinity--and neither man disappointed in that respect. Both had an unmistakable presence on the field and both were supremely gifted and accomplished footballing athletes. Both won major championships with (or in Maradona's for) their club and national teams. And both were universally acknowledged to be the greatest players of their respective generations.

So much for the similarities. Why do I unequivocally--and not arguably--put Maradona above Pele? In a word: passion. I do not know of any great (or good) footballer who has played the game with more passion, more heart, more drive, more determination, or more sheer will to win than Diego Armando Maradona. And in this department, Maradona is streets ahead of Pele.

That passion was on display again yesterday when Argentina (now managed by Maradona) sensationally won a crucial World Cup qualifier against Peru with a stoppage time goal from Martin Palermo, a 35-year-old player brought back (resurrected?) by Maradona after a 10 year absence from the national team. Enough said. Watch:

The Is have it

The "Is" are Inventors. And "it" is the 2009 Nobel Prize in Physics.

The inventions? Optical communication fibre and the charge-coupled device (CCD).

Here's the lowdown and the breakdown.

Update: There's an interesting little interview with one of the laureates, George E. Smith, on the Nobel Foundation website. It turns out that Dr. Smith and Dr. Willard S. Boyle, co-inventors of the CCD, and both of Bell Labs, worked out all the basic principles of CCDs in a single afternoon 40 years ago! Dr. Smith, it appears, has long believed in the virtues of going straight for the scientific jugular: his 1959 PhD thesis (University of Chicago) is just eight (yes, 8) pages long. It was subsequently published in the journal Physical Review in the same year. Einstein's 1905 doctoral thesis is just 24 pages long. It's here, see for yourself. There's a lesson in there somewhere.

And the Ig Nobel Prize goes to...

The 2009 Ig Nobel Prizes were awarded last week in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

The Mathematics prize went to Gideon Gono, Governor of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) since 1 December 2003 and author of a recent book entitled Zimbabwe’s Casino Economy: Extraordinary Measures for Extraordinary Challenges. (No, I didn't make that last bit up.)

The citation reads:

for giving people a simple, everyday way to cope with a wide range of numbers — from very small to very big — by having his bank print bank notes with denominations ranging from one cent ($.01) to one hundred trillion dollars ($100,000,000,000,000).

But leaving the surreal world for the real world for a moment, the 2009 Nobel Prizes will be announced this week.

The Second Coming of Stephen Hawking

From Discover magazine (July/August 2009 issue):

Stephen Hawking Is Making His Comeback

Mobile Assisted Development (MAD)

In the latest issue of The Economist:

A special report on telecoms in emerging markets

Terraforming the Earth

A recent report commissioned by the Royal Society acknowledged the possibility of counteracting the effects of climate change by means of geoengineering. The idea of terraforming in science fiction means the creation of environments capable of human habitation on otherwise humanly uninhabitable planets or other bodies beyond the earth. So if man has already dared to conceive of rendering extraterrestrial environments fit for human habitation, the business of making earth (re)habitable through the use of technology can't be that farfetched, can it?