I’m a New Zealand writer with over thirty years hands-on professional experience as a published author and in publishing. My main interests are in the sciences – physics, particularly, though I’m deeply curious about a lot of stuff, especially the human condition. I have qualifications in writing, music and anthropology among other fields, and hold multiple post-graduate degrees in history. I’m also a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society at University College, London. I write a lot. My published writing, sold on merit, includes over 550 articles, academic papers, reviews, novellas and short stories, and over 50 books on topics ranging from travel guides to biography, engineering, military and social history. I’ve been published principally by Penguin Random House.
This week’s obscure English word is relict. It’s a biological term referring to a surviving species from archaic times, implicitly with a small population. My second favourite is the Coelecanth, a lobe-finned fish thought to have gone extinct at the end of the Cretaceous, but which was discovered to be still living off Madagascar in … More The obscure word of the week is relict
I’ve been writing articles for the US website Navy General Board for a while now. The latest is up – so, without further ado, hie thee hence and check it out! Click the photo to jump across, and please do admire the marvellous scrollwork on the bows on the way. Copyright © Matthew Wright 2019 … More The ‘other’ HMS Hood – my latest article for the Navy General Board.
I have never yet successfully watched Avatar, and this despite the fact that it was filmed in the city where I live, and its 3,862 sequels are being developed here right now. I tried watching it. Twice. And fell asleep both times. You can guess that I didn’t think too much of the movie. It … More Why I won’t be watching the Avatar sequels
This week’s obscure English word is cacidrosis. It means bad smelling sweat. Your challenge: write a sentence or two in the comments using this word. Copyright © Matthew Wright 2019
One of the funniest – yet unintentional – ironies I’ve heard of in recent years was the time a local ‘peace action group’ were charged with possession of unlicensed firearms. That’s right. Apparently, in order to stop human violence it was necessary to fight and kill. It always intrigues me how easily a cause or … More When intolerance trumps reason
This week’s obscure English word is rapparee. And yes, it might sound like some kind of jamboree for rappers. Actually it’s a seventeenth century term for an Irish bandit or malfeasant. Your challenge: write a comment using the word. Copyright © Matthew Wright 2019
The problem with going to Mars (of which the Moon, I am told, is a part) is that it’s not just a long way off, it’s also kind of desolate. No atmosphere to speak of. Barren. Waterless, except a bit. Was once a fertile place. Then it suffered climate change. All that was about three … More Let’s go to Mars (of which the Moon is a part)
