Book Reviewed: The Psychology of Money: Timeless lessons on wealth, greed, and happiness by Morgan Housel

Human expectations for happiness The author highlights the thought and behaviors of investors that influence their financial decisions, and how it becomes irrational. Aversion to loss, fear, greed, and herd behavior are some of the reasons. The herd mentality where the individual investor tends to mimic the actions of a larger group leading to stock market bubbles. Understanding the psychology of money can lead to better financial decisions, improved financial well-being, and greater overall happiness by aligning financial practices with personal values and long-term goals. In 2013, economist Daniel Kahneman authored a similar book with the title, “Thinking, Fast and Slow” to describe the driving force for the mind that is made of two systems, the System 1 is fast, intuitive, and emotional; System 2 is slower, more deliberative, and more logical. The effect of cognitive biases on everything from playing the stock market to planning our next family vacation is understood by knowing how the two systems shape our judgments and decisions. Author Morgan Housel shares a similar idea with several short stories exploring the strange ways we think about money.

Book Reviewed: American Cinema of the 1920s: Themes and Variations by Lucy Fischer

Hollywood in antiquity The 1920s Hollywood make a pivotal decade for the movie industry transitioning from silent films to "talkies." This era also founded the studio system with major players like MGM, Paramount, Warner Bros., and Universal Studios. They also created the star system that helped to produce a large number of creative films. European directors and actors migrated to Hollywood enriching the cinematic landscape. This cross-pollination led to a blend of styles and techniques. The industry was dominated by flappers, a new generation of young women who defied traditional norms of behavior and fashion. The twenties began on the heels of the WWI which led to the making of successful war films. Some great movies include: "The Gold Rush" (1925), starring Charlie Chaplin, with his iconic "Little Tramp" character through various misadventures in the Klondike Gold Rush. "Metropolis" (1927), an epic that explores themes of industrialization and class struggle. "Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ" (1925), directed by Fred Niblo for its chariot race scene and massive scale. It was one of the most expensive movies of the silent era. "Wings" (1927), a World War I movie that shows the fighter pilots engaged in aerial combat sequences, and "The Phantom of the Opera" (1925), starring Lon Chaney is a successful experiment in making a horror film. African Americans were demeaned by racist portrayals in early days of Hollywood. For example, in Max and Dave Fleischer's comic film Chemical Ko-Ko (1929), a black janitor drinks a magic potion and turns white, and then he loses interest in doing a menial job. The 1927 film “The Jazz Singer" reflects the racial attitudes and prejudices of 1920s, showcasing how deeply embedded these stereotypes were in American popular culture. Al Jolson plays a Whiteman performing with a blackface, this practice of white actors playing the roles of black actors were common but shows that this practice was culturally accepted at that time. "Hearts in Dixie," a 1929 movie is significant in the history of American cinema in the context of race relations and representation. It is one of the first all-talking, all black-cast films produced in Hollywood, which aimed to portray African American life in a humanized way. This story is about an elderly African American who tries to save his grandson from his shiftless father. A major studio's early attempt to create a film with a predominantly African American cast intended for mainstream audiences was an audacious effort. Despite its progressive intentions, "Hearts in Dixie" still relied on several stereotypes common in the portrayal of African Americans at the time. Characters often embodied the archetypes of the "happy-go-lucky" Black person or the "loyal servant." You will come to appreciate this book if you have time to watch the movies of 1920s many of which are aired on the Turner Classic Movies (TCM). This is a fascinating book to read and highly recommended to readers interested in the history of Hollywood and the early days of Hollywood’s Golden age.

Book Reviewed: Why We Remember: Unlocking Memory's Power to Hold on to What Matters by Charan Ranganath

