Dear Commons Community,

Scientists yesterday announced the discovery of the oldest black hole (Sagittarius* (SGR*) ) ever seen, a 13-billion-year-old object that’s actually “eating” its host galaxy to death.

Astronomers made the discovery with the James Webb Space Telescope.

The oldest black hole is surprisingly massive – a few million times the mass of our sun. The fact that it exists so early in the universe “challenges our assumptions about how black holes form and grow,” according to a statement from the University of Cambridge in the U.K.

News of the discovery was published Wednesday in the study “A small and vigorous black hole in the early Universe” in the peer-reviewed journal Nature.   As reported by U.S.A. Today and NPR.

“It’s very early in the universe to see a black hole this massive, so we’ve got to consider other ways they might form,” said lead author Roberto Maiolino, from Cambridge’s Cavendish Laboratory and Kavli Institute for Cosmology. “Very early galaxies were extremely gas-rich, so they would have been like a buffet for black holes.”

Astronomers believe that the supermassive black holes found at the center of galaxies like the Milky Way grew to their current size over billions of years, according to the University of Cambridge. But the size of this newly-discovered black hole suggests that they might form in different ways: they might be ‘born big’ or they can eat matter at a rate that’s five times higher

“This black hole is essentially eating the [equivalent of] an entire sun every five years,” Maiolino told NPR. “It’s actually much higher than we thought could be feasible for these black holes.”

An international team of astronomers unveiled in 2022 the first image of a supermassive black hole, a cosmic body known as Sagittarius A* at the center of our own Milky Way galaxy.

Launched in 2021, the James Webb Space Telescope is the biggest and most powerful astronomical observatory ever sent into space.

In Webb’s two years, the telescope has offered stunning views of our solar system’s planets, galaxies, stars and other parts of the universe never glimpsed before.

“It’s a new era: the giant leap in sensitivity, especially in the infrared, is like upgrading from Galileo’s telescope to a modern telescope overnight,” Maiolino said. “Before Webb came online, I thought maybe the universe isn’t so interesting when you go beyond what we could see with the Hubble Space Telescope. But that hasn’t been the case at all: the universe has been quite generous in what it’s showing us, and this is just the beginning.”

What a great time for astronomical research!

Tony

Tech:NYC President and Executive Director Julie Samuels; CUNY Chancellor Félix V. Matos Rodríguez; Simons Foundation President David N. Spergel; and CUNY Graduate Center Interim President Joshua Brumberg.

Dear Commons Community,

NYS Governor Kathy Hochul yesterday announced that the City University of New York is receiving $75 million from the Simons Foundation, the University’s largest-ever donation. The gift earmarks $50 million to establish CUNY as a hub for computational science and $25 million to support CUNY’s participation in the Governor’s proposed Empire AI project. Computational science uses programming techniques to solve problems in fields such as biology, astrophysics and neuroscience.

“For many New Yorkers, higher education is critical to pursuing a career and building a brighter future for themselves,” said Gov. Hochul. “This incredible donation from the Simons Foundation will help expand New York’s role in the future of AI at CUNY, preparing our students to fill the jobs of tomorrow right here in our state. With this funding, we are creating more opportunities for our students while solidifying New York as a leader in technology.”

“CUNY is deeply grateful to the Simons Foundation for this historic investment,” said CUNY Chancellor Félix V. Matos Rodríguez. “This generous gift, reflecting our position as a research powerhouse with more than 10,000 researchers and an engine of upward mobility for a student body in which 60% are first-generation college students and more than 80% are persons of color, will propel CUNY to the forefront of research and guarantee access for our diverse community. With this support from the Simons Foundation, CUNY reaffirms its mission to promote educational equity and advance its role as a driver of inclusive growth in New York.”

The funding allows CUNY to create a new master’s degree program, hire new faculty and create workforce opportunities for students and faculty at the nation’s largest and most diverse urban public university. The program, housed at the CUNY Graduate Center, will strengthen the University’s research and innovation capabilities and will build new career pathways into the advanced computer industry, projected to add over 300,000 new jobs in the coming decade.

“This gift aims to strengthen computational research at CUNY, to build on its traditions of excellence, its record of inclusion and opportunity, and to enable outstanding students and researchers to have the tools needed to be at the forefront of the field,” said Simons Foundation President David Spergel. “We were inspired by the Governor’s investment in Empire AI to deepen our investment in CUNY. New York will be the center of computational science and computer science. CUNY’s faculty and students will be a vital part of this scientific revolution.”

