John has apparently been raptured, so for now it’s up to me to keep the blog going. However, I don’t have time for much more than a hit-and-run so I’ll toss out a bleg.
My 5-year-old nephew has a weird affinity for numbers. When he was 3 he got unnervingly good at memorizing where each Pittsburgh bus line goes. This Passover I helped him figure out that almost all of the Presidents on his American history placemat lasted either two four or eight years (my math not so good). He then pointed out on his own that when one President lasted an odd number of years, the the next guy filled in for a period that added up to four or eight. Then he demanded to know why Grover Cleveland showed up twice. He’s a bright kid.
It struck me that the best way to encourage my nephew would be some books or puzzles that take his interest in math and other practical puzzle solving to the next level. Google could probably get me partway there, but my past blegs (NYC restaurants, productivity programs for the Mac) have turned up some great and unexpected stuff so I’m opening the floor again.