What Are You Reading?

So... what are you reading these days? Anything good??

Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby SciFiFisher » Mon Sep 26, 2016 7:24 pm

Gullible Jones wrote:Jesus, Fisher, that sounds preachy to the point of monomania. And I thought Iain M. Banks got too sanctimoniuous with his later novels.

How on Earth do you read that stuff?!

Edit: and mind you, I grew up reading David Gerrold and playing Wing Commander.


Usually very fast and one word at a time. :P

You mistake the synopsis of the leftist activities and how the author really wants all of them to be eaten by Centaur like Crocodiles as the entire book or series. There are plenty of other things going on. Hero's fighting heroically to the last man or woman. China being almost entirely wiped out. Europe being reduced to a few mountain fortresses. Galactic Weasels screwing over humans and every other sentient being in the known galaxy. Would it surprise you to know their place in the galactic order is bureaucratic, banker, politician species at the top of the social order? Or that they are raving lunatic carnivores who have been genetically modified to go into irreversible catatonia if they commit an aggressive act or even think too much about one? If they so much as eat meat they shut down.

Imagine a homicidal sociopath who cannot kill but has to manipulate other beings to do it for them. All while being very careful not to use words like "will no one rid me of this bothersome priest?" roll:

It's loads of fun. I mostly just ignoring the preaching. I already have an opinion about politics, religion, self determination, and leftist philosophy. :mrgreen:
"To create more positive results in your life, replace 'if only' with 'next time'." — Author Unknown
"Experience is a hard teacher because she gives the test first, the lesson afterward." — Vernon Law
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby vendic » Mon Sep 26, 2016 10:43 pm

More manuals on metals, lathes, milling and general machining than anyone would care to do.
It's been a long time since I did materials science or machining work. Catching up for lost time is not that much fun.
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby Thumper » Tue Sep 27, 2016 11:25 am

Neil Peart's latest: "Far and Near: On Days Like These."
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby Rommie » Tue Sep 27, 2016 1:06 pm

Found a cool book that I can't recommend enough, called Collapse, all about why civilizations fail. Got tipped off because a friend recently visited Easter Island, and she read it in advance of going as it features so prominently in the book. It can be a bit thick at times, and I'll probably only read the civilizations that particularly interest me, but really fascinating for those interested in history and big sociological/anthropological questions like this.

Also, I'm rereading The Pillars of the Earth, and recommend it for anyone who never did before. An epic historical novel about building a cathedral in medieval England- several hundred pages long, but a book you don't want to end!
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby vendic » Tue Sep 27, 2016 1:43 pm

We watched Pillars of the Earth a year or so ago. It was really good. We found out while watching that it was based on a book. No idea how well the mini series followed the book though.
That's where Eddie Redmayne got his big break. He's the guy who played Stephen Hawking in, The theory of everything.
I can say the sequel to Pillars was bad enough that the MIL and wife stopped watching. I continued on and it didn't get better.
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby Swift » Mon Oct 03, 2016 9:32 pm

I recently finished "The Last Volcano: A Man, a Romance, and the Quest to Understand Nature's Most Magnificent Fury" by John Dvorak, a biography of Dr. Thomas Jaggar (for whom the Jaggar Observatory at Volcano National Park is named).

https://www.amazon.com/Last-Volcano-Romance-Understand-Magnificent-ebook/dp/B00VXPW6JY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1475526457&sr=8-1

I think not only geonuc will like this book, but anyone who is interested in science, particularly how science was done in the late 19th and early 20th century - a lot of the National Geographic great explorers kind of stuff.
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby pumpkinpi » Tue Oct 04, 2016 4:49 pm

"Relativity" (a novel), by Antonia Hayes. Never before have I read a story that captivated me in just the first few pages. I read it in just three days--a big accomplishment for me!

I won't say much about it. But I strongly encourage all of you to download a sample on Google Play or Kindle. Read the first few pages. If it doesn't pull you in, it's not for you. If it does, read it!
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby SciFiFisher » Sun Nov 13, 2016 5:10 pm

"Resilience" Hard-Won Wisdom For Living A Better Life by Eric Greitens. The book is written from a series of letters he wrote to a fellow former Navy SEAL who was going through a really hard time with PTSD, depression, and alcohol abuse. I think even people who are not former military can relate to what he has to say about dealing with the bad stuff that happens in our lives.

