Great news for Kindle 2
Here is a .pdf file I copied onto my Kindle, shown in portrait mode:
And here's the PDF file shown in landscape mode:
This software update also allows for manual screen rotation!
I should also point out that they've consolidated Kindle 2
There is also an update for the Kindle DX
Here are four books on writing I just finished reading that you may find of interest. These books give insight into the nuts and bolts of the writing life, fill in the backstory of how writers craft their ideas, show how to read critically, and discuss why books and writing are important.
This book, Booklife: Strategies and Survival Tips for the 21st Century Writer
Really, this is a useful book.
In Reading Like a Writer: A Guide for People Who Love Books and for Those Who Want to Write Them
In Ron Carlson Writes a Story
In A Dangerous Profession: A Book About the Writing Life
Be sure to check out the forthcoming Richmond Noir, an anthology of original noir stories by Dean King, Laura Browder, Howard Owen, Yazmina Beverly, Tom De Haven, X.C. Atkins, Meagan Saunders, Anne Soffee, Clint McCowan, Conrad Persons, Clay Chapman, Pir Rothenberg, David Robbins, Hermine Pinson, and Dennis Danvers.
With a Foreward by Tom Robbins.
Edited by Andrew Blossom, Brian Castleberry, and Tom De Haven.
By the way, rumor has it that the tomb pictured above houses the Richmond vampire...
UPDATE [25 November 2009]: There's a new software update for the Kindle DX that provides for better cropping of PDF files to maximize the amount of content on the screen.
So I am sure by now you've heard of the new digital book reader by Amazon, the Amazon Kindle DX
A while ago I reviewed my Kindle 2. The DX includes Kindle 2 features such as free wireless delivery of books purchased from Amazon, long battery life, text-to-speech, and mp3 audio file playback (with stereo audio jack as well as built-in speakers), so here I will concentrate on the main new features the DX brings to the reading experience.
The most obvious difference is the size of the display. The DX is larger, with a diagonal screen size of 9.7".The screen size of the DX is more like that of a textbook, rather than the Kindle 2's paperback size format (screen size of 6" on the diagonal).
There are also a few cosmetic changes. The Next Page and Previous Page buttons are now only along the right side of the border. I actually welcome this change, since I can now easily hold the Kindle without worrying about accidently turning the page. Also, the keyboard on the bottom border is smaller - numbers can now be typed using an Alt-letter combination on the DX whereas the Kindle 2 had a dedicated row of number buttons. Again, I like this change, since it devotes more of the usable space on the device to the screen for reading. Moreover, I do not often need to type in numbers using my Kindle, and so when I do I do not mind using the Alt-letter combination.
Unlike the Kindle 2, the Kindle DX now includes native support for viewing Adobe pdf documents. This is a big win for me, since most of the documents I read are in this format. As an example, below is an image of the Kindle DX displaying one of my pdf slides.
This image also captures the another new feature in the Kindle DX - auto screen rotate. Simply turn the Kindle on its side and the display will automatically rotate. This effectively zooms in on the page being displayed.
In my opinion the e-ink display is more readable in the Kindle DX than the Kindle 2. Also, the display works better when trying to render dark fonts on a light background, as shown below. Here is where the Kindle DX shines when rendering pdf documents, as even equations are very legible.
So in summary, the Kindle DX brings a larger viewing format to the digital book reading world. The Kindle DX also supports viewing pdf documents. Text and images look great on the larger screen, and with the DX's 4GB of internal storage, you can carry up to about 3,500 books, magazines, and documents in one slim device. This is a boon, especially for folks who travel.
I personally prefer the Kindle DX, since the larger format and pdf support better suit my needs. My wife however prefers the smaller size Kindle 2 for reading science fiction novels.
Oh, and if you are going to get the Kindle DX, I would also recommend a case for it. This Belkin Neoprene sleeve case
Available from Amazon here
Here's a really cool new feature: you can subscribe to my blog on Amazon --- this is my blog's subscription link. This will automatically load onto your Kindle my blog so that you will always be able to read it, even if you do not have Internet access. Also, the Kindle version has just my articles --- it removes a lot of the other ads and sidebars that are on my main web-access version.
Just as an example, here is a Kindle screenshot of one of my articles:
As you can see, the images turn out pretty good, and the text font size is freely sizable, as always on the Kindle.
The low monthly price (which was set by Amazon, by the way) will help me create better reviews and discussion pieces, so thank you in advance for your support!
Here are two simple questions:
Probably most of you raised your hands to both questions.
But considering that the National Center for Health Statistics reports that more than 34% of Americans are obese (and with another 33% overweight), and considering that the average American has about $10,000 in credit card debt, there seems to be a big difference between what people say they want to be (the answer to the above questions) and what they actually are (unhealthy and in debt).
I'll leave getting fit for another post, but at least there's a great resource you can tap if you actually want to be rich --- the unambiguously titled new book I Will Teach You To Be Rich
The book contains a six-week program to get your finances in order, get you out of debt, and help you be rich. But it is important to note that this is not the typical "buy hot stocks" or "hedge funds are great" or "to be rich you need to be an expert in finance" investment books. Rather, this book contains basic, fundamental, core principles and steps you can actually implement, today, to get out of debt and save lots of money. For example, regarding credit cards, the author includes actual scripts you can use to turn the tables on the credit card companies (like the scripts the telemarketers use on you to get you to buy things) and get them to waive your finance charges, lower your APR, and resolve missed payments. The book also includes examples, solid advice, explanations and reasons, and practical tips for getting out of debt and becoming rich.
This book is best for those people in their 20's and 30's -- those most likely to make naive finance mistakes (like going into credit card debt) and those most able to take advantage of the long-term view to money management. But everyone can learn something from the book, from how to negotiate, how to automate your bills and investments, and how to make investment decisions that won't require you to spend a lot of your own time managing them and won't require you to become a finance expert beforehand.
From the current state of the economy, it is clear that a lot of people do not have a basic understanding of how to manage their money. If they really want to become rich, then they should buy the book and actually do something about it, starting today.
Currently available from Amazon in paperback
One basic theme of the book
For example, consider the reaction of most people --- if they see a car wreck, their response is likely to be "call 911". Or if the power goes out they will likely say "call the power company". Or if they hear someone breaking into their home, they could say "call the police".
But how do you handle an emergency if there is no one else to cry to for help? What if the responsibility for the response falls onto your shoulders?
For example, after Hurricane Katrina, where local, state, and federal agencies where simply not up to the task of dealing with the disaster, "call 911" was not enough.
Or consider man-made disasters --- just this morning the news headlines read that North Korea fired a long-range missile, against international condemnation. What will you do if a war breaks out?
What will you do in a riot, natural disaster, attack by religious extremists, economic collapse, or other event where you must act in order to save your family and yourself?
Author Neil Strauss considers these questions in an entertaining description of how he transformed himself from a typical "city slicker" into someone who knows how to respond to each of the above scenarios. He describes how he learned to protect his assets, how to "disappear" in a crowd, how to defend himself, how to find water if stranded at sea, how to travel unhindered through police/emergency barriers, how to remain "invisible" as an American when traveling abroad, and even how to turn a credit card into a knife.
This book is not a how-to manual for all of the above, but by considering the experiences and questions raised by the author, it may lead you to consider increasing your skills and knowledge so that you can save yourself rather than depend on someone else to come to your rescue, especially in the event that no one else can or will.
From the book:
When the shit hits the fan, you're going to want to find me. And you'll want to be doing whatever I'm doing. Because I've learned from the best.
You can call me crazy if you want.
Or you can listen to the story of the eight years it took to open my eyes, realize my country can't protect me, and do something about it.
It just may save your life.
What will you do in an emergency?
Available from Amazon:
Thinking of a career change in a down economy? Ever wondered how business leaders are trained? Want to gain insight into the world of movers and shakers?
