table of contents - southern ct mensascm66.org/nl/mensa echron 2017_12.pdfthis month we meet at...
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Table of Contents
Welcome New Members ............................................................................................... 1
SCM Chapter Events–December 2017 ......................................................................... 2
2017–2018 Chapter Business Meetings ...................................................................... 2
CT & Western MA Mensa Chapter–Upcoming Events ............................................... 3
Region 1 RVC Roundup ................................................................................................ 5
News from the Chapter President ................................................................................ 6
SC Mensa Fiscal Year Report - 4/1/2017 - 3/31/2018 ................................................. 7
The September Monthly Dinner ................................................................................... 8
Letter to the Editor ...................................................................................................... 10
Puzzles & Questions ................................................................................................... 11
Answers to Some of the November Chronicle Questions ....................................... 11
Word Check ................................................................................................................. 13
Noted & Quoted ........................................................................................................... 15
Announcements & Notices ......................................................................................... 17
SCM Chronicle - Advertising Rates ........................................................................... 20
Mensa Chapter #066 - Officers 2017-2018 ................................................................. 21
Welcome New Members
Benjamin Hoffstein, New Canaan
Parth Jain, Trumbull
Sarah Kish, Norwalk
Nathan Milne, Weston
Sean Mulrenan, Darien
Thomas Murphy, Redding
Ching Pan, Riverside
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SCM Chapter Events–December 2017 Saturday, December 2, 6:00 pm County Border Holiday Dinner. At the new Osaka Hibachi Buffet, 955 Ferry Blvd., Stratford, CT, in the Dock Shopping Plaza, next to BJs. Near the Milford line and the bridge leading to Post Rd., Devon/Milford. Buffet choices include Japanese, Chinese, and American Food. RSVP to Jim Mizera at [email protected] or text or call (203) 522-1959. Tuesday, December 5, 6:00 pm Post Road Dining and Discussion Silver Star Diner, 210 Connecticut Ave. (Post Rd.), Norwalk, CT (http://www.silverstarct.com/). Come talk about books (non-technical) you have read recently. RSVP to Jim Mizera at [email protected] or text or call (203) 522-1959. Thursday, December 14, 7:00 pm Southern Connecticut and Connecticut/Western Massachusetts Joint Dinner John's Best Pizza, ShopRite Plaza, Federal Road, Brookfield, CT Merrill will be taking over from Fr. Bill and Diane, as they have retired down to Florida. Join us for an evening of conversation and Italian food. Please RSVP in advance so we know how big a table to get. Contact Merrill at [email protected] for more details and to RSVP. Thursday, December 21, 7:00 pm Southern Connecticut Mensa Board Meeting - Teleconference Contact Joan Coprio at [email protected] for the call-in number or to add something to the agenda.
2017–2018 Chapter Business Meetings January 18 – In Person February 15 – Teleconference March 15 – Teleconference April 19 – In Person May 17 – Teleconference June 21 – Teleconference July 19 – In Person August 16 – Teleconference September 20 – Teleconference October 18 – In Person November 15 – Teleconference December 20 – Teleconference
