Niccolo Machiavelli, when not engaged in scheming and political conniving, had an amateur's interest in the science of hydrology.

Were these reports fabricated by paper mills in Hong Kong, produced by political conniving in Taiwan, or conjured up by wishful thinking in Washington?

There were no political connivings necessary, no financial arenas to struggle in, no nerve-knotting races for superior rungs on the social ladder.