Sunday Essay: "Einstein’s Brain Takes a Vacation…"

"Einstein’s Brain Takes a Vacation…"

Albert Einstein was a genius. You know that, of course. Where ever he went, it was a good bet that he was the smartest guy in the room. He passed away in 1955 after suffering chest pains and, ultimately, a burst aortic aneurysm. That day in April began a rather macabre journey of the man’s brain. Albert Einstein, known for traveling too and fore in deliverance of endless lectures to the academia of the world, was not done traveling…even in his death.

National Public Radio reported in 2005 that Einstein’s brain was sectioned into over 200 blocks, embedded in celloidin, and then stored in formalin. Apparently, all this was done without the permission of the family. In fact, it has been reported that Einstein left specific instructions on how to dispose of his body. He had specifically stated that his remains were to be cremated and scattered in secret to discourage idolaters. For those of you as ignorant as I, an idolater is one who blindly or excessively admires or adores another.

In addition, the doctor who removed Einstein’s brain also removed his eyeballs and delivered them to Henry Abrams, Einstein’s eye doctor. Apparently, to this day, they are sitting in a safe deposit box somewhere in New York City.

Per the New York post in July of 2008:

Abrams, 96, of the Jersey Shore, placed the peepers in a safety deposit box, whose location is known only by him and his wife.

"When you look into his eyes, you're looking into the beauties and mysteries of the world," Abrams once said. "They are clear as crystal; they seem to have such depth."

Gosh…what was the definition of “idolater” again?

The doctor, Thomas Harvey, who removed Einstein’s brain (and eyeballs), was discharged from Princeton Hospital because he wouldn’t turn over the goods. He left, and took that famous piece of Einstein with him. The first stop was Philadelphia, where the remains were sectioned as mentioned above. Subsequently, two of the sections were given out to study, while the remainder sat in a jar parked in Harvey’s basement. Then, with the brain in tote, the journey began in earnest.

First…to Wichita, KS…then to Weston, MO…onto Lawrence, KS…then back to Princeton. All the while, Einstein’s brain was along for the ride…or pieces of it I suppose.

In a cross country trek with a reporter along for the story, Harvey threw Einstein’s brain in the trunk of a Buick Skylark and headed to California. Believe it or not, there is a book entitled, “Driving Mr. Albert: A Trip Across America with Einstein's Brain" (Hardcover)by Michael Paterniti (Author)

He, eventually, returned and placed the brain in the hands of the pathology lab of Princeton Hospital where the trek had begun 40 years prior. That appears to be where it can be found today.

What’s my interest…you ask? (shrugs) I just found it amusing. Plus, I picked up a copy of “Driving Mr. Albert,” recently, and found it absolutely hilarious. If you have the chance, and you are looking for a quirky bit of reading…don’t pass it up.

If I had only known, I would have been a locksmith.

---Albert Einstein


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Previous "Sunday Essays":


The Perfect Murder
The Great Pierre Bruneseau
Our Ancestors Ate Dirt
Bastardizing Chivalry
On my way to Obscurity
I'm Adopting!!!
I Need a Muse

United Nations and impotent words...

3 January 2009 – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has voiced his deep concern over Israel's launch of a ground operation into Gaza today, with the Security Council calling an emergency meeting to discuss the situation.

Mr. Ban expressed his extreme disappointment to Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

“He is convinced and alarmed that this escalation will inevitably increase the already heavy suffering of the affected civilian populations,” according to a statement issued by the Secretary-General's spokesperson. “He called for an immediate end to the ground operation, and asked that Israel do all possible to ensure the protection of civilians and that humanitarian assistance is able to reach those in need.”

Mr. Ban underscored that today's developments thwart efforts to bring peace to the region by the so-called Quartet – comprising the United Nations, the European Union (EU), Russia and the United States – and others.

He repeated his appeal for an urgent end to the clashes, and “urges regional and international partners to exert all possible influence to bring about an immediate end to the bloodshed and suffering.”

When, exactly, did human beings decide that "peace" is always better than what is morally right...fair...the best course of action?