If so, you might enjoy reading Ahead of the Curve: Two Years at Harvard Business School
Against type, the book depicts a former London journalist's decision to reinvent himself by trying for a Harvard MBA. While many of his classmates are attending the program "on vacation" from their Wall Street jobs, Broughton struggles to keep up with computations using Excel and a demanding class and homework schedule. The story is essentially about Broughton's quest for meaning, his place in the world, and what exactly are the characteristics of the "perfect job". As he goes through the program, he tries to balance all the knowledge and networking relationships he gains with the realization that the resulting careers of those who graduate, though very lucrative, might not be exactly what he is looking for due to the family and personal sacrifices such jobs demand.
The book also gives a rare glimpse inside the very successful Harvard MBA program, as well as some of the students in the program. If you are thinking of testing your mettle and going for an MBA, then you might want to read his story.
Amazon just released a kindle reader application (Kindle for iPhone link in iTunes) for the iPhone and iPod touch.
If you were hesitant to buy a kindle 2 book reader (review), but still wanted access to Amazon's huge selection of electronic books, then this free application might be just what you were looking for.
As an example, here is the title page of the book Ahead of the Curve: Two Years at Harvard Business School
With this application you can download books you have already purchased from Amazon for free, read the first chapter of any book before you buy it, and add bookmarks and annotations to your text.
One really neat feature is that your reading location in a book is automatically synchronized between your iPhone and your kindle book reader. Say you stopped reading on page 59 of your book on the kindle, then left your kindle at home to go run some errands. If you have a moment to read whilst out and about, you can pull out your iPhone and your reading location in your book will automatically be in the right spot.
And, of course, to turn the page of a book on your iPhone, you just swipe your finger across the screen, like turning a page on a physical book.
Here's how the screen looks when the application is showing you options for saving a bookmark, changing font size, synchronizing, etc, while reading:
Note that normally when reading these option buttons are not there, so that the entire screen's real estate can be used for book text.
And did I mention that the Kindle for iPhone application was free?
UPDATE [25 November 2009]: The Kindle 2 now has support for viewing PDF documents with the 2.3 software update! This update also allows for screen rotation, so you can read your books in portrait mode or landscape mode.
UPDATE: I've posted my review of the Kindle DX ebook reader, here. You might say it's the new Kendall book reader, since my wife swiped my Kindle 2 (review below of the Kindle 2).
So I just received the new Kindle 2
The design and build quality of the new kindle book reader (now called the kendall book reader by my wife) is much improved over the original kindle. The next-page buttons are better-placed, the case is sturdier, it holds a lot more books (about 1500), and the 5-way direction stick allows for easier navigation and selection.
Buying any of the over 240,000 available books (with more being added daily) is very easy, as is subscribing to magazines, newspapers, and blogs. Reading text with the e-ink display and turn-page buttons makes the device "disappear" --- you aren't constantly reminded that you are using an electronic device to read a book, as perhaps with other book readers or devices (like your cell phone ?!).
Battery life is great, since the e-ink displays do not drain the battery to refresh the screen --- only on the turn of the page (which may confuse some flight attendants).
The cellular, free connectivity is very handy, especially since I am often on travel and without an Internet connection --- you can download new books, surf, and access your content even if you are not near a wifi network using Amazon's Whispernet service. Again, for free. This means you can access Amazon and even the WWW via the built-in web browser without having to be tethered to your computer or be near a wifi access point. (Note that some websites are creating mobile versions --- webpages that look good when rendered on a small mobile device screen.)
In addition to reading commercial content, you can view your own documents or documents sent to you from other people. Amazon charges a small fee to convert these documents for wireless download to your kindle (which some people gripe about), but I figured out that this conversion service is actually free if you send the converted pdf/document first to your computer, then to your kindle, rather than directly to your kindle over the cellular network from Amazon.
The kindle also plays audio books from Audible.com (review) as well as mp3 files --- you can even have your favorite song playing in the background while you read your book.
The graphics are much improved over the original kindle, as can be seen in the images on this page.
In case you want to travel with your kindle --- which is one of the main benefits of the kindle, since you can carry a truck load of books with you in the palm of your hand --- you may want to purchase a travel case in which to carry your kindle, such as the Belkin Neoprene Sleeve Case
I should point out that this device is not an iPhone --- you can't interact with the device by touching the screen, for example, and other user-interface decisions are different from the iPhone experience. But this device provides a reading environment better than any other electronic device. In addition, it provides other advanced features (such as text-to-speech, and taking notes within the book) that are way-beyond the capabilities of other devices.
In all, the Kindle 2
UPDATE [November 25, 2009]: There have been a lot of improvements to the Kindle 2
The Kindle 2
A little more than a year after the Kindle made its debut, Amazon announced a new, updated version of its popular e-book reader Monday with a big endorsement from Stephen King.
Kindle 2 is more than just a prettier version of its Kindle 1. Though the 10-oz. machine is only one-third of an inch thick--that's 25% thinner than an iPhone--it stores up to 1,500 books vs. 200 in the original. And it offers sharper on-screen images, with 16 shades of gray to offer graphic nuances. Amazon added these based on e-mails from Kindle customers, says Laura Porco, director of Kindle Books. "We're always listening to customers," she says. "We took their feedback to design some things: They said, We want Kindles to hold more books, and we want crisper images."
The Kindle 2 now powers up from USB--a boon for all of us who hated carrying an extra charger with the original device. The mini-USB port at the bottom works not only for power but also for allowing the Kindle 2 to act as a USB mass-storage device, in the event you want to drag and drop files to the handheld.
So, yes, there are many reasons to dislike the Amazon Kindle 2, but as I see it, the benefits still far outweigh the disadvantages. Trust me, you're going to want a Kindle 2.
WhisperNet and Amazon's great range of book titles (over 230,000 titles including 7,000+ free public domain classics etc.) are still the 31 feature and make the Kindle 2.0 the best eReader available.
It is interesting to hear about Google's mobile book service, just days before Amazon's rumored announcement of a new Kindle:
Today we are excited to announce the launch of a mobile version of Google Book Search, opening up over 1.5 million mobile public domain books in the US (and over half a million outside the US) for you to browse while buying your postage. While these books were already available on Google Book Search, these new mobile editions are optimized to be read on a small screen.
The OCR'd text looks pretty good on my iPod touch.
If you like wine, want to learn good ways to tell the differences between all those grape varieties, or maybe even want to know which wines to pair with which foods, then you might want to check out The Wine Guy : Everything You Want to Know about Buying and Enjoying Wine from Someone Who Sells It
Andy, a former television executive, turned his love of wine into a very successful Manhattan wine store called West Side Wine. In The Wine Guy, he condenses his passion, knowledge, and love of wines into a very readable and useful book. You will learn not only about the different grapes, the different wine regions, and how to taste the wines, but you will also gain the confidence and knowledge you need to buy the wines you like, pair wines with foods, and try new wines you might enjoy. In a sense, this book trains you to be your own Wine Guy.
In addition, the book contains handy charts and tables so that you can learn to decipher wine bottle labels, pick wines according to desired flavors, decide which lesser-known wines to try based on your current preferences, pick which wines to try based on which grape, and determine which are the primary grapes of the different geographic wine regions. Amusing stories and insightful tips---from how to buy wine in restaurants to how to calculate the number of bottles of wine you will need for a party---add to the useful tables and wine knowledge, resulting in a very enjoyable book.
Cheers!
The coming holiday season, especially Yule, is a very appropriate time to enjoy The Children of Hurin
Tolkien had started the story before 1920 and made several revisions after, but did not finish it before his death in 1973. His son Christopher edited the manuscripts and was able to complete the tale.
The time of the story is from the First Age of Middle-Earth---before that of Frodo, Bilbo, Gandalf, The Hobbit
This is a much darker tale than Lord of the Rings, and traits and concepts that seem forgotten in today's time, such as honor, luck, valor, loyalty, courage, and duty, play great roles in the story. Even the style of writing harkens back to a time long forgotten, yet is somehow familiar and elemental and right. Thus it is perhaps not a light reading, but one that is nevertheless very satisfying.
