Is Patricia Rorrer Innocent?

Patricia Rorrer with her infant daughter

In Convenient Suspect: A Double Murder, a Flawed Investigation, and the Railroading of an Innocent Woman, author Tammy Mal argues, as the title suggests, that a jury wrongfully convicted Patricia Rorrer for the murders of Joann Katrinak and her three-month-old son Alex. Mal based her arguments on transcripts of the trial, police reports, FBI reports, and the investigative work of late journalist Margaret Sneary. Sneary attended Rorrer's trial and believed the jury convicted an innocent person.

"Patty didn't convince me that she was wrongfully convicted; she literally proved it to me," Mal wrote. "When Patricia Rorrer would tell me about troubling aspects of the case, and then back up her claims with actual police, FBI, and forensic lab reports verifying what she said. It was pretty astonishing to realize that the case was littered with some very serious problems."

How to Read More Books If You Find It Hard to Focus

In 2019, Scribd partnered with The Harris Poll to survey Americans on the benefits of reading. These are some results:

• 35% wished they could devote more time to reading while 22% said, "it's easier to do other things."
• 81% don't read as much as they would like due to time constraints
• 70% believed reading more could have a positive impact on their career
• 73% thought society would be better off if people read more non-fiction
• 69% said reading made them feel accomplished

If you are a Scribd member, you can read the report at Reading Makes You Feel Relaxed, Informed & Happier. 

How a Town with No Murders Became the Murder Capital of Massachusetts

Wellfleet, Massachusetts is a tranquil town in the Cape Cod area

There's a saying that there are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics. This saying describes the power of statistics to bolster weak or false arguments. We must always be wary when confronted with statistical data. Statistics are often presented as fact, and numerical data can appear factual even when misleading or outright deceptive. Individuals or organizations with bad intentions can use numbers to deceive us, so we should always consider whether or not the sources of data have a hidden agenda. Students are taught that they should seek out reliable sources when analyzing data. But even sources considered reliable can lead us astray.

The Problem with The Zoologist's Guide to the Galaxy

Alien planets may be subject to similar evolutionary pressures to those on Earth

Where are the aliens? No, this is not a reference to Enrico Fermi (of Fermi's Paradox fame). He was a physicist who wondered why we don't see evidence for alien life when the odds of their existence are high. Instead, it's the question I had while reading The Zoologist's Guide to the Galaxy by Arik Kershenbaum. The subtitle of this book is "What Animals on Earth Reveal About Aliens - and Ourselves." Readers are promised "a wildly fun and scientifically sound exploration of what alien life must be like, using universal laws that govern life on Earth and in space." The book, I'm sure, is scientifically sound. After all, Dr. Kershenbaum is a zoologist, a college lecturer, and a Fellow at Girton College, University of Cambridge. He has spent years researching animal vocal communication and has published several academic papers on the topic. He is involved with METI (Messaging Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence), a non-profit that transmits interstellar messages in an attempt to communicate with possible alien civilizations.

How to Stop Your Mind from Wandering While Studying

Tips to improve concentration and study more efficiently

Many of us deal with the all too common problem of reading several paragraphs in a textbook and then realizing we weren't paying attention. Inattentiveness increases study time, leaving less time for the things we want to do. Things are even worse nowadays than in the past. We all carry connected devices. It's easy to put down a boring textbook, pick up our phone, and scroll through social media, cat videos, or news feeds instead.

Best Gift Ideas for the Bookworms in Your Life

There are lots of great gift ideas for book lovers

Buying gifts for booking loving friends and family seems like it should be easy enough. Buy books. Right? Unfortunately, it might not be that easy. What book would they want to read? What books have they already read? Unless you know exactly what book they want, it may be better to stick to gifts that are not books. 

Top 7 Alternatives to Audible in 2022: Free and Paid Apps

There are several free and paid Audible alternatives

If you love to listen to audiobooks you'll easily find apps and websites providing access to all kinds of public domain works, such as those provided by Librivox. But what if you want to listen to new and bestselling titles? Or older titles that are still copyrighted? There are several paid and free services available that offer bestselling or newer audiobooks for a monthly fee, at discounted prices, or for free.

Audible (owned by Amazon) is the best-known audiobook service, but one that's quite expensive. At the time of writing, $14.95 a month comes with 1 audiobook credit while $22.95 a month gets you 2 credits. Subscribers also have full access to the Audible Plus catalog. If you don't like a book you buy with one of your credits, you can exchange it. If you cancel, you get to keep purchased audiobooks, although you lose access to the Audible Plus catalog. If $14.95 is too steep a price to pay, these are some paid and free alternatives to consider.

How To Check the Balance of Amazon No-Rush Shipping Credits

Amazon Prime offers lots of great benefits and one of those benefits is credits toward a variety of digital content if you choose no-rush shipping at checkout. 

"Use your digital rewards toward eligible Kindle eBooks, Amazon Appstore apps, Amazon Music downloads, or Prime Video rentals or purchases."