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CT & Western MA Mensa Chapter–Upcoming Events This is not a complete listing. Details regarding these and other C&WM events can be found at: http://www.cwm.us.mensa.org/members/member-page.htm (Mensa ID and Password required). You can also check out their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/groups/123261321217597/. Friday, December 1, 5:30 pm First Friday Happy Hour and Dinner (Wallingford) Michael’s Trattoria, 344 Center St., Wallingford, (203) 269-5303. Contact Ann: cell (8__) 817-9910. Saturday, December 2, 10:00 am Breakfast (Springfield Area) Casa Café, 520 N Main St., East Longmeadow, MA. Directions: From I-91 (25 minutes from Northampton) take Exit 2 (MA 83 South). Go left at the light at the top of the hill, right at the next light onto Sumner, and then take a slight right onto Main St (Rt. 83.) RSVP to: (8__) 810-7370 (voice or text). Sunday, December 10, 12:00 pm Indian Buffet Lunch (Middletown) Haveli India Restaurant, 1300 South Main St., Rte 17, South Middletown. The food is enticing, the staff is friendly, and the company is the best to be had anywhere! Join us at Haveli India Restaurant for an all-you-can-eat $9.95 buffet. New members are particularly welcome at this event. To read about the restaurant or to get directions, please see http://www.haveliindia.com/. RSVP required. Call Barb for a reservation: (8__) 632-7873 or email Barbmft1 gmail.com Saturday, December 16, 12:30 pm Book Club (East Longmeadow, MA) This month we meet at Michelle Bennett’s to discuss Andy Warhol Was a Hoarder: Inside the Minds of History’s Great Personalities, by Claudia Kalb. Amazon gives the following review of this intriguing book: “Was Andy Warhol a hoarder? Did Einstein have autism? Was Frank Lloyd Wright a narcissist? In this surprising, inventive, and meticulously researched look at the evolution of mental health, acclaimed health and science journalist Claudia Kalb gives readers a glimpse into the lives of high-profile historic figures through the lens of modern psychology, weaving groundbreaking research into biographical narratives that are deeply embedded in our culture.” RSVP to Michelle at bennettcpa at aol.com Sunday, December 17, 2–8 pm Annual CT & Western Massachusetts Mensa Holiday Party The festivities at the Old Country Banquets include unlimited food, drink, and merriment, all for $5 per member and $10 per guest. Food selections are appetizers, three entrées (buffet style), sides, salad, and a chocolate fountain. A special ceremony will honor our gold and silver members. A registration form is in the CTWM Media newsletter, page 10. $5.00 Members/$10.00 Guests. Limit 90 persons. Must reserve by December 7.. For more information, please contact George Waller, george.a.waller at gmail.com.
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Thursday, December 21, 6:30 pm Pioneer Valley Dinner (Northampton, MA) The final Pioneer Valley Third Thursday Social Dinner for 2017 will end the year well in the private dining room at Pizzeria Paradiso, 12 Crafts Avenue in the heart of downtown Northampton, Mass. Pizzeria Paradiso offers a full Italian menu, but is best known for its wood-fired brick oven pizza. Arrive early and get half-price appetizers until 6:00, along with homemade sangria or a fresh draft beer at the bar. Plentiful and inexpensive parking is available in the nearby parking garage. Email Ian (mensanian at ianfraser.net) for more information, directions, or to RSVP (very much appreciated but not required). New members and guests are encouraged to attend this always friendly and interesting event. We hope to see you there! Friday, December 22, 5:00 pm Fourth Friday Happy Hour (Hamden) The Playwright Irish Pub, http://www.playwrightirishpub.com Contact Ann cell (8__) 817-9910. Monday, January 1, 12:30–4:00 pm New Year’s Day, New Year’s Pizza at the Aldermans’ (Colchester) This is the fourth party at our new house and the twenty-ninth in this series. Bring a side dish to share for lunch. Dory will be making pizza, gluten free by request. Please call (8__) 537-6325 by the Thursday before for menu coordination. We prefer not to have shoes in the house, so bring slippers or house socks.
Two Ways to Reach Out to Your Fellow SC Mensans
The Southern Connecticut Mensa Blog https://scm66.wordpress.com/ and the Southern Connecticut Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/groups/SCM066/ If you would like to post any last-minute events or information on the blog, email Merrill at [email protected]. Anything posted on the blog will be mirrored on the Facebook page unless otherwise requested. If you hit the Follow button on the blog and add your email address, you will be automatically notified of all new updates.
