Registered: May 2002
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i know this has been done 15 other times, but i don't have anything to suggest to other people, i wan't suggestions for me.

i was at barnes and nobles today, and only had 10 mins cause it was about to close, and i couldnt figure out what i wanted to buy, too many options. ive decided that before i go back there again, i need a mofo game plan.

subjects i have in mind:

astrophysics- the only entertaining books i've ever read in this genre are greene's elegant universe and hawking's brief history. i'd be much interested in anything else you can think of in this department. i don't have a problem with there being a lot of math, but what i'm really after are the abstract concepts i guess.

AI/quantum computing/neural networking - to tell you the truth, i've done no reading in this area. i guess i'd need a primer, but i'm not really sure where to start. id take ANY recommendations here.

international political theory/philosophy- i guess this topic can be a bit hit or miss for me. i'd much rather read about theories and ideologies than books that are purely synopses of specific events. for example: the republic, good, the new jackals (or anything on terrorists), bad.

miscellaneous other - i'm always in the market for a good book of most genres. i like standard fiction/horror/scifi for my light gym reading, i also like reading a lot of the 'literary classics'.. even if i don't always like them, i usually feel there was something to be said for reading it. i guess i've read most everything on the standard 'summer book list', so youll have to dig a bit deeper though. i'm a fan of the light, yet insightful and philosophical work too, maybe something along the lines of zen and the art of motorcycle maintenence or jonathan livingston seagull, but obviously not those two, cause well, ive read em.

if you have some recommendations that are absolutely nothing like what i've mentioned above, give them to me anyways... if possible, add a few comments as to why it was worth your time, and ill be likely to check it out... thanks!

***
also, a few books that i've read recently that i would recommend, in case someone else is in a similar predicament:

the wanting seend - anthony burgess (yeah, the a clockwork orange guy). this novel is brilliant in my opinion, a nice little satire about a future society where, do to overpopulations, they conclude, among other things 'it's sapiens to be homo.'

our posthuman future - francis fukuyama (you may remember him from the book/essay "the end of history" that i always defer to). in this, our neighborhood poitical scientist takes a stab biotechnological ethics. i don't agree with most of the conclusions he draws, but the book is written quite well. he outlines the likely futures of genetic engineering, somatic pharmacology, etc, etc. his conclusion is that biotechnology should be regulated.. which many people (myself included) are inclined to disagree with off the bat, science can never be bad, right? but he gives a lot of decent reasons as to why it might be detrimental to society, and he doesnt use religion or anything that hokey as a copout. he is a pramatist to the end, and he really feels it would just have too negative off consequences. like i said, i dont agree with it, but its owrth reading.

okay, book report is over. bye.

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Registered: Oct 2001
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why do we have a book forum?

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Registered: May 2002
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we have a book forum? you mean like the *asylum book club* thing? i thought that was for read alouds or something. where can i find this book forum?

asshole! just answer the question, if the powers at be feel this shoudl be moved, they will certainly do so.

oh, goofy lovable mug, i cant hate you. its sapiens to be homo!

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Registered: Apr 2003
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http://www.whichbook.net/index.jsp

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I almost picked up Merton's "Seven-Storey Mountain" at lunch. It's on sale in the bargain bin for $499 across the street. However, I opted for reclaiming the used copies of "Lee's Lieutenants" that I sold for Xmas money two years ago and just re-discovered today at Mager's & Quinn.

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Reading selected Lives of Plutarch at the moment. Very interesting and very readable. He may have been the Bill Bennett of his day, but he's a fun read.

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woohoo, we have a book forum. i keep forgetting...

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Registered: Jul 2000
Location: Montreal
Posts: 2990

Reading: Do Andriods Dream of Eleteric Sheep (Bladerunner)

hardly at all the same as the movie that Ridley Scott made based on it, but so far a good read so far.

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"Please pardon my levity, I don't see how to take death seriously. It seems absurd." R A Wilson (R.I.P)

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Currently reading...


Great book.

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Registered: Mar 2002
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I finally just finished Asimov's Foundation Trilogy.. (it's taken me maybe 5 tries to actually get past the first few chapters..) but it's a fabulous series. It is really hard to believe that it was written back in the 50's.. the world and story line are just so intricate and creative.