If you are a boy of seven who walks to school...and every day the town bully throws snowballs at you...and everyday he refuses to stop until you hand over you lunch money...you have the option of handing over the cash and going "peacefully" on your way. But, that same scenario will again take place tomorrow. Unless, you take positive steps to resolve the situation that would guaranty that the town bully has something to lose...like his front teeth.

Hamas started this by lofting rockets onto Israeli settlements...Now that they are having their lunch handed to them...they are calling for the UN to step in and end the "hostilities. Hiding behind your mama's skirt was never very appealing.

Nyuk...nyuk...nyuk...

TEHRAN, Jan 4 (Reuters) - Gaza will become Israel's graveyard, the speaker of Iran's parliament was quoted as saying on Sunday after the Jewish state launched a ground offensive deep into the coastal Palestinian territory.

Israeli tanks and infantry battled Hamas fighters in the Gaza Strip on Sunday, hours after launching a ground offensive after eight days of deadly air strikes failed to halt the Islamist group's rocket attacks on Israel.

"The Zionists faced the powerful resistance of the zealous Palestinians ... the Zionists should know that Gaza will become their graveyard," Mehr News Agency quoted speaker Ali Larijani as telling parliament.

Meanwhile...back in the real world...Eagles picked by 3 over the Vikes...

China makes a Whopper of a mistake...

BEIJING: The book spawned a genre, selling more than two million copies in China on the premise that any child, with the proper upbringing, could be Ivy League material.

Now, eight years after the publication of "Harvard Girl," bookstore shelves here are laden with copycat titles like "How We Got Our Child Into Yale," "Harvard Family Instruction" and "The Door of the Elite."

Their increasing popularity points to the preoccupation - some might say a single-minded national obsession - of a growing number of middle-class Chinese parents: getting their children into America's premier universities.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you the ABSOLUTE downfall of China.

Pi$$ing down a well...

William Teach (Pirate's Cove) highlights President Bush's radio address, and then points out a missed opportunity:

See, what Bush should have done was blame it all on Israel, at which point all the moonbats with Bush Derangement Syndrome would have all of a sudden decided that Hamas is the bad guy and switched their normal support of any terrorist and/or America hating group/country to Israel.

There is some surreal truth in that...

Of course, one would have to wonder why in the name of all that is Holy the Bush Administration keeps doing this:

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States announced on Tuesday it would give $85 million to the U.N. agency providing aid to Palestinian refugees in the West Bank, Gaza, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.

The announcement comes as the humanitarian situation is worsening in Hamas-ruled Gaza, which has been pounded by Israel for the past four days in retaliation for rockets fired into the Jewish state by Hamas and other Palestinian factions.

The U.S. funds, which will help cover appeals for aid by the agency for 2009, would pay for urgently needed food, medicines and other humanitarian aid for Palestinian refugees, said the department in a statement.

Show of hands...who is deranged enough to think that any funding given in cold hard currency through the surrogate United Nations is going to be used as intended? And, if by some miracle, the currency finds itself in the hands of the Palestinians...which of you has the extreme optimism to believe that it will be used for food, medicines and humanitarian aid?

The Worm Turns...

CAIRO: A sustained Israeli ground operation in Gaza would sharply increase public pressure on President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt to do more to help the Palestinians of Gaza, despite widespread feelings here that the radical group Hamas provoked the current crisis.

While few criticize Mubarak himself, there is unhappiness with the government's relative silence about Israel's bombing campaign and its Palestinian victims, and the apparent lack of diplomatic pressure from Cairo on Israel and the United States to stop the fighting.

Instead, government officials from Mubarak to Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit have blamed Hamas for abandoning the cease-fire with Israel and seeming to seek Israeli retaliation. On Thursday, for example, Aboul Gheit said that Egypt had warned Hamas of Israel's intentions, but Hamas "served Israel the opportunity on a golden platter to hit Gaza."

Funny how the article focus is that Egypt blames Hamas...yet make a point of calling the Palestinians victims in the second paragraph.

Then again, what's to stop Israel from heading south after initiating a ground war in Gaza. The current stance of Cairo is likely an exercise in self-preservation. Egypt is right down the road.

Useful idiot alert...

THE murderous military campaign which has been unleashed by Israel has provoked people across the world to demonstrate, rally and protest in their hundreds of thousands.