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Region 1 RVC Roundup
The big news this month comes from the national office: American Mensa’s Executive Director, Pam Donahoo, announced her impending retirement from the society. After nearly 20 years on the job, she is leaving us in mid-November for a new challenge. Per our contingency plans, her assistant, Trevor Mitchell, will assume the duties of acting Executive Director. Trevor has been with Mensa for several years, knows the organization, and has the continuing support of all the very capable staff, who will be staying on. The AMC has appointed a transition committee to investigate our best next step, and that committee will be reporting to us at our December meeting. Continuing a theme I mentioned last month, communication is key. I was recently discussing a local group’s plans for the future with several members of that group’s Board of Directors. It seemed that they were diametrically opposed in their views of what they ought to be doing. It was only after several long conversations that I was able to tease out the reasons for their differences: it wasn’t obstinacy on either side. The issue was that each was reasoning from a different foundation of facts. And those facts weren’t in conflict; it’s just that neither side was looking at the whole picture. In short, when you find yourself in conflict with another member or another group of members, don’t assume it’s an unsolvable argument. Try to explain why your view is what it is, and get the other side to do the same. You may find that you’re both working with different parts of the same picture. And once you know each others’ assumptions, then you can combine your efforts for the good of Mensa and your local group. And on to good stuff: I’ve just returned from Boston Mensa’s Wicked Good Regional Gathering. Just about as many people there as last year, some excellent program items, lots of good people and conversations, some fun events (costume contest, trivia competition, puzzles, creative activities), a wonderful environment to bring the whole family… you start to get the idea that this is a wonderful RG, and it lived up to what I’ve come to expect from Boston Mensa. At my RVC session at the RG, I had a request from a member that I ought to share with all of you. Bob Smith of Connecticut and Western Massachusetts Mensa commented that Region 1 used to be home to several other Regional Gatherings that have fallen by the wayside. He suggested that perhaps several local groups might pool their volunteers to form a truly regional RG (as opposed to each local group needing to fully staff an RG). If you or your group has any interest in participating in such an undertaking, let me know, and I’ll connect you all to see if something can be done. I’ve urged you before to read the newsletters from nearby local groups, to see if they’re hosting activities in which you’ll want to participate. Similarly (and this is especially for you editors in Region 1), do feel free to accept calendar entries from Mensa members outside your local group. Those additional events in your calendar can only add to the appeal of Mensa for your members, and it costs you nothing to have a calendar that will be that much more full. And remember, you can always access all of American Mensa’s local groups’ newsletters on the Mensa web site (from the main us.mensa.org web site, pull down the “Read” tab and click on “Local Group newsletters”), so you can check out other groups’ calendars of events to expand your own Mensa horizons. Keep up to date with the latest goings on in the region in Region 1’s Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/188180494045/.
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The upcoming Region 1 Regional Gathering is New Hampshire Mensa’s Silly Walks to the End of the Universe in Portsmouth, New Hampshire (February 16–18, 2018): see http://www.nh.us.mensa.org/rgnews.php/ or https://www.facebook.com/groups/92543464390/. Ian Randal Strock (917) 755-6935 [email protected]
News from the Chapter President
Southern CT Mensans, We’re in the final month of 2017! To quote the Grateful Dead, “What a long, strange trip it’s been.” For me personally, as a few of you know, two weeks into the year I started having some symptoms that turned out to be a serious but treatable (and even curable) illness. I spent the first half of the year in treatment. One of the things I was looking forward to when I (hopefully) successfully concluded my treatment was our Southern Connecticut Mensa picnic. That happened, as did attending the Albany RG and visiting my daughter during her semester abroad in Valencia, Spain, which I got to speak about at our most recent chapter dinner. I’m writing this column during Thanksgiving weekend, and believe me, I have a lot to be thankful for! Speaking of things to be thankful