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Registered: Oct 2003
Location: Hartford, CT
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Just the trilogy? read all 14 books, it's an incredible story line.


Also, Arthur C Clark's Rama trilogy, best sci-fi series ever

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hmm.. I didn't even know there were more..

I read "Foundation," "Foundation and Empire," and "The Second Foundation."

what are the others?

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I read Rendevous With Rama when I was around ten years old and loved it. I haven't read anything by Clarke since that time. I read Asimov, Ellison, Silverberg, Heinlein, Pohl and the like addictively as a child. I would probably enjoy them yet today if I weren't so involved reading other stuff all the time. I didn't so much tire of that as I just got more interested in other stuff and haven't gotten back to them yet.

My first books as a child were Lloyd Alexander's "Prydain" series. I would likely enjoy those again also.

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Registered: Oct 2003
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I read nothing but sci-fi when i was a kid.... Asimov, Clarke, Heinlein, and Bradbury are all incredible.

The Foundation series is a little weird. Asimov did 14 books that's best described as a future history. It goes like this:

Robot Dreams - Collection of short stories, introduces Asimov's ideas about robots. Not really part of the series but a great place to start

The Robot Series (4 books)
Caves of Steel
Naked Sun
Robots of Dawn
Robots and Empire

This series is the near future, humans have colonized a few planets and the earth is covered by hugh domed cities. The books follow a detective and his robot partner. Great sci-fi and great mystery novels.


The Empire Series (3 books)
Currents of Space
The Stars, Like Dust
Pebble in the Sky

3 independent novels. These books fill the gap between the Robot and Foundation series. The Earth colonies have formed an empire and is rapidly expanding throught the galaxy. Probably the weakest books in the series


The Foundation Series (7 books)
Prelude to Foundation
Forward the Foundation
Foundation
Foundation and Empire
Second Foundation
Foundation's Edge
Foundation and Earth

Asimov wrote the the 3 you know, then years later wrote the last 2. Then he when back and did Prelude and Forward, which are about how Hari Seldon created the Foundation and Psychohistory.


That should keep you busy for a little while. Of course talking about this makes me want to go re-read they for the 3 time, which is not good when i've still got a list of 50 other books to read. damn it......


and btw:

********************************
"Violence is the last refuge
of the incompetent"
- Salvor Hardin
********************************

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Registered: Aug 2001
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some of these sorta fall into the categories, other don't. they are just books i really, really like.

*The Lucifer Principle, Howard Bloom

* The Cosmic Serpent, Jeremy Narby

* Jitterbug Perfume, Tom Robbins

* Ishmael, Daniel Quinn

* The Tao of Physics, Fritjof Capra

* The Tao of Pooh, Benjamin Hoff

* Chaos, Gaia, Eros - Ralph Abraham

* The Oranges of Hieronymus Bosch, Henry Miller

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Woah, I forgot this forum existed again.. I keep doing that.

I've actually never read Asimov before, you'd think my AI fetish would've inspired me to do so by now, I'll have to get on that.

Thanks for the suggestions lady sianna, only one of those I've read is Ishmael, which was of course great, so I'll have to check out the rest of your recommendations.

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.

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Registered: Aug 2000
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i recoommend anything from George R R martin

game of thrones
fantasy, adventure, plitilcal sorta stuff

wild card
fantasy , set in real world pretty neat stuff

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Registered: Dec 2003
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quote:

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Originally posted by lady sianna
* Jitterbug Perfume, Tom Robbins

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quote:

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Originally posted by mmmtravis


AI/quantum computing/neural networking - to tell you the truth, i've done no reading in this area. i guess i'd need a primer, but i'm not really sure where to start. id take ANY recommendations here.

---

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Registered: Oct 2001
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I've got "The Microbe Hunters" on my nightstand, along with Theroux's "Three Wogs" and the "Song of Roland", just because I've never read any of those.

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Registered: Feb 2004
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William Gibson, I've liked the ones I've read so far.

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welcome lllubinski..

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