Soon the movement will turn into millions as more ordinary, decent citizens of the world show their disgust at the barbarism of Israel ... and the cowardly silence of our own leaders.

This is no longer a political issue, or a Middle East issue. It is a case of what is right and what is wrong, and what is decent and what is inhumane.

And ordinary people are now taking the initiative because they can no longer rely on their political leaders to show any of the human qualities demanded of them including strength, integrity or compassion.

British people, normally reserved and controlled, brought anarchy to the streets of upscale Kensington yesterday as they stormed barracades and pushed past police to head towards the Israeli Embassy in London.

There was more anarchy in Scotland as our friends over the Border vented their spleen over the war crimes and massacre carried out by Israel.

And unless British Prime Minister Gordon Brown gets some lead in his pencil, the anarchy will continue.

I am normally a law-abiding citizen, but the anger and shame I felt drove me to join those who tore down the barriers on Saturday.

Ah yes...from the mouth of the unhinged, Yvonne Ridley. Such eloquence...such indignation...such...such...such...insipid vacuous nonsense so blatantly false and one-sided that you'd swear the world was one dimensional.

In case you aren't familiar with the author...Yvonne Ridley was the UK reporter who was refused an entrance visa to Afghanistan in 2001 while writing for the UK Express. So, she slapped on a burqa and entered illegally. The Taliban, eventually, caught her and held her "against her will" for 11 days before being released. She converted to Islam in 2003. I just found the above post to her blog amusing; especially the part about being a law-abiding citizen. She said this...you know:

On 2 June 2006, Ridley urged all Muslims in Britain to "boycott the police and refuse to co-operate with them in any way, shape or form until the boys are released,"

Yvonne Ridley is a tool...but amusing none-the-less. She falls into the category of beings who help her opposition every time she opens her unguarded orifice (it matters not which one).

Since she seems to be such an efficient receptor to Stockholm Syndrome...one can only hope that she is abducted by a bunch of Tibetan Monks someday...and put into a forced vow of silence.

Squeaky wheel gets the grease...

White working-class people across Britain feel 'betrayed' that immigrants are treated more favourably than them, according to the Communities and Local Government Secretary, Hazel Blears.

A study of attitudes to immigration published today found that some members of the white working-class believed politicians had washed their hands of them.

It found a widespread sense of resentment, unfairness and disempowerment among those communities.

Ms Blears said: 'White working-class people living on estates sometimes just don't feel anyone is listening or speaking up for them.

I'm kind of shocked that the UK Daily Mail actually ran this piece. The difference, of course, between the immigrants making a lot of noise...and the indigenous occupants of generations making a lot of noise...is that the immigrants accompany that 'noise' with claims of racism, religious persecution, and usual verbage of 'victimization.'

They attach the 'noise' to violent outbursts, organized protests funded by questionable entities, and pressure upon the sitting government.

The focus of this article is people who want what they perceive to be fairness. A significant number of immigrants coming to the UK (read Muslim) want nothing close to fairness. They want...require...and endeavor for dominance and already have religious leaders, community leaders, and government leaders accepting the inevitability of Sharia law.

Too little...way too late.

Print the names....print the names...

Over 100 cars were set on fire and police and emergency service workers were attacked in a number of places, but the New Year celebrations in the Netherlands passed off without serious incident, the Telegraaf reports.

In The Hague, the Telegraaf reports that some 90 cars were burned out. But mayor Jozias van Aartsen told the paper he believed the celebrations were more muted than last year. Nor were riot police brought in to restore order, the mayor pointed out.

In Zuidland, near Rotterdam, a group of 150 youths attacked police with bottles, stones and fireworks. But the festival on the Meuse river, attended by some 20,000 people, was peaceful, the Telegraaf said. In total, 30 people were arrested in the Rotterdam region.

The headline from this DutchNews.nl site reads thusly:

New Year festivities 'largely peaceful'

Well...short of a nuclear holocaust...I suppose you could call that peaceful. I'm wondering, however, if the peaceful violence, destruction of property and outright assault on the legal authorities was prompted by THIS.

I'm betting that there is a common denominator among the perps...Want to guess what that might be? It involves hyphens.

Print the names...

2008 Wasn't a Total Loss...