Biological forces of human memory This is the author’s debut book that reflects on his passion for the neuroscience of human memory. His work is recounted with enthusiasm especially on his interactions with his patients in a clinical setting. Each chapter is a testament to the importance of neurobiological and neuropsychological research that sheds light on how our past shapes our current reality. There are hidden forces of memory behind our perception of the present. There is also a discussion of how memories are integrated with the memory of others. Humans have episodic memory for specific events or experiences, and semantic memory of facts and derived knowledge. Memory is not a unitary process, but it is due to specific regions of brain working together: The hippocampus and surrounding medial temporal lobe structures are primarily responsible for the episodic memory and retrieval. Memory provides us with a storehouse of knowledge and past experiences that we can draw upon to solve problems and navigate new challenges in an ever-changing world. The author also argues that forgetting isn't a failure of memory, but it is a mechanism that allows our brains to prioritize information that helps us navigate and make sense of the world. Thus, making mindful choices in the present to curate a set of memories to move forward into the future. Memory, in its various forms across different organisms, has significant evolutionary implications. The ability to retain and utilize information about past experiences for survival and adaptation in changing environments. In terms of evolution, memory may be a product of natural selection, where organisms that possess memory-related capabilities have a competitive advantage over those that do not. In animals, memory allows for the retention of knowledge about food sources, predators, mating opportunities, social interactions, and communication. This knowledge improves an individual's chances of survival, reproduction, and success of their species. For example, mammals coexisted with dinosaurs for over 150 million years. They evolved from a group of reptiles called therapsids during the Mesozoic Era (225 million years ago): Part of their successful survival is due to the memory capabilities that provided them competitive advantages over dinosaurs. The author could have devoted a separate chapter about the memories in non-human species. Insects with simple nervous systems have demonstrated memory capabilities: Honeybees remember the location of food sources and communicate this information to their hive mates through complex dances. Fruit flies and ants can remember specific routes or locations. Octopuses have advanced nervous systems and complex behaviors. They learn from experience, remember solutions to problems, and recognize individual humans. They have the ability to navigate mazes, solve puzzles, manipulate objects, and use simple tools. They have a single centralized brain located in their head and clusters of neurons known as ganglia distributed throughout their body which perform information processing independently without the participation of brain. The mechanisms of memory formation are an evolutionary process, and it is interesting to relate complex humans’ system with other species. The author is a psychologist who has investigated how individuals acquire, retain, and recall information by examining factors such as attention, perception, and rehearsal strategies. It is rather an insecure feeling for many neurologists and psychologists like him with the emerging field of plant neurobiology that do not have nervous system, but evidence has been presented in peer reviewed journals to demonstrate that plants have a memory. One of the confounding aspects of this book is the title. “Why we remember” rather than “How we remember.” Science can answer the latter, the former is a harder question to answer since that requires the details of evolutionary challenges presented to the species before humans.

Book Reviewed: Calvinists and Indians in the Northeastern Woodlands by Stephen Staggs

Colonization of North America by the Dutch Calvinists This book documents the history of Dutch colonists (1566-1664) invading the Native American land of northeastern woodlands that included parts of Canada and the United States. The interaction of Dutch and indigenous peoples in America is a history of war, cultural clashes, competition for scarce resources, conversion to the religion of New Testament, inter-dependence, and racism. When the Dutch arrived in the northeastern woodlands which was ruled by the five nations of the Iroquois League formed in the 15th century that controlled present-day New York, Pennsylvania, the Great Lakes, and parts of Ontario. The confederacy included the Mohawk, Cayuga, Oneida, Onondaga, Seneca, Tuscarora, Lenape (also known as the Delaware), and others Native American tribes. The Lenape were later pushed out of their homeland to Oklahoma. Calvinism is a branch of Protestantism based on the teachings of John Calvin, a French reformer of 16th century. His theology emphasized the fate of humans were pre-established after Adam and Eve’s sin. But seeking the divine grace of God is necessary for salvation. His teachings did not give importance to divine birth and the resurrection of Jesus Christ, but taught that leading an austere and pious life was important to find the grace of God. Dutch Calvinist leaders were interested in spiritual, social, and economic opportunities in their colony. But reality did not match the idealistic expectations. In fact, few Natives were not interested in the new reformed faith presented to them. But things changed after the English takeover of North America who used aggressive and brutal methods to impose their belief system. The author goes “lightly” on the conflicts between Calvinists and the natives but describes their efforts to proselytize the indigenous people into Christianity with the hope that they are advancing the “lost souls” into the folds of their religious order. But the natives were uninterested in the colonist’s belief system, but they continued to practice their cultural and sacred rituals to find connections with nature and the creator. The Kieft's War (1643–1645) which natives fought with Dutch colonists was brutal that resulted in significant casualties on natives is not discussed adequately by the author. The description of the early history of Dutch colony does not make the reading any interesting.