Quantum of Solace: The Complete James Bond Short Stories
Interestingly, the film Quantum of Solace is not based on the short story of the same name. Nevertheless, these short stories offer glimpses into James Bond and the sorts of adventures he undertakes not available from the longer novels. In fact, one of the most compelling stories in the collection, Quantum of Solace, is just a conversation between James Bond and the Governor of the Bahamas---this story alone is worth the purchase price of the collection.
The entire list of short stories is:
"From a View to a Kill" "For Your Eyes Only" "Quantum of Solace" "Risico" "The Hildebrand Rarity" "Octopussy" "The Property of a Lady" "The Living Daylights" "007 in New York"
Cheers.
Live and Let Die
Here, James must uncover a gold-smuggling ring, sponsored by the Communist SMERSH government agency. The leader of the smuggling ring is Mr. Big, who wields control of his crime network, stretching from Harlem to Jamaica, through fear from the practice of Voodoo.
Bond must travel to Harlem in his investigations, and there has an unfortunate encounter with Mr. Big. Bond also meets the Voodoo fortune teller Solitaire, who catches Bond's eye with her beauty. But a reversal of fortunes for Bond and Solitaire has them cross paths again in a race across the country, ending with underwater operations, and excitement, in Jamaica.
We also meet with CIA operative Felix Leiter again, and we learn how and why Leiter appears with a hook for an arm in later Bond stories.
As with other Bond stories, this one has a tight and fast-paced plot, lots of action, and Ian Fleming's eye for detail and succinct description.
The movie version, with Roger Moore
Auric Goldfinger is one of the more memorable villains to cross paths and wits with James Bond. Ian Fleming, in Goldfinger
But there are many more memorable scenes and characters in this James Bond novel, such as the high-stakes card game, the lethal character named Oddjob, tracking Goldfinger on a drive through scenic Europe, and watching James try his hand at being Goldfinger's secretary.
The DVD version of Goldfinger
But while this story was very entertaining, there were a couple of plot twists in the book that were a little hard to believe (like when James was about to be sawed in half). But what is a James Bond story without a little suspension of belief?
So, from that perspective, the story really is golden.
Some say that Thunderball, by Ian Fleming
Here, we are introduced to SPECTRE via their plot to steal two nuclear warheads and explode them at key locations in a ransom plot for money. James gets involved, accidentally, when a chance encounter with someone involved in the SPECTRE plot sets off a series of unfortunate incidents, resulting in James being sent to the Bahamas as a scout for the missing nuclear warheads. James teams up with CIA agent friend Felix Leiter, falls in love with the beautiful Domino, and winds up in the clutches of Blofeld's number one agent, Emilio Largo. That Domino seems to be Emilio's lover only adds to the spice, and trouble for Bond.
But while the movie version is pure action-oriented James Bond thriller that we know and love, the book version actually adds more subtle and introspective layers to the James Bond character that I would have never known from only watching Sean Connery. So while the movie is nice, I find the book much more authentic and, frankly, gripping.
At the end of On Her Majesty's Secret Service, James Bond loses the love of his life. Falling into a downward spiral of depression and loneliness, James loses his fire, his will to live, and perhaps, his job.
On one last assignment to see if he has anything left, in You Only Live Twice
This book finds an end to the Blofeld trilogy, and is actually a very satisfying conclusion. It resolves many of the inner demons inside James, and rekindles the fire that makes our favorite 00-agent tick. We also get to see a bit of the inside of Japanese culture, experienced through the eyes of a British agent.
The plot of the movie version deviates somewhat from the real storyline, but Sean Connery nevertheless provides a commendable rendition of the James we know and love on the silver screen.
Note that reading this book completes part of one task of my 101 Goals in 1001 Days project.
Of the Bond books I've read so far, I would have to say that On Her Majesty's Secret Service, by Ian Fleming, is one of his best.
This book encompasses a lot for changes for Bond. Picking up Bond's life after Thunderball, Bond is about ready to quit his job as a 00 after becoming discouraged tracking down Ernst Blofeld, the leader of SPECTRE, and is just ready to hand in his resignation letter. But a series of events involving money and a woman at a casino soon leads Bond into the depths of the French mafia. From there, he receives a tip on the whereabouts of Blofeld, and Bond goes undercover to investigate Blofeld's operation. But before he leaves, he finds that he has fallen in love with the woman from the casino, Tracy---true love, perhaps for the first time in his life.
While on the mountain, Bond uncovers a dire plot involving biowarfare and the action really picks up from there. However, the most emotional moments occur when Bond gets back together with Tracy, and his life is changed forever.
This story is good not only because of the Bond action we have come to expect, but also because we get to see a personal and emotional side of him not often shown.
I have not seen the movie version of the book yet - my understanding is that it stars George Lazenby as Bond, instead of Sean Connery, Daniel Craig, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, or Pierce Brosnan.
Note that reading this book completes part of one task of my 101 Goals in 1001 Days project.
Doctor No
After recovering from the poisoning at the end of the previous novel, James Bond is sent to Jamaica to investigate the disappearance of a section chief on the island. Once there, Bond starts to uncover clues around many secret and strange activities of a certain Dr. No on Crab Key Island. Investigating further, Bond finds himself in the middle of a large, diabolical plot by Dr. No to gain power and wealth.
He is soon captured, and Bond must struggle to stay alive while trying to save the life of an innocent girl also caught by Dr. No, the beautiful Honey Ryder. Mr. Fleming shows his creative talents in devising various punishments and traps for Bond, and Dr. No becomes a legendary Bond Villain. A thrilling and unforgettable story.
The film version of Dr. No
Note that reading this book completes part of one task of my 101 Goals in 1001 Days project.
It was from a different time, a somehow more refined time that bred James Bond. It was a time before fancy gadgets, suicide bombers, and the Internet. It was a time of heroes, when the clack of the train as it runs along the rails promised a certain romance, and when the trace of a hidden door in a wall panel brought danger. A double-edged throwing knife, bullets smuggled through airport security, vodka martinis.
Such is the world in the James Bond thriller From Russia with Love
In the book, James travels to Istanbul to retrieve a cypher machine, but gets entangled and distracted by the captivating Tatiana Romanova. Along the way Bond meets a few friends, but many enemies, including Russia's SMERSH organization, and the story comes to a climax during a perilous trip on the Orient Express. There is a surprise ending, and we can't help but wonder if Bond makes it out alive.
Note that reading this book completes part of one task of my 101 Goals in 1001 Days project.
If one were to pause for a moment and consider what "good government" would be like, we might think of one that would serve the people, upholding the Constitution, working to help the citizens in time of need, offering services to enrich the quality of life, promoting science, innovation, and education, defending the country in time of crisis, and serving as a shining example to other nations.
Now, if you were to reflect on the government you've seen in action recently, then your two visions might not exactly match.
In his book Your Government Failed You: Breaking the Cycle of National Security Disasters
Beginning with the failures before and after 9/11, he also analyses intelligence efforts, homeland security, energy policies, and, in my opinion most importantly, cyberspace and cybersecurity.
We need more professionals like Richard Clarke in government, to lead, guide, and provide wisdom to our elected officials. As the individuals with the experience, dedication, and ability are run out of government by an increasingly polarized and politicized administration, one wonders who will sound the voice of reason, rationality, and intelligence going forward.
Note that reading this book completes one task of my 101 Goals in 1001 Days project.
I Am Legend
The book focuses on Robert Neville as he tries to stay alive and sane in a world ruled by vampires. He researches the plague and tries to find a cure, and his strength and reason are put to the test in a life where his days are spent preparing for the vampire onslaughts at night, and his nights are spent struggling to live to just another day. Trying to stay alive while all alone, especially after one's family and friends are killed and the only purpose in living any longer is to avoid being ripped to shreds by vampires, can test anyone's sanity, and Robert has his share of mental, as well as physical, struggles.
