tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8573136768377847579.post1009945935437415563..comments2023-12-28T17:51:10.368-06:00Comments on Spiral Galaxy Musings: Brasyl, by Ian McDonaldKaren Burnhamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16803309172414793939noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8573136768377847579.post-37001733804997404302008-07-12T10:01:00.000-05:002008-07-12T10:01:00.000-05:00Ian - thanks for reading! I'm glad you liked the r...Ian - thanks for reading! I'm glad you liked the review - I certainly liked your book. Thanks for the background on Falcon. I felt like there was something there I was missing. <BR/><BR/>Those old scientific expeditions were really something, weren't they? Have you ever read <I>The Worst Journey in the World</I>? It's about Robert Scott's South Pole expedition. The author describes an incredibly perilous journey made to collect penguin eggs mid-winter. Then he publishes the entirety of the scientific article that made use of their hard-won artefacts. 1 page. It's hilarious and depressing at the same time.Karen Burnhamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16803309172414793939noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8573136768377847579.post-26047437799823559972008-07-12T04:12:00.000-05:002008-07-12T04:12:00.000-05:00Thanks for the great review! I don't usually comme...Thanks for the great review! I don't usually comment --it's kind of bad taste, but I do have a little evidence to offer on the subject of looms. Jaen-Baptiste Falcon (who lived in Lyon) did indeed invent a prototype card-punch progammable loom in 1728: if your French is good, here's a wiki about him: http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Baptiste_Falcon. His brother, however, is totally fictitious. His mission isn't, nor was the La Condamine expedition to which he refers, which can be read about it all it's glory and horror in the excellent 'The Mapmaker's Daughter' by Robert Whittaker. One of the joys of writing Brasyl was how much of it was pure documentary. Hope you don't mind me commenting: thanks again.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com