“The Graduate Center has grown its investment in science education and research over the past decade to include new master’s programs in cognitive neuroscience, astrophysics and data science,” said CUNY Graduate Center Interim President Joshua Brumberg. “These areas of research can be rapidly advanced by the application of computational techniques that allow us to ask and solve complex problems. Simons’ investment recognizes that we are ideally positioned to create this new program, help grow New York as a center of computational science research and ensure diversity in this cutting-edge field.”

The Simons Foundation’s $25 million to CUNY underwrites its participation in Empire AI, a state-sponsored consortium of New York’s leading research institutions to create a state-of-the-art artificial intelligence computing center to bolster research and development and unlock AI’s economic potential for the area.

Over the next five years, the $50 million gift will enable CUNY to:

• Hire an initiative director in the first year and up to 25 faculty members over five years across multiple focus areas.
• Provide support to develop a new Master of Science program at the CUNY Graduate Center.
• Conduct workshops and lectures by visiting scholars and fund conference travel for faculty and students.
• Strengthen the degree-to-career pipeline by providing research experience for undergraduates, tuition subsidies and fellowship stipends for master’s students, as well as fellowship stipends for the summer and academic year to enable Ph.D. students to serve as mentors for undergraduate researchers.

This investment builds on CUNY’s reputation as a top tier research institution with alumni winning 13 Nobel Prizes and 26 MacArthur “Genius” Grants. In 2023, the University raised a record-setting $633.2 million in external funding for research and other sponsored programs, advancing a key strategic priority to strengthen CUNY’s research ecosystem. Collectively, CUNY research grants total about $500 million each year, for more than 2,100 active research grants. The generation of knowledge by more than 10,000 faculty scholars and staff produces transformative advances for New York City, New York State and beyond. Significantly, this research is carried out by a diverse collection of students and faculty from across the five boroughs. CUNY researchers are working to reduce disparities in public health, mitigate urgent impacts of climate change and make advancements in STEM.

Thank you to Simons Foundation President David Spergel!

Tony

Dear Commons Community,

InsideTrack published earlier this month its predictions for where higher education is heading in 2024. Here are its top ten trends to follow. 

Trend 1.
Linking education to career paths

Trend 2.
Making sense of the AI explosion‍

Trend 3.
Prioritizing mental health on campus

Trend 4.
Getting creative to support equity‍

Trend 5.
Questioning the ROI of a four-year degree‍

Trend 6.
Paving the path to success for adult learners‍

Trend 7.
Putting staff and faculty burnout on the front burner‍

Trend 8.
Understanding financial aid obstacles in the midst of FAFSA overhaul‍

Trend 9.
Making a case for liberal arts‍

Trend 10.
Focusing on more meaningful metrics

These all seem quite important.  I find Trend 2 (Making sense of the AI explosion) as very pertinent.  I have added its full InsideTrack‘s write-up below.‍

Good info here!

Tony

 ———————————————————————————————————————–

Trend 2.
Making sense of the AI explosion

By now it’s clear that the transformative power of AI has come to college campuses. Everyone agrees the technology is powerful, but no one agrees on much else… yet. A recent survey by BestColleges revealed that 56% of college students have used artificial intelligence technology to complete assignments. Concerns over this rapidly growing technology are many: plagiarism, inaccurate information, cheating on exams, and students not learning how to write their own papers or do their own work. But the exploding popularity of AI makes it impossible for colleges and universities to ignore. As a result, most schools are developing campus-wide AI strategies — both for students and for faculty.

Chapman University, for example, has pulled together a best practices sheet using information provided from schools at the forefront of AI usage (Harvard, Stanford, UCLA and Arizona State among them), with official AI policies, as well as guidance for instructors and guidance for students. According to a report from Hanover Research and Inside Higher Ed, the biggest AI issue for many schools centers around the reliability and ethical implications of AI in an educational setting as generative AI systems like ChatGPT can lack context and accuracy. The study cites “establishing clear guidelines” as a crucial step toward harnessing the power of this burgeoning technology, and cautions that rather than implementing bans, institutions should offer guidelines and training to allow faculty to determine whether and how they integrate AI into their classrooms and coursework.

