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From: "Evelyn C. Leeper" <evelynchimelisleeper@gmail.com>
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Subject: MT VOID, 01/24/25 -- Vol. 43, No. 30, Whole Number 2364
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THE MT VOID
01/24/25 -- Vol. 43, No. 30, Whole Number 2364

Co-Editor: Mark Leeper, mleeper@optonline.net
Co-Editor: Evelyn Leeper, eleeper@optonline.net
Sending Address: evelynchimelisleeper@gmail.com
All material is the opinion of the author and is copyrighted by
the author unless otherwise noted.
All comments sent or posted will be assumed authorized for
inclusion unless otherwise noted.

To subscribe or unsubscribe, send mail to eleeper@optonline.net
The latest issue is at <http://www.leepers.us/mtvoid/latest.htm>.
An index with links to the issues of the MT VOID since 1986 is at
<http://leepers.us/mtvoid/back_issues.htm>.

Topics:
         Not Mark Leeper's Top Ten Films of 2024 (comments
                by Mark R. Leeper and Evelyn C. Leeper)
         FALL OF CIVILIZATIONS: STORIES OF GREATNESS AND DECLINE
                (book review by Gregory Frederick)
         AI and Movie Questions (comments by Thomas Russell)
         This Week's Reading (MOBY-DICK) (book comments
                by Evelyn C. Leeper)

===================================================================

TOPIC: Not Mark Leeper's Top Ten Films of 2024 (comments by Mark
R. Leeper and Evelyn C. Leeper)

Normally, this column would be Mark's "Top Ten Films of 2024".
Mark has been producing such a list for the last thirty-eight
years (1986-2023), but it has finally been done in by the Academy
of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.  Well, not just them, but
they are the proximate cause.

A few years ago, AMPAS (and others) became concerned about the
quantity of "For Your Consideration" DVDs that some studios were
sending out.  It was a combination of environmental concerns,
concerns over piracy, and concern about an uneven playing field.
So they decreed that no movie that sent out DVDs to the Academy
members would be eligible for an Oscar,

Now that studios and filmmakers were not sending out DVDs to
Academy members, they decided to stop sending out DVDs to anyone.
Once they had set up a streaming capability for Academy members,
it was easier and cheaper to use it for all the awards
organizations.  There was also the question of what happens if a
DVD is sent to everyone in "Joe's Bar Award Team" and one of those
people is also an Academy member, does that disqualify the film
from an Oscar?  Easier just to not send DVDs to anyone.

But the streaming experience leaves a lot to be desired.  Films
stop in the middle with some arcane error code.  Films pixilate,
glitch, or stutter.  Every studio has a different interface, so
you need several apps, and how one mirrors the film on one's
television varies, as does how one gets subtitles.  Working on a
tiny screen means when you try to pause or change the settings,
you may accidentally reposition the time bar.

So the bottom line is that we haven't seen nearly enough films, or
major films, for Mark to come up with a meaningful list.
Hopefully, the various mini-reviews over the year have given you
some idea of what's out there.  [-mrl/ecl]

===================================================================

TOPIC: FALL OF CIVILIZATIONS: STORIES OF GREATNESS AND DECLINE by
Paul Cooper (book review by Gregory Frederick)

FALL OF CIVILIZATIONS: STORIES OF GREATNESS AND DECLINE offers a
sweeping exploration of the rise and fall of some of history's
most influential civilizations.  With a clear and engaging
narrative, Cooper brings to life the stories of various
civilizations, such as Sumer, Assyria, Carthage, Roman Britain,
Byzantium, the Aztecs, and the Inca Empire, plus others, drawing
attention to both their monumental achievements and eventual
collapse.

