You might might not think that a book with the title of Easy Death would be a Christmas book, but you’d be surprised. “Daniel Boyd” (alter-ego of famous DAPA-EM contributor Dan Stumpf) delivers an exciting armored car robbery, but of course there are complications. Getting away with the money in midst of a Christmas blizzard is just the beginning of the problems. The police pursuit and the schemes of competitors makes for edge-of-your-seat suspense. If you’re looking for a thriller with a dash of holiday cheer, pick up a copy of Easy Death.

To check out my review of the “Daniel Boyd” western, ‘Nada, just click here.

The strength of Risk Savvy: How to Make Good Decisions are in the examples Gerd Gigerenzer provides to interpreting medical information. His discussion of the PSA (Prostate-Specific Antigen) test to detect prostate cancer should be required reading. The same for interpreting the risks of breast cancer from mammogram results. I also found the data on investing in the Stock Market useful. If you’re interested in making better decisions, it starts with understanding the information affecting the decision. Risk Savvy includes plenty of practical examples and advice to help improve decision making. GRADE: B+
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Part I The Psychology of Risk p. ix
1 Are People Stupid? p. 1
2 Certainty Is an Illusion p. 17
3 Defensive Decision Making p. 43
4 Why Do We Fear What’s Unlikely to Kill Us? p. 67
Part II Getting Risk Savvy p. 83
5 Mind Your Money p. 85
6 Leadership and Intuition p. 106
7 Fun and Games p. 125
8 Getting to the Heart of Romance p. 142
9 What Doctors Need to Know p. 159
10 Health Care: No Decision About Me Without Me p. 187
11 Banks, Cows, and Other Dangerous Things p. 225
Part III Start Early p. 243
12 Revolutionize School p. 245
Acknowledgments p. 263
Glossary p. 265
Notes p. 279
References p. 297
Index p. 311

The Fall 2014 TV season has been terrible. The new shows not only were disappointing, several have been canceled after just a few episodes (MANHATTAN LOVE STORY, SELFIE, etc.). Of the new Network TV programs, I’m only still watching THE FLASH and CONSTANTINE. Neither is “Must-See TV.” So I’m giving this new Bravo sit-com a try. Tonight’s first episode of GIRLFRIENDS’ GUIDE TO DIVORCE (10 P.M. EST) stars Lisa Edelstein (who was great in HOUSE as the Hospital Director), Janeane Garolfalo (who has made more Bad Career Decisions than Jennifer Aniston), and Beau Garrett (who I don’t know). I’ll give this series the usual four to five episodes before I make my decision to stay or go. Do any new TV programs entice you?

Randall Munroe takes a bunch of silly questions tries of answer them seriously. If you jumped out of a plane with a helium tank, could you inflate enough balloons to slow your fall and survive? (Yes) How many calories would you ingest if you ate a book? (around 2300). If you’re in the mood for something completely different and scientifically accurate, What If? is the book for you. There is plenty of clever writing here. This is the perfect book for those who are scientifically inclined. GRADE: A
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Global Windstorm 1
Relativistic Baseball 7
Spent Fuel Pool 10
Weird and Worrying Questions from the What If? Inbox 1 14
New YorkStyle Time Machine 15
Soul Mates 23
Laser Pointer 27
Periodic Wall of the Elements 35
Everybody Jump 43
A Mole of Moles 47
Hair Dryer 52
Weird and Worrying Questions from the What If? Inbox 2 60
The Last Human Light 61
MachineGun Jetpack 68
Rising Steadily 73
Weird and Worrying Questions from the What If? Inbox 3 77
Orbital Submarine 78
ShortAnswer Section 83
Lightning 89
Weird and Worrying Questions from the What If? Inbox 4 95
Human Computer 96
Little Planet 102
Steak Drop 107
Hockey Puck 112
Common Cold 114
Glass Half Empty 119
Weird and Worrying Questions from the What If? Inbox 5 125
Alien Astronomers 126
No More DNA 131
Interplanetary Cessna 137
Weird and Worrying Questions from the What If? Inbox 6 142
Yoda 143
Flyover States 146
Falling with Helium 150
Everybody Out 153
Weird and Worrying Questions from the What If? Inbox 7 157
SelfFertilization 158
High Throw 168
Lethal Neutrinos 174
Weird and Worrying Questions from the What If? Inbox 8 178
Speed Bump 179
Lost Immortals 183
Orbital Speed 187
FedEx Bandwidth 192
Free Fall 195
Weird and Worrying Questions from the What If? Inbox 9 199
Sparta 200
Drain the Oceans 204
Part II 210
Twitter 217
Lego Bridge 222
Longest Sunset 228
Random Sneeze Call 233
Weird and Worrying Questions from the What If? Inbox 10 236
Expanding Earth 237
Weightless Arrow 244
Sunless Earth 248
Updating a Printed Wikipedia 252
Facebook of the Dead 255
Sunset on the British Empire 259
Stirring Tea 262
All the Lightning 266
Loneliest Human 270
Weird and Worrying Questions from the What If? Inbox 11 273
Raindrop 274
SAT Guessing 278
Neutron Bullet 280
Weird and Worrying Questions from the What If? Inbox 12 289
Richter 15 290
Back Matter 297
Copyright

