Jean-Henri Casimir Fabre (1823–1915) was a French naturalist, entomologist, and author known for the lively style of his popular books on the lives of insects.  Fabre was a popular teacher, physicist, chemist and botanist.  However, he is probably best known for his findings in the field of entomology, the study of insects, and is considered by many to be the father of modern entomology.  Much of his enduring popularity is due to his marvellous teaching ability and his manner of writing about the lives of insects in biographical form, which he preferred to a clinically detached, journalistic mode of recording.  In doing so he combined what he called "my passion for scientific truth" with keen observations and an engaging, colloquial style of writing.  Fabre (translated) wrote:  Others again have reproached me with my style, which has not the solemnity, nay, better, the dryness of the schools.  They fear lest a page that is read without fatigue should not always be the expression of the truth.  Were I to take their word for it, we are profound only on condition of being obscure.  His Souvenirs Entomologiques is a series of texts on insects and arachnids.  He influenced the later writings of Charles Darwin, who called Fabre "an inimitable observer".  In one of Fabre's most famous experiments, he arranged pine processionary caterpillars to form a continuous loop around the edge of a pot.  As each caterpillar instinctively followed the silken trail of the caterpillars in front of it, the group moved around in a circle for seven days.  He further was able to forecast low atmospheric pressure events by observing the behaviours of the caterpillars.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Henri_Fabre

A cache is (1) a hiding place used for storing provisions or valuables, or (2) a concealed collection of valuable things.  The word also functions as a verb meaning to hide or store in a cache.  Cachet refers to (1) a mark or indication of superior status, or (2) prestige.  The word is is usually a mass noun (meaning it is treated as a quantity and can’t be pluralized), but it’s a count noun in some rarer senses.  https://grammarist.com/usage/cache-cachet/

The Tulip from The Botany of Desire by Michael Pollan   *  For the tulip, the story of the twentieth century has mainly been the rise and triumph of this mass-produced eye candy.  *  The tulip was the first flower to have cultivars named for individuals  *  Tulip comes for the Turkish word for turban—the bloom perched at the top resembles a head, and the elongated leaves might be considered limbs  *  The period from 1703 to 1730 is known to Turkish historians as the Tulip Era.  *  The color of a tulip consists of two pigments:  a base color that is yellow or white, and a laid-on color called an anthocyanin.  *  Alexandre Dumas père (French for 'father') wrote a novel--The Black Tulip--about a competition in 17^th-century Holland to grow the first truly black tulip.  *  Thievery is the tulip grower’s term for the phenomenon that causes certain flowers in a field to revert to the form and color of their parents.

The Muser has a flat wall sculpture depicting two tulips entwined as if they were ballet dancers.  The enamel on wood artwork, titled Atomic Flowers, is by Mr. Atomic (identical twins Mark and Michael Kersey).

Use the verb redound in formal situations to mean "contribute" or "have an effect."  Redound shows up only in the most formal speech and writing, but it's a good way to describe an effect on someone's good name or prestige.  Originally, redound described something that overflows which is the meaning of the Latin root word, redundare.  https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/redound.

Have you heard of the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet for high blood pressure or the Mediterranean diet for heart health?  When it comes to protecting your brain health, a hybrid of the two eating styles may be best.  Dubbed the "MIND" diet, short for Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay, this eating pattern goes big on natural plant-based foods while limiting red meat, saturated fat and sweets.  And observational studies suggest the diet can reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease by up to 53 percent as well as slow cognitive decline and improve verbal memory.  Researchers developed the diet by looking at the Mediterranean and DASH diets, then focusing on the foods with the most compelling findings in dementia prevention.  Vegetables, especially leafy greens, rose to the top.  In general, fruit didn't, though berries made the list.  Angela L. Murad  https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/alzheimers-disease/in-depth/15-simple-diet-tweaks-cut-alzheimers-risk/art-20342112

RIDDLES

Q.  What is the favorite food of moles?  A.  Guacamole.

Q.  What is a mole’s favorite room in its abode?  A.  The mushroom.

Q.  What do moles call their clergy?  A.  Holy-moleys.

Holy Moley  c. 1892 as a euphemism for "Holy Mary", Molly being a nickname for Mary.  https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/holy_moley

When you're in thrall to someone, you are under their control in some way.  If you're being held as a hostage, you're in thrall to your captor.  You can be in thrall to anything that holds you captive or controls your thoughts or actions, like an addiction, a disease, or a cult leader.  The Old English word that thrall comes from literally means "slave" or "servant."  Another word with the same root as thrall is enthrall, which is sort of a friendlier version of the same idea.  If you're enthralled by someone, you're captivated or fascinated, rather than "held in bondage."  https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/thrall

Whole30 Chicken Skewer Salad . . .  Whole30 Spicy Citrus Chicken Stir Fry . . . Whole30 Spicy Chicken Soup . . . Whole30 Sizzling Pollo Picante Chicken Breasts.  https://nocrumbsleft.net/category/meat/chic

“Women are great crime writers.  They always have been, and for a long time now they have set the agenda and driven the genre.  All my favorite writers are women.”  Lee Child  Killer Year—Stories to Die For . . . From the Hottest New Crime Writers 

THESE TIMES:  How to support your local bookstores during the coronavirus pandemic · What China's literary community has been reading under lockdown · The first lines of 10 classic novels rewritten for social distancing ·  Lit Hub  *  How J.R.R. Tolkien blocked fanboy W.H. Auden from writing a book about him. | Lit Hub  *   Adrienne Raphel explores the poet’s love of crosswords. | Lit Hub  *  David Lagercrantz, who took over writing the Millennium series after the death of Stieg Larsson, is turning to a new detective series of his own, compared to a “modern Sherlock Holmes saga.” | The Bookseller  https://lithub.com/  March 17, 2020

19 immersive museum exhibits you can visit from your couch by Joshua Barajas and Stephanie Garcia  See examples of  some exhibits and artwork collections you can view online, whether you’re socially distancing at home, need a distraction, or just simply want to get lost in some art.  https://www.pbs.org/newshour/arts/19-immersive-museum-exhibits-you-can-visit-from-your-couch

http://librariansmuse.blogspot.com  Issue 2242  March 18, 2020