Strangely he talks a lot about philosophy and other liberal arts stuff. Shout out to Yosh! :P

And I just discovered that Eric Greitens is the newly elected governor elect of Missouri. :oops: Sorry guys. He is a Republican. Try not to reject every thing he says just because he ran for the same party as Trump. :lol:
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby Cyborg Girl » Sun Nov 13, 2016 6:05 pm

@Fisher, it will mostly depend on how he reacts to Trump's policies and decisions once in office. If he stands up and tries to protect people who are vulnerable, then good. Otherwise he's being a hypocrite and I won't buy his book.

For mine...

Ghost Talkers by Mary Robinette Kowal. Alternate history fantasy - the protagonist has a job during WWI interviewing the ghosts of dead soldiers, for intelligence purposes, and discovers a conspiracy in the course of this work. Good characterization, fast-paced plot, really engaging. The realistic WWI-era misogyny is omnipresent and horrifying, and also frequently acts as a plot device. Protagonist is resourceful and emotionally tough, but also very limited by her society, and has to use that resourcefulness an awful lot.

Word Puppets, also by Mary Robinette Kowal. Collection of short stories. Very, very emotionally intense, which may or may not be a good thing right now.

Nearest Star: the Surprising Science of our Sun, 2nd Ed., Leon Golub and Jay Passachoff. What it says on the tin. Took a while to get into stuff I'm not familiar with, but worth it.

Life: an Unauthorized Biography, Richard Fortey. Slow and rambling, but interesting. Also a bit of an antidote to anthropocentrism; the scope of life on this planet has been stupidly huge, and that's just for known (and mostly macroscopic) lifeforms.

The Deed of Paksenarrion, Elizabeth Moon. I have caught the Elizabeth Moon bug, aaaaahhhhhhh! But seriously, this is better than her more recent stuff. The best parts are like the Black Company novels, but with more religion and less sexism; the worst parts are like modernized Tolkien. I think Moon is at her strongest when she steps far outside the high-fantasy mold, and instead goes for horror themes and redemption narratives. Paks herself, as a character, comes across strongest in moments of doubt: when she has to choose between evils, or work alongside villainous types, or when she's plagued by guilt over bad decisions.

Also, rereading bits of...

Somewhere Beneath Those Waves, Sarah Monnette. Awesome short stories, including a Hamlet fanfic.

Conservation of Shadows, Yoon Ha Lee. Also awesome short stories.
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby Parrothead » Wed Dec 21, 2016 8:32 pm

Currently reading The Spy Who Came For Christmas by David Morrell.

An undercover agent blows his cover by stealing a baby "who could have the power to change global events" from Russian mobsters. Injured, he enlists the help of a mother and son, who had been the victims of domestic violence, earlier that evening. Setting for the story is Christmas Eve in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby Thumper » Wed Dec 21, 2016 8:53 pm

Get It On, Keni Thomas.
He spoke at our conference in October. He was a special ops US Army soldier involved in the Blackhawk down incident. His speech was great. I got an autographed copy for a buddy of mine who would have liked to have seen him talk. Buddy read it quickly then let me borrow it so I can read it. I've put down a Neil Peart book to try to get through this one. I read very slow and don't devote much time per day to the task. But I'm hoping not to keep his book too long.
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby gethen » Fri Feb 10, 2017 3:12 am

pumpkinpi wrote:"Relativity" (a novel), by Antonia Hayes. Never before have I read a story that captivated me in just the first few pages. I read it in just three days--a big accomplishment for me!

I won't say much about it. But I strongly encourage all of you to download a sample on Google Play or Kindle. Read the first few pages. If it doesn't pull you in, it's not for you. If it does, read it!