I haven't yet seen Hollywood's remake of the book, the I Am Legend
Note that completing this book meets one of my 101 goals in 1001 days project goals.
Stephen Hawking in A Brief History of Time: From the Big Bang to Black Holes
A well-known scientist (some say it was Bertrand Russell) once gave a public lecture on astronomy. He described how the earth orbits around the sun and how the sun, in turn, orbits around the center of a vast collection of stars called our galaxy. At the end of the lecture, a little old lady at the back of the room got up and said: "What you have told us is rubbish. The world is really a flat plate supported on the back of a giant tortoise." The scientist gave a superior smile before replying, "What is the tortoise standing on?" "You're very clever, young man, very clever," said the old lady. "But it's turtles all the way down!"
So, "turtles all the way down" refers to a belief about how the universe is constructed--our world rests on the back of a turtle, which rests on the back of a second turtle, which rests on the back of a third, etc.---and more generally refers to an infinite regression type of situation or problem or argument.
The turtle stacking nexus must be somewhere in Virginia, because so far this summer I've had to relocate seven turtles, going the wrong way on busy streets or otherwise getting themselves into trouble.
First, there was this turtle, then that turtle, then the following quick succession of honorable turtles:
Here's Turtle Three:
Turtles Four and Five:
Turtle Six:
Turtle Seven:
So how many turtles support the world on their backs?
Well, at least seven.
If you think that you make rational, reasoned decisions, or that you are the master of your domain, etc., then you might consider reading Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions
This book provides a very interesting glimpse into just how humans make decisions in real life---it turns out that in a variety of situations, humans are not the masters of rationality that we assume them to be.
Economics is very good at making lots of models to predict supply and demand, though a core assumption is that humans will always make rational decisions. One look at the current economy gives weight to the statement that economists have a very hard time with getting their complex models to reflect, in any reasonable way, reality. Dan's take on economics is that humans, more often than not, make irrational decisions, leading to a new field called Behavioral Economics. Through a series of very interesting experiments, Dan shows that his suppositions are correct---humans make irrational decisions a lot, and the results of his experiments give insight into why and how people respond as they do to life situations.
Example experiments include testing human decision making when we have lots of options, how our decision making is distorted when we are sexually aroused, why we are dishonest, and how we are influenced by the placebo effect and the power of suggestion.
I found this book very entertaining---now I know why a 50-cent Aspirin works and a 1-cent Aspirin doesn't---and I do think Dan has done a great service in highlighting and investigating how humans really make decisions, as opposed to how traditional economists assume we make decisions.
Finally, reading this book finishes one of my 101 goals in 1001 days.
Just yesterday I paid $4.09/gallon for 87 octane gas in Baltimore. Many people, lured into buying bloated, inefficient cars, trucks, and SUVs made and marketed by Detroit, are now feeling similar pains in the wallet. An ABC news story suggests that gas may soon cost $7/gallon.
But it is not just the high price of gas that is causing concern. All across the U.S., hundreds of thousands of people are losing their homes to foreclosure or are unable to sell their homes, and the crown jewels of the U.S. are being bought up by unsavory foreign governments taking advantage of the weak dollar.
Everyone wants to just throw their hands into the air, but if you have wondered why these events are happening, then you might consider reading The Trillion Dollar Meltdown: Easy Money, High Rollers, and the Great Credit Crash
This book won't help you get out of debt, sell your house, or improve the degrading quality of the education system. But what it will do is put the current economic crisis into context, give insight into how economic and personal spending practices contributed to the problem, and help us understand what can be done to improve our national situation. It will also help you realize why and how the much heralded Alan Greenspan and his Chicago economics theories may have actually led to our current economic downward spiral, as did the lack of critical thinking skills by the millions of Americans who tried to buy houses when they could not afford to, assisted by greedy banks, other lenders, and Wall Street. It will also show how the follies of the current Presidential administration led to the decline of American economic standing in the world, with potentially dire implications for us all going forward.
There are no quick fixes for the current situation we voted and spent ourselves into, but this book at least paints a plausible explanation for why we are here. Where we go from here depends in large part on the resilience and fortitude of the American peoples, and this book at least helps show a reality clearly the result of causes and effects rather than from forces outside our control.
Human's have it pretty good. Unlike, say, the koala, which only has to consider which eucalyptus tree to climb in order to have yet another meal of eucalyptus leaves, humans are omnivores, able to make a meal from a variety of plants, animals, and fungi. This has, in part, allowed humans to live in all parts of the world - from the humid tropics of the jungle, to the dry, sandy deserts of the middle east, to the cold, unforgiving quiet of the frozen tundra.
But this ease of making a meal, no matter what the environment, has turned what was once a survival advantage for our species, when humans first struggled to spread across the globe tens of thousands of years ago, into a bit of a disadvantage in an industrialized world over-populated with people and, ironically, with too much of the wrong kind of food. Overpopulation and the need to feed so many mouths has led to the industrialization of food production, transforming small family farms into large monocultures of genetically-modified cornfields and acre-sized metal sheds of captive, steroid and antibiotic-injected cows. We might have once thought this scaling up of food production to be a good thing, but is it?
But why stop asking questions there? Just where does that McDonald's meal come from, really? Why does the U.S. grow so much corn? Why do the factory farms plant thousands of acres of corn, and only corn? And with so much corn, why does the government subsidize the factory farms to grow more of it? Is "corn-fed beef" a delicacy, or a perorative? How is Whole Foods, at the same time, different from and just like the modern factory farm? Why might Joel Salatin's Polyface Farm, in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley, represent the best farm in the U.S.?
Why indeed. And you might be surprised at the answers to each of the above questions.
So if you have ever wondered about the food you unpackage from its plastic shrink wrap and plop into the microwave, if you have ever considered the moral hazard of eating meat - or corn, and if you have ever wanted to gather wild mushrooms, then you might want to read The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals
With an admirable investigative tenacity and a gift for telling a good story, Michael details how our food is grown, produced, cooked, and eaten by examining the life story behind four meals - one bought from a fast food chain, one made from items bought in an organic store, one made from foods grown and raised on a sustainable farm, and one made from foods foraged from the wild. In reading about Michael's adventures, you will discover what it takes to get the food on your table to your table, and you will likely never think about corn the same again.
Modern humans have lost the connection to the land and the food it provides. Overweight, overpopulated, and increasingly unhealthy, Michael's look into what we eat and how it was made is perhaps the just desserts.
If you've ever wanted to combine staying healthy with literature, then you might want to consider walking, biking, swimming, or rowing to Rivendell.
Here's the idea: Karen Fonstad (sadly, when writing up this post, I saw that Karen died in 2005 due to complications from breast cancer) reverse-engineered the route Frodo and Company took on their way to Rivendell in her book The Atlas of Middle-Earth
In her Rivendell mileage chart, Karen notes the cumulative miles, miles between each milepost, and the description of each milepost location. So if you are just starting out and log 3 miles on today's run, then you would make a note in your notebook your mileage run for the day and the cumulative miles you have run. That way you can compare your progress against the progress of the Company as they (and you) head to Rivendell.
All this may sound a bit geeky, but it does work---I have started the journey, though extensive, non-fitness travel has kept me away from too much "Hobbit-walking", as my wife calls it. Nevertheless, yesterday I jogged 2.25 miles, which brings my cumulative total to 36.84 miles. On the Rivendell journey, this puts me just beyond that incident with the Black Rider, but before they meet up with the Elves on the Road.
As a final note: in case you are not familiar with Rivendell, Hobbits, or J.R.R. Tolkien, get thee to Amazon and buy the books
If you are interested in quality, intelligent entertainment, then you might want to check out the series Numb3rs
The series depicts an FBI agent who is helped by his mathematics whiz brother in solving crimes - kind of like CSI with equations rather than microscopes. But don't let the equations scare you off - the conflict caused by the two different methods of problem solving, characterized by the FBI agent brother and the mathematics brother, along with the various crimes and bad guys, actually provides for exciting drama.
