Jump to content
Science Forums

So what is everyone reading?


Tormod

Recommended Posts

currently reading the Urban Dictionary entry for Trolls and Spammers. :read:

 

Trolls and Spammers @ Urban Dictionary

Someone who is purposefully posting on a forum/messageboard/site sith[sic] the sole aim to irritate the regular members.

...

The long-term troll:

These guys don't mind waiting around for the fun to begin. They may pretend to be an average n00b, and give themselves the stereotyical interest(s) of the average member of said forum, then once having a few posts they will gradually try to spread dissent.

...

The sophisticated troll:

This type will usually have some sort of distaste for whatever the said message board is discussing and try to cause annoyance as opposed to destructiveness. They will parody the members and see how much they can get over their heads. Subtle pisstaking being their route. They'll usually get banned in the end but will annoy an entire community using this drawn out approach.

...

The rank and file spammer:

These are the first to pop into peoples minds, they are similar to the examples stated in the first paragraph. No previous experience necessary, this lot will swarm in, again, usually under proxies to maximise the destructiveness, and spam the place to hell. Only causes mild irritation if not in large numbers.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just finished Physics for Future Presidents by Richard Muller. I was impressed by how well the author presented the actual science behind present day political concerns such as terrorism, nuclear energy, and global warming in a way that scientifically illiterate people can understand and use to make informed opinions. I will be purchasing this book to pass amongst my friends, particularly those who equate radiation with imminent death.

 

I'm now deeply involved in savoring Le Ton Beau De Marot by Douglas Hofstadter. If you appreciate the beauty of language itself and scoff at those who throw around "literal translation" as if it is not only possible but a commonly attained goal, then you will love this book. Be warned though, that most are likely to find 800 pages devoted to the translation of a 28 line old French poem tedious.

Translation - Lost in an art :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 7 months later...
  • 4 years later...

Poison Arrows: North American Indian Hunting and Warfare by David E. Jones (2007)

 

Cover review by Wayne Van Horne, Associate Professor of Anthropology, Kenesaw State University: "A unique contribution to the field of American Indian ethnology. ... This information has never been compiled before, and I doubt that many ethnologists in the field have ever suspected the extent to which poison was used among North American Indians."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just finished the "War dogs" trilogy by Greg Bear...cool like all his books.

I though I’d read most of Greg Bear’s novels, since I got interested in him after reading his mind-blowing Eon in or not long after 1985, but when I failed to find a Wikipedia page for the War Dogs series (a good Wikipedia editing project for you, sanctus – Wikipedia’s only as good as we its editors make it) and went to his “all my books” page, I see he’d been writing a novel or 2 a year for the past nearly 40 years! I’ve barely scratched the surface of the goodness that is the writing of Greg Bear. :)

 

I finished a foray into the weird, mostly ineptly written, and occasionally disturbing sexist LitRPG genre (Paul Miller has read less in it than me, so his linked review of the genre is shallow, but as I’ve not written one at all, better then mine :) ), and did a mental palette cleansing by reading Greg Egan’s 1994 Campbell award winning Permutation City. To my surprise, I could make an argument that it and the LitRPG genre share some fringy ontological ideas.

 

Then I read a an unpleasant militaristic time travel novel that I won’t favor to mention by name and which I’ve mercifully mostly forgotten, bringing me up to what I’m reading right now, Caliban’s War, the 2nd, 2012 book in James Corey’s Expanse series, which is pretty well know from being made into a TV series, which I’m liking well.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

CraigD, Eon is one amazing story! It also has a follow up and a book in the same universe. Check them out.
Forge of God and Anvil of stars is also amazing (mainly second one).

Slant was cool, but I think i was a bit to young to really get it, not sure whether I read Darwin's radio.

The 2 halo books he wrote are "ok-" the second I did not finish.

Started now Nemesis by Alex Lamb.
 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...
  • 9 months later...
  • 3 years later...
  • 1 year later...

In general, I really like Detectives! But now I am actively reading books about business, I have something in mind, and I don't have time or money to study. At the moment I am reading literature for newbies in business RICH DAD POOR DAD BY ROBERT KIYOSAKI, THE FOUR HOUR WORK WEEK BY TIM FERRIS, IDEAS ON DEMAND: A CRASH COURSE ON CREATIVITY. BUST CREATIVITY BLOCKS, 10X YOUR IDEAS, AND BECOME AN IDEA MACHINE. (10X IMPACT) BY MILIIND HARRDAS. It's certainly not reading for the soul, but it's the right thing to do. How to start, where to start, what are the stages of a startup. I also realized that If you want your online business to be successful, you can't do without a software startup company. But those are a little different books.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...