Reading and Writing

Since retiring in 2000 Bob Lane [Philosophy and Religious Studies] has continued reading and writing books. He has published a book of short stories called Redneck which is available for purchase on line here. It contains a selection of short stories about being raised on a dry-land farm in the middle of the 20th century. It is a "growing up" story of a young boy dealing with a new step-father, a new home, a new school, a new way of life, and a new religion. Several of the stories have appeared in the Platte Valley Review.

Bob also reviews philosophy books and novels for Metapsychology. Several of his reviews are available here. For example, Bob reviewed


The Top 10 Myths About Evolution by Cameron M. Smith and Charles Sullivan for the Aug 21st 2007 edition: "The Top 10 Myths about Evolution is an easy book to review because it is concise, readable, and intelligently designed [pun intended]. It is an important book for anyone wanting to know the basics about evolution and its detractors. It is aimed at the general reader but provides a general discussion of the science involved as well as an extensive bibliography for those who want to read more about the current science and philosophy of biology. In addition the notes at the end of each chapter are worth reading to amplify even more the material presented in the text. Every high school library, college library and public library should have copies of the book available.

Since the Dover trial [Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District] in 2005 there has been an enormous interest in the conflict between the religious right and the science of biology. The entire transcript of that landmark trial is available from the ACLU website. That trial was to have been the endgame for the Intelligent Design effort to get creationism into the biology classrooms of the USA by re-describing creationism and dressing it up as science. The effort failed very publicly in that trial and the transcript is well worth reading to get a real sense of the conflict and of the fact that no matter how the ID folks dress their product it is definitely not science. About that the Judge was clear."

Even in retirement books are an important part of the life of the mind.