I read this book, based on your recommendation. It was wonderful. Recommended it to my daughter for her book club. She said one of the members, a pediatrician with kids of her own, said it was the best thing she had read in a long time. I found it both heartbreaking and uplifting. Thanks for the recommendation.
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby Parrothead » Sat Feb 18, 2017 8:24 pm

Just starting Ruler of the Night by David Morrell. It's the final part of his "opium-eater" trilogy. Historical fiction, murder mystery set in Victorian England using Thomas De Quincey and his daughter Emily as main characters. This tale features a murder on a train in 1855.
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby vendic » Sun Feb 19, 2017 1:24 pm

Yesterday I started reading again. I'm currently on page 116 of over 2000.
The book: TMS570LC43xx 16/32-Bit RISC Flash Microcontroller Technical Reference Manual.
Fascinating stuff. The first 100 pages are indexes!!!
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby Sigma_Orionis » Sun Feb 19, 2017 4:41 pm

Ellery Queen, a compilation of five novels. On the first one: "And on the Eight Day"
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby SciFiFisher » Tue Feb 21, 2017 2:30 pm

vendic wrote:Yesterday I started reading again. I'm currently on page 116 of over 2000.
The book: TMS570LC43xx 16/32-Bit RISC Flash Microcontroller Technical Reference Manual.
Fascinating stuff. The first 100 pages are indexes!!!



I assume it cured your insomnia? :P
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby vendic » Wed Feb 22, 2017 2:11 am

Makes my eyes water. That's for sure.
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby vendic » Tue Apr 04, 2017 4:24 pm

Now I'm reading the NEC, National Electrical Code, for North America.
Don't ask...
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby geonuc » Tue Apr 04, 2017 7:53 pm

vendic wrote:Now I'm reading the NEC, National Electrical Code, for North America.
Don't ask...


I read that one. Not quite as suspenseful as I wanted and poor character development.
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby Thumper » Wed Apr 05, 2017 11:32 am

So, alot like Independence Day.
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby vendic » Wed Apr 05, 2017 12:55 pm

Also can't keep a consistent plot.
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby Sigma_Orionis » Wed Apr 05, 2017 1:05 pm

Try Reading anything related to J2EE......
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby Thumper » Wed Apr 05, 2017 1:08 pm

The engine manual for a Kubota diesel apparently translated from something close to Japanese to something not as close to English is a real cliffhanger.
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby vendic » Wed Apr 05, 2017 4:20 pm

I had to fix a Kubota hydraulic pump that was worn down and not getting enough pressure years ago, with no manual. It was a pretty easy job really. A pane of glass and some wet and dry was all it took, other than some time. Companies charge a fortune for that crap.
This is why I read service manuals in advance, even when I don't own said equipment. One day, I know I'll be thrown into a place where I have to do something and have no idea where to start. Luckily I know my way around hydraulics. Usually I try to stick with generic rather than specific stuff. Like the NEC. Ah the NEC, the US standard that really isn't a standard and is more like a guide that states and even counties can override. Makes my brain hurt.
The racism is just in your face. Like, white is neutral. Black is dangerous.
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Re: What Are You Reading?

Postby SciFiFisher » Sat Apr 15, 2017 3:56 pm

vendic wrote:I had to fix a Kubota hydraulic pump that was worn down and not getting enough pressure years ago, with no manual. It was a pretty easy job really. A pane of glass and some wet and dry was all it took, other than some time. Companies charge a fortune for that crap.
This is why I read service manuals in advance, even when I don't own said equipment. One day, I know I'll be thrown into a place where I have to do something and have no idea where to start. Luckily I know my way around hydraulics. Usually I try to stick with generic rather than specific stuff. Like the NEC. Ah the NEC, the US standard that really isn't a standard and is more like a guide that states and even counties can override. Makes my brain hurt.
The racism is just in your face. Like, white is neutral. Black is dangerous.


Actually, I think that had something to do with white and black being a color that even color blind people can distinguish. Black being the color of death may have had some influence on deciding to code the hot wire (the one that can kill you) as black. White being considered the "good" or "safe" color may have had some influence also. It is worth noting that Europeans equated the color black with death long before they became aware of the fact that a large number of black people lived on the African continent and would come steal their jobs in a few hundred years. :P
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