Book Reviewed: And Plead for The Rights of All: Old South Church in Boston 1669 – 1969 by Ola Elizabeth Winslow

The Old Church of Boston and its making of the American revolution Ola Elizabeth Winslow is an archivist, historian, and educator whose work in this book reflects on the preservation of the history of the Old Church in Boston, the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1669. It played a strong role in colonial America especially the American Revolution and the abolitionist movement. The author presents her work in a flawless readable manner documenting the history of the church that upheld the beliefs of Calvinism and puritan values that sought to reform the Anglican church (Church of England) in the American colony. Puritans were influenced by the theology of John Calvin who preached in the concept of predestination, the idea that God has already determined who will be saved and who will be damned. This belief in predestination shaped their understanding of salvation. The church sermons and the discussion often reflected on values and themes such as God's sovereignty, human sinfulness, the importance of living a righteous and austere life. The Puritan influence waned as Baptists, Presbyterians, Methodists, and Quakers settled in the colonies of New England, and new ideas began to shape American society. However, their legacy continues to influence American culture where their ideals of education, community, patriotism, and freedom from the English Empire. The Old South Church was founded by the dissenters from the First Church which did not permit democratic and congregational approach to church governance. At present, the Old South Church is not at the same spot as the original 1669 building, which was located at the corner of Washington and Milk Streets. After it was demolished in 1872, the current structure at the intersection of Dartmouth Street and Boylston Street of Boston was built between 1872 and 1875.

Book Reviewed: Spreading the Gospel in Colonial Virginia: Preaching Religion and Community by Edward Bond

Spiritual encounters in colonial Virginia Colonial Virginia is at odds with the traditional interpretation of Christianism in an American colony. Often the description focusses on the beliefs and practices of New Testament by the followers of the Anglican church (Church of England) who were dominant in the early 18th century. But the later arrival of the Baptists, Presbyterians and Quakers created a caricature of pious dissenters Vs. nominally Anglican planters who were materialistic. They were more concerned with their next crop of tobacco, the price of slaves, or the wealth of the family than spiritual needs. This is a meticulously researched work that that describes the role of the church during the formative years. The author includes sermons and writing of the clergy in the early 18th century including selections of sermons, devotional writings, and their spiritual authority. The book discusses historical arguments between the followers of Anglican church and other protestants about the importance of baptism. The outward visible baptism with water or an invisible baptism of the Holy Ghost. Anglicans traditionally baptized infants by pouring water on the child's head, and the colony's laws required that all newborns be brought to the local parish minister for baptism in a timely manner. Quakers found this practice illegitimate and mocked the practice. The author suggests that the lack of appeal to matters of religion brought dissenters of the Anglican church, especially Quakers who were outspoken about the practice of slavery and became the voice of abolitionists. During the 17th and 18th centuries Christmas was not celebrated in colonial Virginia as it is practiced today. The Anglican Church and many parishes held special services on Christmas Day, but the observance was highly subdued. The American Puritan belief that came down from Plymouth colony and the Massachusetts Bay colony dominated by puritans discouraged the celebration of Christmas in a festive style that was considered as a Catholic tradition. The Christmas sermons emphasized the birth of Jesus and the message of salvation, and political matters relevant to the Virginia. The institution of slavery was justified and defended from the pulpits to protect the economic interests of plantation owners. Samuel Davies’s sermon delivered on the Christmas day in the year 1758 quote thirty-two verses from Bible nine were from the synoptic gospels, four from Psalms and two from Romans. The sermon about the “Duties of Christians to heathens,” makes sixteen references to the Bible and four are from Genesis. William Dawson Christmas sermon in the year 1732 has twelve quotes from Bible, three are from Romans and two are from Psalms. Morgan Godwyn, in the late 17th century condemned the enslavement of Africans and advocated for their humane treatment and freedom. James Blair's 117 sermons remain the largest extant collection of pulpit oratory produced by an Anglican minister in colonial Virginia reveal the commissary as a systematic theologian, and tolerant of other Christian de nominations. The book is written well and readable, I recommend this work to readers interested in the church’s role during the formative years in colonial Virginia.