for, I’m very grateful for the ideas and effort our volunteers and members put into our chapter. Many thanks to Merrill and Erin for our monthly newsletter (and Merrill for our social media platforms), Jim for our monthly dinners, Elizabeth for keeping our books, Frank for our draft revisions to our by-laws, Darcy for our scholarship participation, Tom for the website reboot, Deb for testing and bringing in new members, and Bruce for the coffees and being our new Membership Chair and SIGHT coordinator. I’m also very grateful for you, our members, who read the newsletter, posts on our blog and Facebook group, and attend and speak at dinners and coffees and picnics. We have a diverse group with amazing breadth of talents and interests. And, whatever you might celebrate in December, have a happy and merry! Joan Coprio President, Southern CT Mensa
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SC Mensa Fiscal Year Report - 4/1/2017 - 3/31/2018
Opening treasury balance at 4/1/2017 $ 13,003.72
INFLOWS
American Mensa Member support:
Current members @ $0.85 (Mar = 319) 271.15
Current members @ $0.85 (Apr = 265) 225.25
Current members @ $0.85 (May = 270) 229.50
Current members @ $0.85 (June = 275) 233.75
Current members @ $0.85 (July = 283) 240.55
Current members @ $0.85 (Aug = 285) 242.25
New members @ $1 10.00
Reinstated members @$1 each 10.00
Testing Rate @$15 165.00
Testing Stipend @$25 50.00
TOTAL INFLOWS $ 1,677.45
OUTFLOWS
Chronicle postage 493.96
Chronicle printing/supplies 447.12
Microsoft Office monthly fee 41.97
Speakers, dinners 375.39
Speakers, donation 50.00
Entertainment: picnic 542.97
Testing Expenses 364.20
TOTAL OUTFLOWS $ 2,315.61
2nd Qtr Treasury Balance at 9/30/2017 $ 12,365.56
o/s checks: #1233 $ 82.63
2nd Qtr Bank Balance at 9/30/2017 $ 12,448.19
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The September Monthly Dinner Looking at Renaissance Paintings Southern Connecticut Mensa has had speakers talk about their artwork at some of our monthly dinners, but we have never had anyone speak about art history before. So it was a pleasure at our September dinner to hear about the most important era in art history, the Renaissance, from Dr. Francis DeStefano, a retired professor of history who writes on art. His talk “How to Look at a Renaissance Painting” focused on three great painters of the Italian Renaissance in Venice and gave us insights on how to get the most out of the masterpieces of that era. Dr. DeStefano lectures on history and art history locally and teaches a course on appreciating Renaissance art in the Lifelong Learner program for seniors. He is also involved in the Fairfield Senior Center’s Foreign Film Festival and its chess program. He jokingly told us, “We play on all levels of mediocrity.” Francis has toured Italy several times and frequently visits the great art museums stateside, including his favorite, the Frick Museum in New York City. The Venetian Renaissance, particularly the work of Giorgione, is his key area of interest. Why the Italian Renaissance? Dr. DeStefano began with the question, “Why did art begin to flower in Italy and Europe in the late 1300s?” Italian cities, he noted, had the advantage of the remnants of classical Roman and Greek art still standing; but there were more important geographic and commercial reasons that Italy led the way. The Crusades established contacts with the Middle East and weakened the Byzantine Empire. In these wars and their aftermath, western Europe recovered lost classic Greek writings, Italy received many Byzantine scholars who fled Ottoman invasions, and several Italian city-states with good locations on land or sea trade routes became centers not only of trade but also of cultural flow between east and west. As a port city on the Adriatic Sea with a powerful military, Dr. DeStefano told us, Venice controlled trade routes with the Far East, and its central location enabled it to prosper by trading with western Europe, the Byzantine Empire, and the Middle East. This new wealth created a rising class of merchants and bankers and a market for art. The merchants took power in the Italian city-states as “doges” (dukes), and they adopted medieval aristocratic values, including a refined civic pride and taste for culture. They became new patrons of the arts, seeking prestige for themselves and their cities. Renaissance Perspectives How did Renaissance painting differ from medieval painting and what techniques should we notice in it? As Dr. Destefano explained, Renaissance painters created more realistic scenery and figures by introducing geometric and perceptual principles into their artwork. Their use of linear perspective, changes in color, and more accurate proportions in anatomy created more natural views of distance, depth, light, and form, giving a three-dimensional appearance to their two-dimensional surfaces.
