Doris O'Brien is a retired college Speech teacher and banker. She has published two books of humor (Up or Down With Women's Liberation and Humor Me a Little) and for many years contributed light verse to the Pepper 'n Salt column of the Wall Street Journal. She is an avid writer of letters to the editors.
Doris celebrated her 50th wedding anniversary in the same year she welcomed her first grandchild. She now lives in Pasadena with a great view of the San Gabriel mountains — and the annual Tournament of Roses Parade.
She can be reached by e-mail: witsendob at (@) gmail.com
A Handel Scholar Discovers New Cantata by a Baroque Master
"It took only a few minutes," John Roberts said of his inspection of a digital version of the document. "In fact, I realized almost immediately that I was dealing with a genuine alternative setting of an earlier text. I recognized musical ideas found in other Handel pieces while at the same time knowing that I hadn't seen these particular arias before. more »
Zika: A Chance to Expand Reproductive Rights?
As scientists look for definitive proof of a link between Zika and serious birth defects, governments in countries like Brazil and Colombia have offered this piece of advice to their citizens: Don't get pregnant. That guidance, says Wendy Chavkin, professor emerita in Population and Family Health, is as about as helpful as Marie Antoinette's infamous "Let them eat cake." more »
The Cambridgeshire Priest Returns in Grantchester, Season Two: Reverend Sidney Chambers and Inspector Geordie Keating Bring Justice and Spiritual Nourishment to Early 1950s England
Editor's Note: Now that the curtain is being drawn on the Downton Abbey saga we have to quickly turn to the resumption of Grantchester, Season Two, and the handsome priest, Sidney Chambers. We found ourselves disarmed by actor James Norton as Sidney and admit we were previously drawn to Robson Green, playing Inspector Geordie Keating. Green was seen in the series, Wire in the Blood, so the combination of the two actors makes Grantchester even more appealing. There is a dark note to the first episode, but a second season must, by all accounts, startle on some level. more »
The Airplane Bathroom That Cleans Itself; A Toilet Seat That Lifts Itself
After watching a steady parade of people emerge from the lavatory on an extended commercial flight, many passengers are reluctant to expose themselves to the germs left behind.
But what if the lavatory could clean itself after every use? Boeing engineers and designers have built a prototype lavatory that uses ultraviolet (UV) light to kill 99.99 percent of pathogens, thus sanitizing all the lavatory surfaces. Combined with touchless faucets, soap dispensers and more, the lavatory of the future could make for a more hygienic, less worrisome experience. more »