As an example, in the pilot episode a serial rapist/killer is loose in Los Angeles. The FBI agent has a map of the city showing the locations of the crimes, but is otherwise stumped on how to track the killer and predict where the killer will strike next. The mathematician studies the pattern of the crime locations and, rather than try to predict the location of the next crime, he estimates the location of where the killer lives. The analogy is that of a garden water sprinkler - it is difficult to predict where the next water droplet will land, but if you study the pattern of the drops of water, you can estimate where the water sprinkler must be located.
Note that the math used in the episodes is real, and if you are interested in finding more about the different techniques used in the various episodes, then you might want to take a look at the book The Numbers Behind NUMB3RS: Solving Crime with Mathematics
I've "known" Michael Yon for years now. And I put "known" in quotes because, though I've not yet had the privilege of meeting him in person, I've talked to him by phone and we've traded emails over the years---mostly him sending me pictures and details of his latest adventures. (It's a bit one-sided, because, whereas he's been off to foreign countries, getting shot at, have dinner with cannibals, etc., I've just been driving around the Washington D.C. beltway from Richmond to Baltimore for the past five years.)
For the last several years he has been embedded with the U.S. and international troops in Iraq, detailing the tremendous changes occurring in that country, considering not only the perspective of our and allied troops trying to restore order, but also the perspective of the everyday Iraqis, whose country and lives were tossed into the air like so many pick-up sticks.
While some of you may be familiar with Michael's first book, Danger Close
Special signed editions of his book are available here.
You can read the first chapter of the book here.
Get it while you can---Michael is heading back to Iraq, already having logged more time in combat situations than any other reporter. I think he has a unique perspective on the situations on the ground there, and I believe his voice is an important one.
I've uploaded Part 1 Chapters 8 and 9 of Beowulf.
I've uploaded Part 1 Chapter 7 of Beowulf.
I've uploaded Part 1 Chapter 6 of Beowulf.
Though audible.com has been in business as a public company since 1999 (they incorporated in 1995), I have only recently discovered the pleasure of their acquaintance.
They provide audio versions of books, newspapers, educational materials, radio shows, etc. for a reasonable fee.
Actually, I think their fees are more than reasonable, because they are cheaper than buying audio copies of books in the bookstore, and they also allow you to copy these purchases to your iPod or other digital audio device as well as make CD copies of your purchases if you want to listen to the CDs in your car or to serve as a backup of your purchase.
You can buy digital versions of books, newspapers, or magazines straight away, or you can sign up for a membership plan, with varying price points. They include content for more than 40,000 titles, and the basic membership plan provides for $14.95/book pricing for most books. Some books do cost more than this, but in general, for the $14.95/month membership plan you get 1 credit per month, and most books cost 1 credit. Subscribers also have the option to purchase books without credits for a 30% discount.
When I subscribed, I got a free membership to the Wall Street Journal, and listened to this recording during a morning jog. Audible.com also provides some content for free, such as political speeches, government hearings, and the 9/11 Report Speech.
The current version of iTunes plays their .aa format files directly, and downloading purchased books is effortless and easy.
The first book I downloaded is the popular Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West
So far I am very happy with this service.
Tonight I've uploaded Part 1 Chapter 4 of Beowulf.
I've been on the road lately, and so have not had a chance to make many audio recordings.
Tonight I tried a new audio source, and have added Part 1 Chapter 3 of Beowulf.
I'll need to play some more with my mobile audio setup, as the recording levels and room echo are not currently quite what I am looking for.
The latest installment of the Beowulf Project is up, Part 1, Chapters 1-2.
As another piece of our cultural history, and given the timeliness (and timelessness) of this hero, I've started a series of Beowulf readings.
After all, according to Wired magazine, this is the year of the Viking:
Why this sudden interest in the savage tribes who roamed across what became the UK and Scandinavia? Maybe because they combine the best of zombies, ninjas, and robots. Their cool ships and armor are sort of the Dark Ages equivalent of high tech, their fighting skillz are fully ninja, and of course they shamble along in rags with chopped-off limbs just like zombies do. Really, you just can't go wrong with Vikings.
And, Valhalla knows, we could all use a real hero these days.
Entry number three for the Younger Edda audio project is chapters three and four from The Fooling of Gylfe.
book reader is out now! Here's my review of the kindle book reader.
THE COMMENTARY BELOW IS FOR THE ORIGINAL KINDLE.
Andy Ihnatko has a very interesting article on the Amazon Kindle
So here's what Amazon went and did. Metaphorically, the company invented a humanoid robot capable of autonomous action. Every day at 4 a.m., it gets in your car and drives all over the state, buying fruit, milk, butter, eggs and other staples straight from the farm. By the time you wake up and trudge into the kitchen, there's a steaming plate of waffles waiting for you, made from scratch, and topped with fresh-picked strawberries and whipped cream.
It's one of the most awesome consumer products ever. It might even be a landmark moment in technology. ... and Amazon is promoting it as a $399 waffle maker.
Technorati Tags: book, technology
is out now! Here's my review of the new kindle book reader.
THE COMMENTARY BELOW IS FOR THE ORIGINAL KINDLE.
Amazon has introduced an ebook reader -- the Kindle
While many people have been longing for a competent ebook reader for some time, to date no one has been able to produce an ebook reader with the right features:
Is the kindle the iPod of books?
While Amazon seems to have done OK on the display part, and the book reading interface seems to be OK, unfortunately the kindle seems to fail on the other points. The words of Amazon's CEO Jeff Bezos gives you a hint of why the kindle is not the device we have all been waiting for:
This isn't a device, it's a service.
Basically, Amazon is selling you a $400 device that you use to rent digital books from Amazon and then read them on that device. You are not actually buying a digital copy of a book from Amazon. You are renting the book because Amazon encodes the book in a proprietary (DRM) format that does not work with other devices or software. Further, that crippled book can only be read as long as Amazon wants you to be able to read it. From their terms of service:
Your rights under this Agreement will automatically terminate without notice from Amazon if you fail to comply with any term of this Agreement. In case of such termination, you must cease all use of the Software and Amazon may immediately revoke your access to the Service or to Digital Content without notice to you and without refund of any fees. Amazon's failure to insist upon or enforce your strict compliance with this Agreement will not constitute a waiver of any of its rights.
And, unlike real books or digital files that are not crippled (DRM), you cannot share your rented Amazon book with anyone else:
You may not sell, rent, lease, distribute, broadcast, sublicense or otherwise assign any rights to the Digital Content or any portion of it to any third party, and you may not remove any proprietary notices or labels on the Digital Content. In addition, you may not, and you will not encourage, assist or authorize any other person to, bypass, modify, defeat or circumvent security features that protect the Digital Content.
Other deal-breakers include the fact that, while you can read Amazon-selected files with the kindle, you must pay a few dollars per month to do so - you must subscribe to read a blog that you can read for free using your computer. Also, some files can be transferred to the device via USB, but some must be emailed to the device via Amazon - Amazon "converts" the document into a kindle format (applies DRM) and charges you $.10 per document for the privilege.
If Amazon included a digital copy of each book I buy from Amazon, I think the kindle would work. But as it currently is configured, especially without support for at least .pdf files (a really big deal -- I have a lot of .pdf files on my laptop, and I would pay good money for a viable device to read them with) the kindle business model does not make sense to me. I currently do not need an expensive device that basically allows me to read rented books on it, and where I am nickle-and-dimed with monthly fees for the privilege. It seems like a step in the right direction for a useful ebook reader, but Amazon has more work to do. Maybe in version 2.0 they will do better.