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“Painters of the Renaissance wanted you to see their art as if you were looking through a window,” Dr. Destefano explained. “They drew distant objects smaller so they would look further away and closer objects larger so they would stand out in the foreground.” To gain the perspective to size and align their figures they drew horizontal lines to divide their canvas into sections and then selected a “vanishing” or “horizon point” on the canvas, usually near the center. From this point, they drew lines radiating outward. Dr. DeStefano likened these rays to “parallel railroad tracks that seem to converge as they recede in the far distance.” Renaissance painters also conveyed distance by gradations in color, using fainter or blurrier shades for background objects. They paid special attention to lighting, capturing not only contrasts, shades, and shadows in a scene but also subtle differences in how light fell on different persons and objects. In depicting human figures, Dr. DeStefano said, “Renaissance painters and sculptors harkened back to classical work and sought to portray the ideal human form.” To do so, they studied human anatomy and measured proportions; but they also tried to capture the spirit of their subjects. As Dr. DeStefano stressed, “Renaissance artistic works were emotional and connected thinking with feeling. . . . Painters even captured changing and mixed emotions in dramatic situations.” The Work of Three Great Artists The goal of DeStefano’s lecture was to “look at some of the most famous and mysterious paintings of the Renaissance and see them as the artists and their patrons might have seen them.” He focused on three great Venetian masters: Giovanni Bellini (1430–1516), Giorgione (c. 1477–1510), and Titian (1490–1576). Although they are not as familiar to the general public as Michelangelo, Rembrandt, and Leonardo daVinci, he said, many scholars rank them with that famous trio. Dr. DeStefano concentrated mostly on a single painting by each of the artists and asked us what we noticed. "In Renaissance paintings,” he emphasized, “every detail is there for a reason. Unlike a photo, they have a narrative, and the way a picture is read is almost like a book—from back to front but left to right.” He began with Bellini’s St. Francis Assisi in the Desert (1475), a painting now in the Ford Frick Museum. He elicited from us the many fine points—a city in the background, a tree bending, shepherds and their flock, an onager (wild ass of the desert), stigmata on St. Francis’s hands. There were lots of details in the foreground as well—a Bible, a jug behind St. Francis, a rabbit in a rock (which Dr. DeStefano likened to the baby Moses hidden in a rock), a small wooden structure behind St. Francis, and a little note in his pocket. Our speaker opined that many art critics and historians miss the meaning of symbols in Renaissance painting because they overlook some history, culture of the period, or details of Biblical stories. Drawing on his historical knowledge, he shared his interpretations of symbols in Bellini’s painting of St. Francis. In the landscape, he said, “The onager and the heron, a bird of the Nile delta region, indicate that it is the Egyptian desert. The leaning tree”, he added, “is a laurel. People in the Renaissance thought it was immune to fire, like the burning bush in which God appeared to Moses.” The shepherd with his flock, he went on, is just what Moses was before his first meeting with God. The wooden structure is like the booth or tabernacles that the Israelites set up in the desert. Pointing to a few other facets of Moses’s life and Franciscan history in the painting, Dr. DeStefano concluded that the painting is a statement of the Franciscan’s mission to lead people out of sin.
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Proceeding in the same manner, Dr. DeStefano examined with us the characters, scene, and symbols in Giorgionne’s The Tempest (1508–1510) and The Three Ages of Man (c. 500–1501), and Titian’s Sacred and Profane Love. Probing the pictures, he delved into Renaissance and biblical history to challenge some of the interpretations of these paintings.
*** Dr. DeStefano speaks at local libraries on art and cultural topics, so check the events calendar in your local paper for his talks. He also writes about Italian Renaissance art on his blog “Giorgione Et Al” at http://giorgionetempesta.blogspot.com/ and he welcomes visitors and their comments.
Letter to the Editor To the Editor: Our chapter, Southern Connecticut Mensa, is contiguous with Fairfield County. The population is about 944,000—and 2% of that is over 18,000 people. That's a lot of potential members.
Many local libraries have book and magazine sharing boxes. These are sometimes in the local branch, and sometimes at the beach, or the lake. If you can spare a back issue of the Mensa Bulletin, cut out or tear off your mailing address for privacy. Then leave the magazine at one of these places.
In the past, I saved all my copies of the Bulletin. But now with the Internet, I can read back issues easily. I hope this sharing gets other people interested in joining. And if you already go regularly to the park or the library, you don't even have to make a special trip. Also, the free Mensa Weekly Brainwave newsletter comes by email every Tuesday. It is a notable benefit of Mensa membership. Always clear, concise and thought-provoking science and psychology articles of particular interest to M's. You can subscribe and peruse past issues at tinyurl.com/brainwave333. Sincerely, Bruce Miller Greenwich, Conn.
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Puzzles & Questions (Answers may be in next month’s Chronicle newsletter) 1. Why is brainstorming ineffective at generating ideas? 2. In Jules Verne’s novel 20,000 Leagues Beneath the Sea, how far down did the submarine go? 3. What have been the 10 most important events in the Middle East since World War II ended? 4. What is the next letter in this alpha-numeric sequence: j, a, l, a, b, v, e, r, r, l, … ? 5. Is fluoridating water supplies good or bad for dental health? For general health? 6. How long is I-95 in Connecticut? How long is the Connecticut coastline? 7. How many modern inventors come up with inventions in different or diverse fields? 8. What do these biblical words taken from Hebrew mean? a) Amen; b) Hallelujah; c) Hosanna 9. How often do secession movements succeed? 10. How many spheroids in our solar system does the International Astronomical Union currently
recognize as “dwarf planets?” 11. How does having the director of a film also play a leading role in the cast affect the quality of a
film? 12. How can an NFL football team win a game 1–0?