Cooper weaves history into captivating narratives, making complex
historical events accessible to a broad audience.  He balances
historical details with human drama, engaging readers not just
with dates and facts, but with the stories of individuals and
societies.  The author doesn't just recount the downfall of
civilizations but delves into the causes, exploring internal
factors (e.g., corruption, over expansion, or societal
instability) as well as external forces (such as invasions or
environmental collapse).  This analytical approach provides
readers with a deeper understanding of why these societies fell,
rather than just a simple recounting of their decline.  One of the
very many interesting items in the book is that only a few places
in the world developed a written language and isolated Easter
Island is one of those places.  Also, the civilization of ancient
Sumer for example wrote their texts on hardened clay tablets which
will last far longer then our world's current digital data which
will be gone if the power to maintain them is gone.

The book spans various civilizations from different parts of the
world and different time periods, providing a global perspective
on the theme of rise and fall.  This diversity enriches the
reader's understanding of historical patterns and connections
between seemingly distant empires.

FALL OF CIVILIZATIONS is a well-crafted and thought-provoking
exploration of history's great empires and their eventual
collapse.  While not ground-breaking in terms of originality, the
book provides a solid and engaging overview of the factors that
lead to the fall of civilizations. It is an excellent choice for
readers seeking to understand the cyclical nature of history and
the complex interplay of factors that contribute to the rise and
fall of great societies.  [-gf]

===================================================================

TOPIC: AI and Movie Questions (comments by Thomas Russell)

Suppose Dorothy had asked the tin man "How can l get to Kansas?"
And the tin man replied "I don't know."

Further suppose that you ask say, Alexa, this question: "What did
the tin man say when
Dorothy asked him how to get back to Kansas?"

Then Alexa would summon up all her artificial intelligence powers
and say, "I don't know."

P.S. The "real" Alexa is reading this email right now and has
already gotten wise to the trick.

[-tlr]

===================================================================

TOPIC: This Week's Reading (book comments by Evelyn C. Leeper)

Some weeks it's hard to fill this column.  For the last couple of
weeks a lot of my reading has been re-reading.  Another large
chunk has been Winston Churchill's history of World War II, but at
something like 3500 pages, that will take a while.  I will
probably comment at the end of each of the six books, just as I
commented on the initial sections of THE EVERYMAN CHESTERTON
rather than waiting until the end.  But even so, some weeks,
there's nothing really new to comment on.

I can say that adding old books to my reading queue--and putting
them at the front of the queue--is not making it easier to write
the column.  But there is enjoyment in re-reading books.  Recently
a reviewer and editor was talking about books that they had liked
a lot and would recommend.  I asked them which of their favorite
books they re-read the most, and they said that what with their
reviewing duties and editing duties they really had no time to
re-read books.  That to me would be a real problem.

And I also relisten to audio books, but I've already said enough
about THE DAUGHTER OF TIME and THE MARTIAN and more than enough
about MOBY DICK.  Then again, can one ever say too much about
MOBY-DICK?  So I will fall back on a bit of a cheat and give you
my comments on Chapter 2 of MOBY DICK, since I have never included
those in the MT VOID.  (The comments on Chapter 1 can be found in
the 08/09/24 issue.)

CHAPTER 2: The Carpet-Bag

To say that Nantucket is "Tyre of this Carthage" to New Bedford is
to mean that Nantucketers were the founders of New Bedford (or at
least the progenitors in some sense).  Carthage (in present-day
Tunisia) was founded three thousand years ago by Phoenician
colonists from Tyre (in present-day Lebanon).

"The first thing I did was to stumble over an ash-box in the
porch.  Ha! thought I, ha, as the flying particles almost choked
me, are these ashes from that destroyed city, Gomorrah?"  The
ash-box was there to provide ashes to spread on icy steps, paths,
etc., during the winter.  The dark color helped absorb sunlight
(and heat) and melted the ice faster, plus the ash provided a
grittier surface.  In Melville's time, ash (from fireplaces,
cooking fires, etc.) was plentiful and free, while salt cost
money, and also did not provide a non-slip surface.

Gomorrah was destroyed along with Sodom for its wickedness: "Then
the Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire
========== REMAINDER OF ARTICLE TRUNCATED ==========