Other commentary on the kindle:
dive into mark boing-boing gadgets kottke.org wired macworld
Technorati Tags: book, review, technology
There is a new graphic novel out now called Gods of Asgard, by Eric Evensen. It looks to be an interpretation of the Norse mythology - you know, Odin, Thor, Tyr, Frigga, the Valkyries, ... from the author's website:
The Norse gods are the pagan deities worshipped in pre-Christian Scandinavia. Although not as well-known as the gods from Greek and Roman mythology, they were no less unique. The Norse gods were powerful, revered and respected, sometimes feared. They were mortal, and they knew through prophecy of the end of their reign. And their fame lives on today, in literature, movies, comics, opera, and the days of the week.
This looks to be a very interesting and entertaining new book, though the author is only partially correct in stating that the Norse Gods were worshipped in pre-Christian Scandinavia. The Gods were also worshipped by the Germanic peoples all across Europe - even North America, and continue to be so today - from an article in the University of South Alabama's paper The Vanguard:
Within the last 30 years, a lot of people have been trying to get back to their roots, to reconnect with what their ancestors believed and how they lived. One of the faiths that has sought to re-establish itself is Asatru.
Asatru can best be defined as the revival of the ways, beliefs and customs of the ancient Germanic tribes of northern Europe which inhabited, at differing times in history, the modern nations of England, Germany, Ireland, Iceland, Scotland, Wales, Belgium, France, the Netherlands, West Poland, Northern Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Norway, Sweden, and Finland. These countries are currently seeing a revival of this very ancient pre-Christian faith.
Certainly, movie versions of Beowulf have been done before. But, in general, past movie versions have been rather bad. I am hoping quality will triumph with this fall's movie release of Beowulf.
Beowulf, of course, is one of the oldest pieces of literature in the English language, and one of the noblest and heroic stories in the world. Beowulf, the young hero of the Geats, battles the monster Grendel, who is terrorizing Heorot in Denmark. After defeating Grendel, Beowulf then must fight Grendel's mother. Beowulf then becomes King, when he is called upon to fight a terrible dragon. He kills the dragon, but is mortally wounded, and is then buried in a barrow.
The upcoming movie version will be released on November 16, 2007, in conventional theatres AND in 3D! Even better---the script was written by Roger Avary and Neil Gaiman.
Roger Avary is a well-known director, producer, and screenwriter, especially known for Pulp Fiction.
Neil Gaiman, of course, is the very talented author of, among other works, The Sandman
The film has a strong cast, with Angelina Jolie as Grendel's mother, Anthony Hopkins as King Hrothgar, Ray Winstone as Beowulf, along with John Malkovich, Brendan Gleeson, Dominic Keating, Alison Lohman, and Robin Wright Penn. Initial reviews from screenings at Comic-Con 2007 and other viewings have been very positive. I still haven't understood quite how Angelina Jolie was cast as Grendel's mother, but I guess we will all see how well that decision worked in November. Anyway, Neil says he was blown away after seeing portions of the actual film, and that the newest film making techniques were used to produce one of the oldest stories in the English language.
You can see trailers, author interviews, and a plot summary on the movieweb site, and you will soon be able to collect Beowulf action figures.
It only takes one look around at the state of the world today to see that we are in dire need of heroes in our society. Strength, courage, honor, and noble deeds have been missing from the news for quite a while now. The time is right for Beowulf to return. Let's hope Roger and Neil do him justice.
Be more than just the master of your own domain:
Your friends will be amazed!
Seriously, if you are looking to turbo-charge your online experience, then you should pick up the new book Rule the Web: How to Do Anything and Everything on the Internet---Better, Faster, Easier
I went to Mark's book signing in Santa Monica tonight, held at the Barnes and Noble in the 3rd Street Promenade. There, Mark entertained a room full of people with talk about the origins of BoingBoing, the future of the music industry, the future of the publishing industry, lots of examples from his book, and insight into how the book came about.
Mark is a really nice guy and has lots of insight into how to use the Internet and Web effectively to increase your productivity and, well, happiness.
And Mark was wearing a Scott eVest shirt like I was also wearing, so not only is he smart, but he's cool too.
Technorati Tags: book, culture, review, technology
Ever wanted to read more, but never seem to have the time?
If so, you may be interested in DailyLit, a site that will break up a book you want to read into easily-digestible chunks and send you one chunk per day (or more, if you like). The chunks are small enough that you can read them in less than five minutes, and so by reading a little each day, in between your moments of busyness, you can complete books that you have been meaning to read, but never quite have the time for.
The books you subscribe to can be sent to you via email or RSS. The service is free, and the books are free too.
Because if you are like us, you spend hours each day reading email but don't find the time to read books. DailyLit brings books right into your inbox in convenient small messages that take less than 5 minutes to read. This works incredibly well not just on your computer but also on a Treo, Blackberry, Sidekick or whatever the PDA of your choice. In the words of Dr. Seuss: Try it, you might like it! (Oops -- it would appear that the actual quote from Green Eggs and Ham is "You do not like them. So you say. Try them! Try them! And you may.")
Do you believe in elves? They are not just for Tolkienites, you know.
As an Icelander, I am aware that invisible creatures are lurking about all around us. Growing up in the countryside, I lived on a farm at the foot of a mountain, where consideration toward the hidden world was as common as the courtesy you pay any other farm denizen."Don't touch the cows while they're milking!" "Don't handle the lambs or the ewes won't take to them!" "Don't climb up on that rock because you'll disturb the elves!" "Don't feed the horses before you ride. It'll make them gassy." "Don't make so much noise by that hill there. Someone might be trying to sleep inside it!"
I've been to Iceland, and I believe!
Note that it's never to late to pursue your dream.
Recently, the famed guitarist for the music group Queen, 60-year old Brian May, handed in his PhD thesis, 36 years after interrupting his studies to play in the band.
His area of study is Astronomy at the Imperial College, London, and the title of his thesis is "Radial Velocities in the Zodiacal Dust Cloud". He still has to defend his thesis, which will happen on 23 August of this year. Nevertheless, the completion of his thesis, especially with such a significant gap in this studies, is a significant accomplishment.
The rock star is also preparing a concert to mark the inauguration of a telescope at the Observatory of the Roque de Los Muchachos in La Palma, Tenerife, where he completed his studies last month.
Finally, for a bit of Lord of the Rings humor, you may find the following animated gif amusing:
http://www.blogizdat.com/lotr/walkintomordor.gifA friend has gifted me with a new book: Are We Rome?: The Fall of an Empire and the Fate of America
Recently published, this book takes the reader on a tour of the last several thousand years, specifically analyzing the comparisons between the United States and Rome---as cultures and as models for nations. The arguments advanced by the author, Cullen Murphy, who was the editor of The Atlantic magazine and is now the editor of Vanity Fair, seem to be thoughtfully put together, rather than the alarmist and shallow chatter so often heard on talk radio and in Washington D.C.
So, I am definitely looking forward to reading this!
Viking treasure found in Britain!
"We were astonished when we finally discovered what it contained."
The ancient objects come from as far afield as Afghanistan in the East and Ireland in the West, as well as Russia, Scandinavia and continental Europe.
The hoard contains 617 silver coins and 65 other objects, including a gold arm-ring and a gilt silver vessel.
Dr Jonathan Williams, keeper of prehistory in Europe at the British Museum, said: "[The cup] is beautifully decorated and was made in France or Germany at around AD900.
"It is fantastically rare - there are only a handful of others known around the world. It will be stunning when it is fully conserved."
There are many responsible approaches countries can do to help decrease dependence on polluting petroleum products and move a country's industries and population to a more sustainable lifestyle.
Italy has answered this noble challenge by...banning ties:
"Taking your tie off immediately lowers the body temperature by 2 to 3 degrees Celsius," the ministry said in a statement. "Allowing a more sensible use of air conditioning that yields electricity savings and protects the environment."
However, Italy's tie-makers aren't taking this well:
"Italy confirms that it is a strange country," Flavio Cima said in a letter to financial daily Il Sole 24 Ore under the headline: "I, tie maker, am responsible for global warming".