Answers to Some of the November Chronicle Questions 2. Which planet in our solar system has the shortest day? A: Jupiter has the shortest day, approximately 9:55:5 hours. Venus has the longest day,
5,832 hours. 4. How many people sailed on the Pilgrim’s Mayflower voyage to America? A: 102 people sailed on the Mayflower leaving England in September, 1620. Only 41 of
them were Pilgrims. 18 were indentured servants and the rest were other Englishmen, mostly Anglicans. They landed at Plymouth Rock in November, 1620, but 51 of the 102 settlers died before the first winter ended. They did not celebrate the first Thanksgiving until November 29, 1623, a day which Governor Bradford officially proclaimed for that purpose.
6. How long did it take Michelangelo to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel? A: About four years.
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8. What is the next number in this sequence: 1783, 1787, 1811, 1831, 1871, 1873, 1877, 1901, 1907, 1949, 2003, …?
A: This sequence is the numbers starting with 1776 that are prime numbers and whose digits sum to a prime number. (1 + 7 + 8 + 3 = 19, 1 + 7 + 8 + 7 = 23, …) 2027 is the next number in the sequence because it is the first prime number after 2003 whose digits add up to a prime (2 + 0 + 2 + 7 = 11.) After that, 2029 is the next such number (2 + 0 + 2 + 9 = 13).
10. A) What are the 5 countries that China imports the most from?
B) What are the 5 countries China exports the most to? C) What are the five nations that invest the most in China? A): According to the World Bank, the countries that China imported the most from in 2016 were: 1) South Korea, $159 billion (10% of imports); 2) Japan, $146 billion (9%); 3) United States, $135 billion (8.5%); 4) Germany, $86 billion (5%); and 5) Australia, $71 billion (4.5%). B) China’s biggest export markets in 2016 were 1) United States, $386 billion (18% of total Chinese exports); 2) Hong Kong, $287 billion (14%); 3) Japan, $129 billion (6%); 4) South Korea, $93 billion (4%); and 5) Germany, $65 billion (3.1%). C) China’s Ministry of Commerce listed Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, and the U.S. as the largest investors in China for 2013.
12. Which NFL teams had the biggest difference between their offensive yards gained per play
and their defensive yards given up per play in 2016? A: The Atlanta Falcons, who won the NFC and made it to the Super Bowl, had the biggest
yardage per play spread: +1.1 yards. They gained an average of 6.7 yards per play and only gave up 5.6 yards per play on defense. The Washington Redskins, Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, Seattle Seahawks, and Arizona Cardinals tied for second with + .6 yard differentials. The San Francisco 49ers had the worst spread: -1.0.
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Word Check If trains, why not planes? Last month’s word check column had words dealing with trains. This month a Stamford Mensa member sent in aviation words. See if you know their meaning. 1. carb heat – 2. CG – 3. elevator – 4. gear – 5. hanger – 6. horizontal stabilizer – 7. N number – 8. rudder – 9. six pack – 10. stabilator – 11. static port – 12. vertical stabilizer –
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Answers: 1. carb heat – a system that changes the source of air to the carburetor from cool outside air to
warm air inside the engine compartment. 2. CG – fore and aft center of gravity of the aircraft. 3. elevator – a movable panel attached to the horizontal stabilizer, controlled by the yoke. 4. gear – the main wheels and their mounting components. 5. hanger – something you put your clothes on in a closet (the one you put your airplane in is a
hangar). 6. horizontal stabilizer – fixed horizontal plane on the tail. 7. N number – the identifying number painted on the aircraft. 8. rudder – moveable panel attached to the vertical stabilizer, controlled by foot pedals. 9. six pack –cluster of six instruments basic to most propeller aircraft. 10, stabilator – a design where the functions of elevator and horizontal stabilizer are combined into
one movable unit, the entire horizontal plane moves by the yoke, there is no separate elevator panel in the horizontal stabilizer.
