forgedtruth

The Days of Christmas (Part Three- The Hens)

Three French hens. I got myself into a bit of a quandary over this. When you say French hens, do you mean Faverolles chickens, a breed originating in north-central France, in the vicinity of the village called Faverolle? These are wide-spread and can be picked up for a few pounds at any livestock market. OrContinue reading “The Days of Christmas (Part Three- The Hens)”

The Days of Christmas (Part Two of 12 epic parts)

Two turtle doves? Now I confess I’m not such a keen ornithologist. A turtle dove could be so-named for its vestigial shell for all I know. Research is required and, fortunately for me, BT has relented and provided some much needed bandwidth. Turtle doves are of the Columbidae family, much loved of poets who thinkContinue reading “The Days of Christmas (Part Two of 12 epic parts)”

The Days of Christmas (an adventure in 12 parts)

Departing from the usual blog posts, I have been racking my brain hard, trying to figure out what to buy this Christmas. A grand gesture was – and is – required, you see. Finally, after rather too much eggnog and an evening in front of the TV watching the Disney version of Christmas Carol, IContinue reading “The Days of Christmas (an adventure in 12 parts)”

Something Odd I Learned About DNA

Researching the book, I learned something new about DNA modification. Even the simplest bacteria can do it. All this time, we thought it was hard. There is a soil bacteria called Agrobacterium Tumefaciens, which sounds like a Greek playwright, but which has in fact been performing genetic modification of food for millions of years. WhatContinue reading “Something Odd I Learned About DNA”

The Mysteries of Learning Two Languages

Here’s an odd thing I learnt the other day about language. If you teach a young child two languages at the same time, they learn them both as fast as any other child learns one. I wouldn’t have believed this, but I have several bi-lingual work colleagues with young kids and it’s true. TheirContinue reading “The Mysteries of Learning Two Languages”