"We can now happily continue with our lifestyle, using cars, consuming fuel, heating and cooling our homes at leisure. On one condition: we should not wear a tie while we do so," he wrote.
Remember, all you need to do is write.
Josh Catone over at Read/WriteWeb has posted a self-publishing toolkit---how to write and publish a novel.
Follow his approach, using 100% online tools, and you will have something, guaranteed. His best idea is to check out the National Novel Writing Month as a strong motivator to get yourself writing, and Sitepoint, where you can take bids on your novel's book cover designs, for example.
Finally, sometimes you just never know what you are going to see when you look outside your bedroom window.
Technorati Tags: academia, book, culture, living, religion, spirit
Paul Erdös was (1913-1996) a Hungarian-born mathematician known for being prolific (about 1,500 papers with about 510 co-authors) and eccentric. As to the latter, he spent most of his life traveling from place to place, staying in the homes of colleagues. Most of his possessions fit into his suitcase, and after staying a few days he would move on to the next colleague, for another few days of collaboration.
In this way, Paul demonstrated that science is a social enterprise. Research is conducted and papers are published through clusters networked scientists working together. In fact, Paul is known for research in random graph theory with Alfred Renyi (the latter is also known for saying that "a mathematician is a machine for turning coffee into theorems").
Because of Paul's research and behaviors, we was a bit of a star in the scientific community. Then, and perhaps more so today, it is popular to calculate one's Erdös Number, which is basically a way of measuring the publication distance between one person and Paul Erdös.
For example, someone who co-authored a paper with Paul would have an Erdös Number of 1, and there are about 510 people with this Erdös Number. Someone who wrote a paper with a co-author of Paul Erdös would have an Erdös Number of 2, etc.
Note that having a small Erdös Number is something that many people take quite seriously.
Currently, my Erdös Number is 4 (which also happens to be the Erdös Number of Bill Gates), and I also happen to have 4 separate publication paths to Paul, each of length 4.
The Erdös Number Project is organized to study research collaborations, and contains a large amount of information about collaboration research, information about Paul Erdös, and even allows you to calculate your own Erdös Number. This project is a subset of a much larger field of study on random graphs, clustering, the structure of the Internet, computer networks, data analysis, and social networks. If you have ever heard someone say "It's a small world!!!" or have ever played the game Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon, then in a sense all this research about the structure of networks is about explaining this small-world phenomenon.
A quote from the book Linked: How Everything Is Connected to Everything Else and What It Means
The very existence of the Erdös Number demonstrates that the scientific community forms a highly interconnected network in which all scientists are linked to each other through the papers they have written. The smallness of most Erdös Numbers indicates that this web of science truly is a small world.
I've long been an admirer of Edward Tufte's design books, especially The Visual Display of Quantitative Information
It was with this book that he became famous as a guru of Information Design, partially for his analysis of Charles Joseph Minard's infographic of the disastrous 1812 invasion of Russia by France.
He concentrates on detailing how to make graphics that present information clearly and succinctly, while avoiding common design problems. He gives examples throughout history of good designs and bad designs, and explains why they are so. As someone who went to business school, and who sat through too many business meetings, it is clear to me that too few people are familiar with Tufte's work.
From an interview with Tufte, here is how he got started on the path of Information Design:
In the mid-1970s, while at Princeton, I gave a statistics course to a dozen journalists who were visiting the school. I thought "Well, journalists have to know about statistical graphics...", so I prepared a collection of readings, with a section on statistical graphics. The literature was thin, grimly devoted to explaining use of the ruling pen and to promulgating "graphic standards" indifferent to sensible quantitative reasoning. Soon I started writing up some ideas about my growing collection of graphics. Then John W. Tukey, the phenomenal Princeton statistician, suggested that we give a series of joint seminars. Tukey had opened up the field in the mid-1960s, as his brilliant technical contributions made it clear that the study of statistical graphics was intellectually respectable and not just about pie charts and ruling pens. This focused my mind, since I had to talk for two hours every other week to the students in front of John Tukey! The seminar proved reassuring: I had something to say. Those seminars led to my first book, The Visual Display of Quantitative Information, and changed my life, all to the good.
 Graphics Press |
From a Wired article about Tufte's thoughts on PowerPoint:
PowerPoint is a competent slide manager and projector. But rather than supplementing a presentation, it has become a substitute for it. Such misuse ignores the most important rule of speaking: Respect your audience.
From an interview with Tufte on NPR:
Far too often, he says, the bells and whistles of PowerPoint are used as a crutch by people who don't have anything to say. "If your words aren't truthful, the finest optically letter spaced typography won't help," he says. "And if your images aren't on point, making them dance in color in three dimensions won't help."
His new book, Beautiful Evidence
The Vikings were some of the best sailors, ship-builders, and explorers the world has known.
The remains of a Viking warship was found in 1962, and has been rebuilt using traditional Viking tools and building methods by a dedicated team.
From the BBC news article, The return of the Viking warship:
More than 7,000 iron rivets, 2,000m of rope and 300 ancient Danish oaks were used in the reconstruction. After four years of painstaking work, the Sea Stallion from Glendalough was launched on 4 September 2004.
Now, the team behind the project wants to know whether the reconstruction is capable of making the kind of journeys the Vikings once undertook. To find out, the ship is being taken over 1,000 miles (1,600km) across the North Sea to Orkney and on to Dublin.
UPDATE: You can follow a diary of the voyage at the BBC site.
Here is probably the best way to hide your iPod or iPhone from theft---disguise it as a Microsoft Zune:
Ever wanted to watch a book being made? Here is a link to a short movie of a paperback book being printed and bound.
And just because this is where you go a lot when in Los Angeles:
If you are in need of a technical book or magazine, or several, you can probably do no better than to visit Opamp Technical Books, near Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles.
Inside are a number of aisles stacked floor to ceiling with used and new scientific and technical books of all topics, including software development, security, electronics, building codes, medicine, operating systems, CAM, writing, leadership, programming, business, and a whole lot more.
During a visit, prepare to spend an hour or more in browsing pleasure.
Technorati Tags: book, science, technology, travel
The Secret History of the Sword: Adventures in Ancient Martial Arts
An amazing treasure-house of anecdotes, accountings, and historical musings on sword play across the generations and cultures. Its loose presentation style lends it to reading in frenetic bursts. I really enjoyed his commentary and analysis of fencing training and combat arts. One criticism is that he's not very strong on pre-Renaissance swordsmanship or history. But his pre-Renaissance discussion is just at the beginning of the book and that can be quickly skimmed -- the rest of the book is great.
Technorati Tags: book, culture, fitness, martial arts, review
It's tough being a bag in Los Angeles. Or at least my backpack thinks so.
Every day that I have been in Los Angeles so far I have been out walking or riding my bike. Usually I have my backpack with me, to hold my laptop, some books, and other items. My backpack is one of those padded computer backpacks---in specific, the Dell C8882 Inspiron 17" Laptop Backpack
For a while the backpack worked well, as it had lots of padding, held the laptop plus lots of books, had numerous pockets to hold odds and ends, and was comfortable to wear. But under extended use, especially since I have been out in Los Angeles, the backpack has not aged well. In specific, the padding in the shoulder straps has started to slide around, all the seams started looking fuzzy, like the material was wearing out, and a seam on one of the straps actually split open. So rather than be caught off-guard by a total backpack malfunction one day, far from home, I decided to look for a replacement.
My criteria: I wanted a bag that could hold my laptop, several books, and a few extra odds and ends; was waterproof (the backpack was not); and that would be comfortable and secure while walking or riding a bike. More subjective criteria included having a smaller form factor than the backpack and being more stylish. When loaded, the Dell backpack could easily knock someone over standing next to me if I turned around suddenly, and it also had a major Forrest Gump vibe going---something that doesn't compute in style-sensitive L.A.
And my wife imposed the criteria that the bag had to be less than $100.