11. static port – a small hole in the airplane with a hose attached internally to provide atmospheric
reference to certain instruments in the six pack. 12. vertical stabilizer – the fixed fin that protrudes vertically up from the tail cone.
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Noted & Quoted Why then the world's mine oyster, / Which I with sword will open. - William Shakespeare, The Merry Wives of Windsor, Act 2, scene 2 The world is one's lobster. - George Cole (1925–2015), British actor If we wish to know the force of human genius we should read Shakespeare. If we wish to see the insignificance of human learning we may study his commentators. - William Hazlitt (1778–1830), English critic The least touchable object in the world is the eye. - Rudolf Arnheim (1904–2007), German-American psychologist Through our own recovered innocence we discern the innocence of our neighbors. - Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862) Man must rise above the Earth—to the top of the atmosphere and beyond - for only thus will he fully understand the world in which he lives. - Socrates (469–399 B.C.E.) Aeronautics was neither an industry nor a science. It was a miracle. - Igor Sikorsky (1889–1972), Russian-American aviation inventor To most people, the sky is the limit. To those who love aviation, the sky is home. - Anonymous If people do not believe that mathematics is simple, it is only because they do not realize how complicated life is. - John von Neumann (1903–1957), Hungarian-American mathematician Strategy is better than strength. - Hausa (Niger & Nigerian tribe) Proverb It's easier to be original and foolish than original and wise. - Gottfried Leibniz (1646–1716), German philosopher Inside us there is something that has no name, that something is what we are. - José de Sousa Saramago (1922–2010), Portuguese novelist Songs are as sad as the listener. - Jonathan Safran Foer, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (2005) Tea began as a medicine and grew into a beverage. - Okakura Kakuzo (1862–1913), Japanese cultural historian An electron is real; a probability is not. - Hans Christian von Baeyer, Information: The New Language of Science (2003)
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Divide responsibility and nobody is responsible. - W. Edwards Deming (1900–1992), U.S. statistician Literature in its most comprehensive sense is the autobiography of humanity. - Bernard Berenson (1865–1959), U.S. art critic It is the business of the artist to make humanity aware of itself. - Ezra Pound (1885–1972), U.S. poet There is October in every November and there is November in every December! All seasons melted in each other’s life! - Mehmet Murat ildan (1965–), Turkish poet Spring, summer, and fall fill us with hope; winter alone reminds us of the human condition. - Mignon McLaughlin, The Second Neurotic’s Notebook (1966) How did it get so late so soon? - Theodor Seuss Geisell (1904–1991), U.S. cartoonist Are these the shadows of the things that will be, or are they shadows of things that may be, only? - Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol (1843) I heard the bells on Christmas Day, / Their old, familiar carols play, / And wild and sweet, / The words repeat / Of peace on earth, good-will to men! - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, “Christmas Bells” (1863)
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Announcements & Notices
The Curious Guide to Things That Aren’t, by John D. Fixx and James F. Fixx, illustrated by Abby Carter The Curious Guide to Things That Aren't features thoughtful riddles—one for each letter of the alphabet—paired with engaging illustrations that reveal and explain the answer. Each spread features a riddle with several clues about an intangible item, such as air, breath, or jokes. Kids then have to figure out the answers through detective work and a little creative reasoning. The clues on each page progress from challenging, more abstract clues to a simple, final clue that encourages the reader to turn the page to discover the answer. The book covers a broad range of themes, including science, language, social studies, math, music, and art. The Curious Guide to Things That Aren't teaches creative thinking through deductive reasoning, listening skills, and imagination. https://www.amazon.com/Curious-Guide-Things-That-Arent/dp/1633221768 Games for the Superintelligent Those who thrill to a mind-bending challenge have met their match in this one-of-a-kind collection. Readers can match wits with an elite class of master problem-solvers in a wide variety of math, logic, and word games. These games are inspired by members of MENSA, the organization made up of people with an I.Q. of 140 or more. Puzzle addict James Fixx invites readers to sharpen their pencils and their wits. https://books.google.com/books/about/Games_for_the_Superintelligent.html?id=tyNAPgAACAAJ
Books by Eric Lehman, Amy Nawrocki Prof. Eric Lehman of the University of Bridgeport, the speaker at our January 2010 and September 2016 monthly dinners, has 12 books available on www.amazon.com, including fiction, poetry, and non-fiction works about history, literary history, travel, nature, and food. His most recent book is his novel Shadows of Paris (Homebound Publications, August 2016). He published four books in 2015, including his acclaimed history Homegrown Terror: Benedict Arnold and the Burning of New London. Eric has also coauthored 3 books about Connecticut with his wife, Prof. Amy Nawrocki, including Literary Connecticut: The Hartford Wits, Mark Twain and the New Millennium (History Press, 2014). You can view these books and Prof. Nawrocki’s books of poetry at https://www.amazon.com/Amy-Nawrocki/e/B00IXP5MZC/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_1.
