Parade of the Planets: A Fairytale Journey Through the Worlds of the Solar System

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 Episode 13 of Tales of Astronomy , titled Parade of the Planets , is a wonderful turning point in the series. Instead of focusing on just one planet, this episode looks back at the entire Solar System and brings together many of the scientific ideas introduced in earlier adventures. True to the spirit of the series, it does this not through a dry review lesson, but through a magical and imaginative story full of humor, worry, invention, and reflection. At the heart of the episode is a familiar pattern that Tales of Astronomy handles especially well: fear leads to curiosity, and curiosity leads to knowledge. This time, the fear comes from Pitia, who has heard that a “parade of the planets” is coming and immediately assumes it must mean bad luck and disaster. To calm her down, Yavor, Kristina, and Wendelin use a strange new invention — a machine that captures and displays memories. With its help, they revisit everything they have learned so far about the planets. This structure mak...

The ABC's Of A Great Life: "Z" Is For Zeal

 A great life demands a great response and a great capacity for enjoyment. Zeal is all that and more. It is more enthusiastic than enthusiasm, more glittery than gold, and brighter than sheer brilliance. It is a single-minded focus of energy that ignores or avoids nothing yet manages to steer clear of the worst detritus floating in the currents of life. Zeal is the zig and the zag of life, the zap of experience and the
zowie of discovery. It is the ability to indulge without addiction, absorb without being consumed, and engage without being entangled. It sticks its tongue out at boredom and exhaustion. It good-naturedly drags doubts along the path, kicking and screaming, yet never abandons them to the dark. It is the energy that yanks you out of bed in the morning and the peace that lets you sleep at night. It is the spirit of life and the ecstasy of death. It is the core of a great life. What provokes your zeal? What dampens it? How can you bring more of the former and less of the latter into your life? Being zealous need not verge into being a zealot, one who has misused the raw energy of zeal to their detriment. By remaining open to new experiences and information and laughing at yourself, zeal can carry you a long way in a long and fabulous life.

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