So I headed to a large mall on Santa Monica and stopped into the Tumi store. Their T-Tech Pulse Eldridge Computer Messenger Bag seemed really nice, except that it was not waterproof (the sales lady said it is not waterproof, but that it resists water). As nice as the bag seemed, I couldn't see spending $195 for a bag that could not keep my computer dry. Plus, it was about twice my budget.
The sales lady suggested I check out the Louis Vuitton store. They had Very Nice Things, but their $1,300 messenger bags would not fit my laptop. I am also not convinced that their bags would feel comfortable or be appropriate when riding a bike. As for being waterproof, I never got around to asking that question about these bags. I mean, I guess what I am trying to say is that someone in the market for a Louis Vuitton messenger bag would have a different set of criteria than the ones I listed above.
So, just about to give up on my quest, I happened to stop into my local bike shop and they had exactly what I was looking for.
The bag that fit all my requirements turned out to be the
Timbuk2 Commute Messenger Bag
For many years Timbuk2 has made quality messenger bags, and the Commute was designed for the professional who wants something different than the traditional boxy briefcase, and who needs a rugged and travel-friendly bag that can hold a laptop.
This bag has a ballistic nylon exterior and a molded padded back panel (shown above). The bottom is double-padded and has an extra rubberized bottom layer (not shown).
The inside has a padded compartment for the laptop (the X-Large Commute bag fits the 17" Apple Powerbook) and the bag itself is waterproof. It has a handle for convenient hand-carry and comes with a second strap to secure around the waist for when riding a bike (or running to catch a taxi).
And, though the bag retails for $120, you can likely find it for less (I did, and it met my authorized budget).
All in all, the Timbuk2 Commute is a quality bag that seems to be very durable, to be useful and stylish, and to have enough features to make the price seem more than reasonable.
A friend gifted me with a new book: The End of the Certain World: The Life and Science of Max Born
Max Born was a German mathematician and physicist who won the 1954 Nobel Prize in Physics, and gave to the world the foundation for quantum mechanics. I look forward to diving into this story about one of the world's best scientists.
And, just glancing at the back cover, it turns out Olivia Newton-John is his granddaughter!
Jesse Byock: Viking Age Iceland
I read this book prior to my trip to Iceland, and it really served to give me a good sense of the country, how it was settled, who settled it, and how the population grew over time. It also explained the desolation of the countryside - when you travel from the airport to Reykjavik, the land is like much like on the moon - treeless crags abound. The book explains how this came to be. In addition, the book gives a good background to the sagas and other adventures of the people of Iceland, and those who came to its shores.
NB: I saw this guy while in Iceland - how cool is that?
If you want to get up-close and personal with the events in Iraq, you really should check out Michael Yon's Online Magazine. Mike is reporting on Iraq by embedding with the troops there, on the ground, with the bullets and bombs. Thus, he brings a perspective unmatched by any news broadcast from New York or the Green Zone. Not only his stories, but his images too capture a previously unseen view of life and war in Iraq. From his "A Memorial Day Message" article:
Yet Mosul is still dangerous. In January, a Humvee with five passengers rolled over a massive IED. The vehicle was completely destroyed. My first mission with James Pippin was the recovery of the five men killed. CSM Pippin set the leadership tone that horrible day and demonstrated moral strength far above and beyond what I believe most men could bear. CSM Pippin and I had just been swapping some emails within the past week, when a message came less than 24 hours ago that he, too, had been shot in Mosul.Mike is also the author of the bestseller Danger Close
, which tells Mike's own story of growing up in Florida, joining the Army, becoming a Green Beret by the age of 19, and having his life altered by one night in a Maryland bar.
As we toured the bar, a man approached, got uncomfortably close, and snarled his contemptuous opinion of our short haircuts in Steve's face. A brown belt with an Indian head buckle marked the border between his blue pants and beige shirt. He wore a white metal necklace, and on his right arm was a tattoo, which seemed to be a marijuana leaf. I'd experimented a little myself during the waning months of high school. It confused me-but not enough to celebrate with a tattoo. On his left arm he had taken pains to emblazon in red: Death Before Dishonor-a clear warning to all of dangerous waters, like a sign that says "No Swimming-Crocodiles".
Technorati Tags: academia, book, culture, defense, guns, living, security
OK, so maybe I made a mistake.
Maybe I totally missed out on one of the best TV shows to come along in, well, forever.
I mean, who ever heard of a vampire slayer named Buffy?! After all, I was in the middle of watching The X-Files
But after watching just the first two episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Of course, having one of the main characters have the same surname as I do helps, as does lots of vampire killing action, plus well-written scripts, great acting, and interesting characters. And, well, the leather pants turned out to be, how should I put this, assets to the characters who wear them. I mean, I've commented on Buffy's, and my wife has commented on Angel's, so I guess there's asset-admiring all around.
Currently we are in the middle of season 5, and tonight I hope to catch up on Buffy and the gang. You can see what you have been missing too - best to get the whole series (or at least the first seven seasons) and plan on not getting much else done for a couple of weeks.
Just don't say I didn't warn you.
"What can I tell you, baby? I've always been bad."
---Spike, "Fool For Love".
Now this is a house.
Architect: Archer & Buchanan Ltd. West Chester, PA 610-692-9112 www.archerbuchanan.com Builder: Richard Owens Construction Chester County, PA 610-827-0972 Custom doors and windows: Premium Grade Cabinetry Inc. Newark, DE. 302-369-1982 Hardware: Michael M. Coldren Co, Inc. North East, MD 410-287-2082 www.coldrencompany.com
If you ever wanted to give up your 9-5 job, if you ever wanted to stop working for someone else, or if you ever wanted to live more of your life now, rather than wait until retirement, then you might consider reading Timothy Ferriss' new book The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich
I spend a great deal of time both in Richmond and in Baltimore, so it is natural that I have an affinity for Edgar Allan Poe. One of the world's greatest writers, Poe's works cross a variety of genres and styles.
Richmond sports an Edgar Allan Poe museum, and it is worth a visit. There is even an annual Young Writer's Conference held there.
I made an audio recording of "Edgar Allan Poe: An Appreciation", by W. H. R. While the language used in the appreciation's writing is somewhat stilted due to its age, it does serve as a brief introduction to Poe and some of his works.
Listen to Edgar Allan Poe: An Appreciation (.MP3, 14.7MB).
I've issued this recording under the Creative Commons License. While you can click the link below to investigate the details, basically you can listen to it and copy it as you like - you just can't use it commercially or derive works from it.
There are are a couple of new books out or coming out that seem worth investigating.
The first is a book by Majorie Burns titled Perilous Realms: Celtic And Norse in Tolkien's Middle-Earth
There's a new book out on the "Lord of the Rings" and its accompanying volumes that says J. R. R. Tolkien's writing is much more subtle and nuanced than most people have realized. Marjorie Burns, a professor in the Department of English at Portland State University, says Tolkien blended Norse and Celtic factors in a delicate, abstruse manner that makes the works as scholarly as they are entertaining.
The second looks to be a special collected edition called the Runes of Ragnan. From an announcement on the upcoming collected edition:
This Fall, Silent Devil will unleash the Viking epic Runes of Ragnan in a collected edition containing the complete four-issue mini-series. Written by Ty Gorton, drawn in high action detail by Josh Medors (G.I. Joe, In The Blood, FUSED!), with colors by Jay Fotos (Spawn: The Dark Ages, Vampirella, The Nail), the collected edition will include a 5-page prequel, an exclusive short story with visuals by Bud Cook, contest winning artwork, and a behind the scenes feature.
From a review of the original series:
Runes of Ragnan is a comic that delivers a great story that blends elements of fantasy and actual Viking lore. Gorton’s story quickly sucks you into the comic, and keeps your interest through every page. Most important, the first issue leaves you wanting more, and not completely sure where Gorton is going with his story.
The third is a new edition of the Dictionary of Northern Mythology by Rodolf Simek and Angela Hall.
You might also find these related links of interest:
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