Bronchology and the 20th anniversary of The Matrix posted on 2019-03-29
Twenty years ago this week the science fiction film The Matrix was released in the United States. This film directed by the Wachowskis brothers stars Keanu Reeves and Laurence Fishburne. The film grossed more than 460 million dollars worldwide. The Matrix describes a dystopian future in which the hero is a computer programmer named Thomas [Read More]
World Tuberculosis Day posted on 2019-03-25
Sunday, March 24 is World Tuberculosis Day. It is natural, therefore, that I devote one or two posts to this disease that continues to trouble humanity. Years ago, I served as the country TB officer in Portland, Oregon, and since then have participated in several antituberculosis campaigns by humanitarian organizations. My goal herein and in [Read More]
Challenges in East Africa: Abuse, AIDS, and Accidents posted on 2019-03-07
There is something magical about traveling through East Africa. Perhaps it is because the region is the cradle of Homo Sapiens (the oldest remains of which were discovered in Omo National Park in Ethiopia, and Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania). Perhaps it is because of the wildlife roaming throughout the Great Rift Valley, or scaling the [Read More]
Awareness, Action, and Achievement posted on 2019-02-18
James Baldwin (1924-1987) was an American novelist, playwright, and social activist. Perhaps one of the best writers of the 20th century, he gained international reputation for his essays and commentaries about civil rights, human equality, and social justice. Baldwin grew up in New York, but moved to Saint Paul de Vence in Southern France in [Read More]
Translations and a World Without Borders posted on 2019-02-06
Photo from:https://cyndimarshall.wordpress.com/2017/02/09/a-world-without-borders/ On January 31, 2019 Kurdish-Iranian journalist Behrouz Boochani, was awarded the prestigious Australian Victoria Prize for Literature for his book No Friend But the Mountains: writings from Manus prison (Picador, Australia https://www.panmacmillan.com.au/9781760555382/). As his translator, Omid Tofighian (Department of Philosophy, American University of Cairo and Egypt Department of Philosophy, The University of Sydney, [Read More]