Highlighting the positive, the study lists 10 AI benefits in higher education — benefits that can encourage deeper understanding of the material over rote memorization, foster critical thinking and enhance problem-solving skills. Potential benefits include:

• Personalized learning
• Interactive learning
• Feedback and assessment
• Educational accessibility
• Academic guidance
• Academic integrity
• Efficient study tools
• Real-time query resolution
• Preparation for future careers
• Data-driven insights

The flip side of the coin is that there are, of course, concerns — including the opportunity for misuse in a variety of scenarios. While AI does indeed hold promise for enhancing learning experiences, it’s imperative to address the concerns. The Hanover/Inside Higher Ed study cites six key areas of potential challenges and inherent risks. This includes:

• Lack of transparency
• Accuracy
• Bias
• Intellectual property and copyright
• Cybersecurity and fraud
• Sustainability

So where does this leave us? Now that the initial dystopian brouhaha is receding, many positive uses for the technology are coming to light. Forbes, for example, says that when it comes to teaching new and complex topics, AI offers “the ability to act like an infinitely patient grandmother, never rushing or giving up and going on to the next thing.” Institutions are noting that AI can be used as a powerful classroom aid to make lessons more interactive. And faculty members say the technology can help generate personalized lesson plans and save time on administrative tasks. And this is only the beginning…

‍

Dear Commons Community,

Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley says she will only participate in a debate that includes former President Trump or President Biden going forward, putting plans for two debates in New Hampshire ahead of its primary next week in doubt. 

Haley said in a statement yesterday that Trump, who cruised to victory in Monday’s Iowa caucuses, needs to stop “hiding” after he has skipped all five of the GOP primary debates so far.   As reported by The Hill.

“We’ve had five great debates in this campaign,” she said. “Unfortunately, Donald Trump has ducked all of them. He has nowhere left to hide. The next debate I do will either be with Donald Trump or with Joe Biden. I look forward to it.”

Two debates had been scheduled in the upcoming days for the remaining top candidates to discuss the issues before voters in the Granite State, which will hold the first-in-the-nation primary next Tuesday. The first was to be held by ABC News on Thursday, and the second was scheduled for Sunday with CNN. 

Trump, Haley and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis were likely to all be invited to participate in both based on meeting the requirements for participation, but Trump was almost certain to skip the events. 

DeSantis had already accepted his invitations to participate in the debates. He denounced Haley’s decision in a statement posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, saying she does not want to debate because she is afraid to answer “tough questions.” 

He said Haley is not trying to win the GOP nomination but is aiming to be selected as Trump’s running mate, and he pledged he would still attend the events. 

“I won’t snub New Hampshire voters like both Nikki Haley and Donald Trump, and plan to honor my commitments. I look forward to debating two empty podiums in the Granite State this week,” DeSantis said. 

Haley’s announcement comes after Iowans cast the first votes of the 2024 GOP nominating process with their caucuses on Monday. Trump easily won the contest with more than 50 percent of the vote.

DeSantis narrowly beat Haley for second place with 21 percent to her 19 percent. 

The announcement also comes as viewership for the Trump-less Republican debates has increasingly declined with each event. 

Polls have shown Haley rising in New Hampshire to more than 30 percent support in the polling average from The Hill/Decision Desk HQ. Trump still leads in the average with 42 percent, while DeSantis has fallen into the single digits in the state.

This is a good move on the part of Haley.  We don’t need another Republican primary debate that does not include Trump. I also support the view that  Haley is the ‘last, best hope’ to stop a ‘Trump-Biden nightmare’

Tony

Courtesy of The Huffington Post

Dear Commons Community,

With frigid weather and low voter turnout, Donald Trump won the Iowa Caucuses easily. Not only did he win by a record margin for a Republican, his two main competitors ― Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley ― each took just enough of the vote to insist they were his main rival in New Hampshire, the next state to vote, ensuring the field will remain divided against him.

Trump’s win was sweeping and dominant. According to the entrance polls conducted by major media organizations, he won every demographic group imaginable: the college-educated and those without a degree; men and women; urban, suburban and rural voters; and evangelical Christians. The only groups he didn’t win were moderates, who went with Haley, and voters ages 17 to 29, who backed DeSantis.

Trump won 98 of Iowa’s 99 counties, losing Johnson County, the home of the University of Iowa, by a single vote to Haley.

Vivek Ramaswamy, the biotech entrepreneur who competed with Trump for the votes of the very conspiratorial, dropped out of the race, likely handing most of this voters over to the former president.