Copyright and Permissions: What Every Writer and Editor Should Know Do I need permission to reproduce something I found on the Internet? If so, how do go about it? How long does copyright last? What if I want to copyright something I created? In her brief book, Mensan Elsa Peterson (Obuchowski) provides an engaging, accessible guide to the basics of copyright and permissions as they apply to writing, editing, and publishing. Available as an e-book or in print on Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/Copyright-permissions-Elsa-Peterson/dp/188040723X) and Lulu (http://www.lulu.com/us/en/shop/elsa-peterson/copyright-and-permissions/paperback/product-
20563038.html)
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Announcing New Baseball Website Young Southern Connecticut Mensan Benjamin Stransky has just launched his baseball website www.ratatatstats.com. It’s got videos, stats, and team news. Get ready for the season and stay informed.
Classic Cars Patrick Foster, the speaker at the February 2016 Southern CT Mensa Monthly Dinner, has written 21
books about classic cars. To see a selection of Pat’s books, search www.amazon.com/patrick+foster .
Structural Integrations Sessions http://structuraltransformations.com/ Yonathan Hormadaly - Mensan and advanced practitioner of the Rolf Method of Structural Integration with offices in Stamford, CT, and Redding, CT. In practice since 2002. For new clients, I am offering a free first session at my office in Connecticut ($150 value). No strings attached, no commitments necessary. Structural Integration is something that must be experienced as words so often do it no justice, and there is no better way to experience it than to have a session. Call to schedule an appointment or for a free phone consultation. 203-550-6888,
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Southern Connecticut Mensa eChron Vol. 26, No.12–December 2017
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SCM Chronicle - Advertising Rates Short Classified Ads: free to Mensa members and subscribers, $2.00 per month and $20.00 per year for others. Send copy to the editor. Display Ads: Full Page, $50; half page, $30; quarter page or business card, $15. Discounts for Display Ads: 10% for three issues, 20% for six issues, 30% for 12 issues. All ads must be paid in advance, checks payable to Southern Connecticut Mensa.
The Chronicle is the official publication of Southern Connecticut Mensa The views expressed in this publication are the views of the individuals submitting items for publication, and do not represent the opinions of American Mensa, Ltd., the Chapter Executive Committee, or the Newsletter Editor (unless so stated in the article). Unless otherwise noted, material is not copyrighted and may be used in other publications, subject to notification of the Chronicle Editor, and receipt of two copies to the Editor (one for the Editor, one for the Author).
Change of Address To change your address on the web, login at https://www.us.mensa.org and select the Edit Profile link. You may also email, or write to: American Mensa, Ltd. Membership Department 1229 Corporate Dr. West Arlington, TX 76006-6103
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Mensa Chapter #066 - Officers 2017-2018 Southern Connecticut Mensa Officers
TITLE NAME E-MAIL
President Joan Coprio [email protected]
Vice President Jim Mizera [email protected]
Secretary Frank Skornia [email protected]
Treasurer Elizabeth Cortright [email protected]
Membership Officer Bruce Miller [email protected]
Web Master Thomas O'Neill [email protected]
Member-At-Large Erin Davis [email protected]
Proctor, Testing & Recruiting Debra Jennings [email protected]
Scholarship Chair Darcy Sledge [email protected]
Editor Jim Mizera [email protected]
Publications Officer Merrill Loechner [email protected]
Region 1 Vice Chairman Ian Randal Strock [email protected]
American Mensa, Ltd. 1229 Corporate Drive West Arlington, TX 76006-6103 Phone: (817) 607-0060 Fax: (817) 649-5232 E-mail: [email protected] Website: http://www.us.mensa.org