This is the most enjoyable chapter so far, and also the most political and the most overtly tied to current (ie 18th-century) affairs.

Spoilt for choice, really!

Chris Patten: We know that despite its great wealth – and its groundbreaking medical research – America's health-care system is awful. It is hugely expensive. Its costs overwhelm workplace health-insurance schemes. The poor go unprotected. Too many of the sick are untreated. Overall health statistics are worse than those in comparable countries.

No big surprise.

Author sets book in Dublin; fails

Glorious!

What if your Kindle is lost or stolen?

A former PR man for the health insurance industry speaks out

The Antikythera mechanism

Copyright: an author speaks

Dutch commentary on the current dispute which rather takes the Belgian side!

Thanks to Eamon for flagging this one up.

Trying to get more works by women onto the Hugo shortlists. Tiocfaidh ar la!

As Americans search for the cure to what ails our health-care system, we've overlooked an invaluable source of ideas and solutions: the rest of the world. All the other industrialized democracies have faced problems like ours, yet they've found ways to cover everybody -- and still spend far less ...

Stross on al-Megrahi and US healthcare

"Any nation as rich as ours ought to guarantee health coverage for all of its residents. "

Tom is still on form!

Summary with links