New Hampshire will be tougher terrain: Some polling there shows Haley within striking distance, and it is filled with the moderate, college-educated voters who are Trump’s weak point. But Trump’s challengers will get only so many chances to knock the de facto leader of the Republican Party off his pedestal.

Here are several takeaways from the Iowa caucuses courtesy of The New York Times and The Huffington Post.

A Bad Night For The Iowa Establishment

DeSantis had banked much of his campaign on courting traditional Iowa power brokers. He won the endorsement of influential evangelical leader Bob Vander Plaats. He also earned the endorsement of Gov. Kim Reynolds, and more than half of the Republicans in both the Iowa state Senate and state House lined up behind his campaign. DeSantis even made his defense of Reynolds from Trump’s attacks a major theme of his television advertising. And all it got him was less than a quarter of the vote.

The result is a crisis for Iowa’s political establishment, which has long built an identity ― and careers and cash ― around defending the caucuses and their importance to it. Democrats have already shunted the caucuses aside after Biden finished fifth in the state and won the nomination regardless. The state GOP, to which Trump will owe few favors, may have to worry about facing the same fate.

Nikki Loses By Degrees

Iowa entrance polls indicated a big education divide within the GOP electorate. Among voters without college degrees, Trump garnered 65%, DeSantis got 17% and Haley just 8%. College-educated voters in the Republican contest, meanwhile, split nearly down the middle between Trump and Haley (35% to 33%, respectively), with DeSantis getting 23%.

The polls show Trump’s continued strength among blue-collar voters, long a mainstay of his political base, as well as college-educated conservatives who are weighing other options. But for Haley, the problem is acute. If she can’t find a way to appeal to white working-class voters, especially in a state like New Hampshire, she may be in even deeper trouble.

Electability? What Electability?

In 2020, Democrats in Iowa, and everywhere else in the country, were obsessed with finding a candidate who could defeat Trump in the general election. For whatever reason ― Trump’s election lies, a lack of shocking election losses in the history of the GOP, widespread belief in President Joe Biden’s weaknesses ― Republicans did not place nearly as much emphasis on, you know, winning the general election.

Only 14% of caucus-goers said an ability to defeat Biden was the top quality they were looking for in a candidate, compared with 41% who wanted a candidate who shared their values and 31% who wanted a candidate who fought for people like them. In 2020, when faced with a similar question, 61% of Democrats preferred a candidate who could beat Trump and 37% preferred a candidate who agreed with them on major issues.

Turnout Dropped With The Temperature

About 110,000 people turned out to vote in the Iowa caucuses on Monday, far short of the nearly 187,000 who participated in 2016, the last time there was a competitive contest on the Republican side. The cold weather and blizzard conditions, along with an NFL playoff game and the Emmys on television, likely contributed to the drop in participation, but Republicans have to wonder whether it signals a more troubling lack of enthusiasm for their presidential candidates in this election, especially if the trend is confirmed in future contests.

It’s worth putting 110,000 voters into context: That’s less than half the number who voted in last year’s Philadelphia mayoral primary and less than one-fifth of the number who voted in last year’s Chicago mayoral election.

On to New Hampshire!

Tony

Dear Commons Community,

Dan Marburger, the Iowa principal, who acted heroically to save students during a mass shooting at Perry High School earlier this month has died from his injuries in the attack, according to his wife.

The shooting at the school near Des Moines initially left one sixth-grade student dead and seven others, including Principal Marburger, injured after a 17-year-old student opened fire on January 4.

“At approximately 8:00 am, January 14, Dan lost his battle,” his wife Elizabeth Marburger posted in a GoFundMe campaign set up when he was still in the hospital. “He fought hard and gave us 10 days that we will treasure forever.”

The attack marked the second shooting on a school property in the US within the first few days of 2024.

Marburger, who authorities say was shot multiple times, was hailed a hero after trying to save students by talking to and distracting the shooter as the deadly attack unfolded, his daughter Claire Marburger shared on social media shortly after the shooting.

“As I heard of a gunman, I instantly had a feeling my Dad would be a victim as he would put himself in harm’s way for the benefit of the kids and his staff. It is absolutely zero surprise to hear he tried to approach and talk Dylan down and distract him long enough for some students to get out of the cafeteria,” Marburger’s daughter said.

Iowa Department of Public Safety said Marburger “acted selflessly and placed himself in harm’s way in an apparent effort to protect his students.”

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds ordered flags lowered to half-staff on Sunday.