The 6-5 Buffalo Bills face the 7-4 Cleveland Browns today. A week ago, Ralph Wilson Stadium had six feet of snow in it (over 220 tons!). Today, the temperature is 54 degrees! Talk about Global Warming! Both teams need this game to keep their slim Playoff dreams alive. How will your favorite NFL team fare today?

Jeff Madrick’s Seven Bad Ideas: How Mainstream Economists Have Damaged America and the World deals with all the goofy, wrong economic predictions that politicians and decision makers have made over the years. We’re seeing that same misapplication of economics today with calls to cut spending (exactly the WRONG move with a weak economy). And the paranoia over rising interest rates (hasn’t happened) and inflation (hasn’t happened, either). It’s my personal belief that most politicians flunked ECON 101. Seven Bad Ideas shows how basic economic principles have been misconstrued and misapplied–sometimes inadvertently, sometimes on purpose–to produce devastating blunders. If you want to read a clearly written and concise guide to contemporary economics, Seven Bad Ideas hits the target. GRADE: A
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Introduction: Damage
One: The Beautiful Idea: The Invisible Hand
Two: Says Law and Austerity Economics
Three: Government’s Limited Social Role: Friedman’s Folly
Four: Low Inflation Is All That Matters
Five: There Are No Speculative Bubbles
Six: Globalization: Friedman’s Folly Writ Large
Seven: Economics Is a Science
Acknowledgements
Notes
Bibliography
Index

I grew up reading Astounding which was the most popular science fiction magazine of the Fifties and Sixties. This collection from the early 1990s brings together some of the most famous short novels Astounding published over the years. Poul Anderson’s fine “Introduction” provides a survey of the role of Astouonding in the history of Science Fiction. If you’re a fan of classic SF, this is an excellent collection of iconic works.
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
“Introduction” by Poul Anderson
“Sucker Bait” by Isaac Asimov
“The Stolen Dormouse” by L. Sprague de Camp
“The Fifth-Dimension Tube” by Murray Leinster
“The Shadow Out of Time” by H. P. Lovecraft
“Bindlestiff” by James Blish
“We Have Fed Our Sea” by Poul Anderson

I met Judy Crider decades ago at a Bouchercon in Philadelphia. I loved judy’s droll sense of humor. Over the years, hanging out with the Criders was always one of the highlights of Bouchercon. At the last Bouchercon in Toronto, I took Judy and Bill to see the stage version of MAMMA MIA! The Criders loved it (Bill is the biggest ABBA fan in the world). But eight years ago, Judy started her battle against cancer. For eight long years, she beat it down. But today, cancer won. And we all lost a wonderful friend.

Despite her demons and personal problems, Whitney Houston was one of the greatest singers of my life-time. Whitney’s rendition of “The Star Spangled Banner” at the Super Bowl is the best I’ve ever heard (it’s here for you to judge for yourself). This new CD/DVD collection brings together several of Whitney Houston’s live performances that haven’t been available until now. If you’re a Whitney Houston fan, this is a must-buy. If you’re a casual fan, you’ll still enjoy these wonderful songs. What’s your favorite Whitney Houston song?
TRACK LIST:
1. Home (The Merv Griffin Show, 1983)
2. You Give Good Love (The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, 1985)
3. How Will I Know (The Brit Awards, 1987)
4. One Moment In Time (The 31st Annual Grammy® Awards, 1989)
5. Greatest Love Of All (That’s What Friends Are For: Arista Records 15th Anniversary Concert, 1990
6. I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me) (That’s What Friends Are For: Arista Records 15th Anniversary Concert, 1990)
7. The Star Spangled Banner (Super Bowl XXV, 1991)
8. All The Man That I Need (Welcome Home Heroes, 1991)
9. I’m Your Baby Tonight (Welcome Home Heroes, 1991)
10. A Song For You (Welcome Home Heroes, 1991)
11. Medley: I Loves You, Porgy/And I Am Telling You I m Not Going/I Have Nothing (The 21st Annual American Music Awards, 1994)
12. I’m Every Woman (The Concert For A New South Africa, 1994)
13. I Will Always Love You (The Concert For A New South Africa, 1994)
14. My Love Is Your Love (Late Show With David Letterman, 1998)
15. I Believe In You And Me (The 16th Annual World Music Awards, 2004)
16. I Didn’t Know My Own Strength (The Oprah Winfrey Show, 2009)