Snippets #1

John Ruskin ponders penguins. . .

John Keats borrows a book from the journalist Thomas Alsager. . .

An 1849 court case shapes current discussions about British libel law. . .

Jeannette Winterson restores a Victorian building in the Cotswolds. . .

Ada Lovelace, pipe-smoking computer programmer (right), impresses Queen Victoria. . .

Brontë, Nightingale, and Darwin jump to conclusions about that nagging headache. . .

And finally: Afghanistan? Been there, done that. . .