“Our entire state is devastated by the news of Dan Marburger’s death. Kevin and I offer our deepest condolences to his wife and family as we pray for their comfort during this very difficult time,” Reynolds said in a statement.

“Dan courageously put himself in harm’s way to protect his students, and ultimately gave his own life to save them. He will forever be remembered for his selfless and heroic actions. May he rest in peace.”

Marburger worked at schools in Perry, Iowa, for at least 25 years, according to the Perry Community School District.

Officers responded to the shooting on the first Thursday of the year within minutes and discovered several people at the high school suffering gunshot wounds. They then located the gunman with a self-inflicted gunshot wound, CNN previously reported.

The Perry Middle School student also killed in the shooting was identified as 11-year-old Ahmir Jolliff, who was shot three times in the attack, according to authorities.

A selfless educator. 

May he rest in peace!

Tony

Dear Commons Community,

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his last speech (“I’ve Been to the Mountaintop”) on April 3, 1968, at the Mason Temple in Memphis, Tennessee. The next day, he was assassinated.  We need to hear his message today as much as we did in 1968.

Tony

Dear Commons Community,

House and Senate leaders have reached an agreement on a short-term spending deal that would avert a government shutdown in the next few weeks, three sources familiar with the matter told NBC News.

The deal would keep the government funded until March, buying legislators more time to craft longer-term, agency-specific spending bills, following the agreement last weekend to set the overall spending level for fiscal year 2024 at $1.59 trillion.

The new agreement moves upcoming government funding deadlines for different departments from Jan. 19 and Feb. 2 to March 1 and March 8.

The short-term bill, known as a continuing resolution or “CR,” will need to pass both the House and Senate before Friday at 11:59 p.m. to avoid a partial government shutdown.

Speaker Mike Johnson is set to hold a call with fellow House Republicans at 8 p.m. Sunday to discuss spending negotiations. Several hard-right Republicans have objected to the top–line spending deal he previously cut with Senate Democrats and have urged Johnson to go back on it, though he said Friday that the agreement remains intact.

As Johnson faced pushback from the right, several moderate Democrats told NBC News that they would be willing to vote to save the Louisiana Republican’s speakership if there were a move to oust him. Democrats stood aside and voted to remove former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., in a similar situation last year when a handful of House conservatives rebelled against their party’s then-leader. Several of those same rebels are now threatening Johnson’s job.

Meanwhile, congressional Democrats praised the top-line spending agreement after it was announced last weekend, even as they acknowledged that a short-term bill would be needed to buy more time to negotiate.

“The bipartisan topline appropriations agreement clears the way for Congress to act over the next few weeks in order to maintain important funding priorities for the American people and avoid a government shutdown,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, both New York Democrats, said in a statement at the time.

Assuming this bill passes the two houses of Congress and is signed by President Biden, the bipartisanship is welcome news for the country.

Tony

Mark Peterson for The New York Times

Dear Commons Community,

Maureen Dowd is in Iowa getting ready to report on the Iowa caucuses.  She assumes Donald Trump will win but whether it is a majority or plurality is difficult to say.  Nikki Haley’s poll numbers and donor contributions are soaring.  Dowd refers to Trump as “the Abominable Snowman.”  She also compares this year’s Iowa caucuses to 2008 when Barack Obama pulled a surprise upset.  She concludes:

“Obama’s triumph in Iowa was about having faith in humanity. If Trump wins here, it will be about tearing down faith in humanity.

That it’s happening in a blizzard is fitting. Trump’s whole life has been a snow job.”

Below is an extended excerpt from her column.

Tony

____________________________

The New York Times

Maureen Dowd

January 14, 2024

“ I find myself in puffy outerwear, trudging through snow in glacial Iowa, trying to uncover truths buried in the ice.

I don’t have as much of a mystery to unravel as the TV detectives. The only thing the horde of reporters here is trying to figure out is if Donald Trump will win the caucuses on Monday with a plurality or if he can pull off a majority. No one is expecting a Jimmy Carter/Barack Obama-style upset.

A blizzard on Friday froze the action. Drivers skidded all over Des Moines, with cars abandoned on highways. Candidates canceled events and scrambled to do telephone town halls. CNN’s Jeff Zeleny donned fleece earmuffs for live reports. Journalists planning to arrive this weekend faced canceled flights. With Trump and the others scrapping in-person rallies, reporters were left jaw-jawing with one another in the lobbies of the Hotel Fort Des Moines and the downtown Marriott.

On Friday evening, Trump posted a video, accusingly telling Iowa, “You have the worst weather, I guess, in recorded history.” Maybe he should have gotten here earlier instead of haranguing the judge in his New York fraud trial on Thursday.

Candidates’ surrogates resorted to extreme measures. Kari Lake, stumping for Trump in a yellow sweater — a Hawkeye color for her alma mater — joked that they would use “the ancient strategy” of the telephone to reach voters.

Campaign aides to Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley were desperately calculating if the weather could give them an advantage: Maybe some of Trump’s older voters in rural areas who have to drive a long way to caucus would not show up on Monday, which could be the coldest day in caucus history, with wind chills potentially hitting 40 below.

But the Trump crew here — including Donald Trump Jr. and Jason Miller — roamed around looking sanguine. “We’re confident, not cocky,” Miller told me.

Compared with the poor ground game Trump Sr. had in 2016, when he came in second to “Lyin’ Ted” Cruz, as he called him, MAGA world is a model of organization. And that should frighten Democrats.

“If you didn’t know any better, you’d think that our grass-roots guys had all been media trained,” Miller said. “Some of these people, because they watch everything the president does, they know any question. It doesn’t matter about whether it be the economy, Biden, witch hunt, Austin.” As in Lloyd. And “the president” Miller refers to is Trump.

With a snow day here, I had time to contemplate the real mystery of Iowa: What has happened to America?

In January 2008, the Democratic caucuses offered a thrilling contest. In overwhelmingly white Iowa, Barack Obama showed that Americans could propel a Black candidate into the Oval Office. Race was, remarkably, not a big factor in the contest.

When I saw Obama at his first event in New Hampshire after his Iowa win, I was still stunned at the result. “Wow,” I said to him. “You really did it.”

He looked solemn and a bit blank, recalling the scene in “The Candidate” when Robert Redford, the young, charismatic pol, pulls off an upset over his more seasoned, status quo opponent and murmurs, “What do we do now?”

It felt then as if we were embracing modernity and inclusion, moving away from the image of John Wayne’s America.

How could we have gone from such a hopeful moment to such a discordant one?

Of course, every time there’s a movement, there’s a countermovement, where people feel that their place in the world is threatened and they want to turn back the clock. Trump has played on that resentment, trying to drag us into the past, curtailing women’s rights, inflaming voters to “take back America” and, as he said on Jan. 6, exhorting his base to “fight like hell” or “you’re not going to have a country anymore.”

Trump is a master at exploiting voters’ fears. I’m puzzled about why his devoted fans don’t mind his mean streak. He can gleefully, cruelly, brazenly make fun of disabilities in a way that had never been done in politics — President Biden’s stutter, John McCain’s injuries from being tortured, a Times reporter’s disability — and loyal Trump fans laugh. He calls Haley “Birdbrain.” Trump is 77, yet he sees himself as a spring chicken. On Thursday, he put out a video on Truth Social mocking the “White House senior living” center, featuring pictures of the 81-year-old Biden looking helpless and out of it.

Obama’s triumph in Iowa was about having faith in humanity. If Trump wins here, it will be about tearing down faith in humanity.

That it’s happening in a blizzard is fitting. Trump’s whole life has been a snow job.

Dear Commons Community,

I have just finished reading Christopher de Hamel’s The Manuscripts Club: The People Behind a Thousand Years of Medieval Manuscripts.  de Hamel  is a fellow at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, and was the librarian of the Parker Library there, which includes a treasure trove of manuscripts in the English language.  I have a very limited knowledge of medieval manuscripts, although I have read several books on the subject. de Hamel’s book is a chronology of the lives of twelve important contributors to the development of manuscripts starting with St. Anselm in the 11^th century and ending with New York City’s own, Belle Greene, who was the force behind the Morgan Library in Manhattan.  By presenting the lives of these individuals chronologically, de Hamel provides a history of the movement. The book includes a plethora of beautiful images of the artwork that went into the development of many of these manuscripts that exemplify the presentation of these books as true masterpieces.  I also found de Jamel’s writing style very clear and accessible.

In sum,  I found The Manuscripts Club … a most enjoyable read for anyone whether you have an interest in the topic or not.

BRAVO!

Below is a review that appeared in The New York Times Review of Books.

Tony

The bibliophiles in Christopher de Hamel’s lavishly illustrated book ensured the survival of medieval texts over centuries.