Sounds like an intellectual read.
Mitsio Kaku: Physics of the impossible.
It's a good read. He basically analyses all the concepts that appear in science fiction (like teleportation and space travel) and then checks to see if they are plausible or not, along with some other things. Very interesting and inspirational book, I recommend it even if you aren't into science books.
It's a good read. He basically analyses all the concepts that appear in science fiction (like teleportation and space travel) and then checks to see if they are plausible or not, along with some other things. Very interesting and inspirational book, I recommend it even if you aren't into science books.
While I have a break between courses:
Third in a pretty good series.
If you have any interest in Templar history, this is a good series to get into.
Third in a pretty good series.
If you have any interest in Templar history, this is a good series to get into.
“Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.”
― Albert Einstein
Doing the popular thing is not always right. Doing the right thing is not always popular
― Albert Einstein
Doing the popular thing is not always right. Doing the right thing is not always popular
If that's the kind of stuff you're into, there's a good series on the crusades that I recommend written by Stephen R Lawhead. Can't remember the name of the series right now though.FEOS wrote:
While I have a break between courses:
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/5 … _OU01_.jpg
Third in a pretty good series.
If you have any interest in Templar history, this is a good series to get into.
"Ah, you miserable creatures! You who think that you are so great! You who judge humanity to be so small! You who wish to reform everything! Why don't you reform yourselves? That task would be sufficient enough."
-Frederick Bastiat
-Frederick Bastiat
My tastes in reading are extremely eclectic, but I'll keep an eye out for it.JohnG@lt wrote:
If that's the kind of stuff you're into, there's a good series on the crusades that I recommend written by Stephen R Lawhead. Can't remember the name of the series right now though.FEOS wrote:
While I have a break between courses:
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/5 … _OU01_.jpg
Third in a pretty good series.
If you have any interest in Templar history, this is a good series to get into.
“Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.”
― Albert Einstein
Doing the popular thing is not always right. Doing the right thing is not always popular
― Albert Einstein
Doing the popular thing is not always right. Doing the right thing is not always popular
AK47 - Kahaner
Superficial, jumped around and repetitious, some schoolboy errors. Wouldn't read again.
Superficial, jumped around and repetitious, some schoolboy errors. Wouldn't read again.
Русский военный корабль, иди на хуй!
Very good.burnzz wrote:
worth every minute.AussieReaper wrote:
About to start reading the Isaac Asimov "Foundation" series.
I finished the first book and am well into the second.
"The Dream Machine - The Untold History of the Notorious V22 Osprey" Richard Whittle
The history right from the beginning of rotorcraft to the deployment of the Osprey in Iraq.
Follows the political wrangling within the Pentagon, Bell, Boeing and the Marines much more than the technical side but still interesting. Covers a lot of the flight testing.
Worth reading for a feel of how multi-billion dollar military contracts get done, glad I'm not involved in any of that.
Flippin eck thats a lot of engineering complexity... would have liked to have seen it covered at least a little.
The history right from the beginning of rotorcraft to the deployment of the Osprey in Iraq.
Follows the political wrangling within the Pentagon, Bell, Boeing and the Marines much more than the technical side but still interesting. Covers a lot of the flight testing.
Worth reading for a feel of how multi-billion dollar military contracts get done, glad I'm not involved in any of that.
Flippin eck thats a lot of engineering complexity... would have liked to have seen it covered at least a little.
Last edited by Dilbert_X (2010-09-09 06:17:23)
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I'm still reading D-Day. Its a really thick book...
I read that in 4th grade.Sup wrote:
I'm still reading D-Day. Its a really thick book...
"Ah, you miserable creatures! You who think that you are so great! You who judge humanity to be so small! You who wish to reform everything! Why don't you reform yourselves? That task would be sufficient enough."
-Frederick Bastiat
-Frederick Bastiat
I read Goosebumps, Garfield and Choose Your Own Adventure books in fourth grade. Teachers would never believe you did Return of the King alone until you were in jr high.
Goosebumps was some good reading though, before it became bland and tacky.
(edit: oh god, I actually used that word for a book...cliche)
Goosebumps was some good reading though, before it became bland and tacky.
Riveting.Poseidon wrote:
Sounds like an intellectual read.
(edit: oh god, I actually used that word for a book...cliche)
By Antony Beevor? I doubt it as it was first released in o9' unless you are like 10?JohnG@lt wrote:
I read that in 4th grade.Sup wrote:
I'm still reading D-Day. Its a really thick book...
@Sup, lolDilbert_X wrote:
AK47 - Kahaner
Superficial, jumped around and repetitious, some schoolboy errors. Wouldn't read again.
Yeah seems like that book is blowing a lot of shit about the AK out of proportion, seems like that they're saying a rebel with an AK is just as deadly as a properly trained infantryman with a M16A4.
No comparison thar.
Globally AKs have killed more people than M16s, for various reasons, and at close range shooting instinctively an AK is going to win.Trotskygrad wrote:
@Sup, lolDilbert_X wrote:
AK47 - Kahaner
Superficial, jumped around and repetitious, some schoolboy errors. Wouldn't read again.
Yeah seems like that book is blowing a lot of shit about the AK out of proportion, seems like that they're saying a rebel with an AK is just as deadly as a properly trained infantryman with a M16A4.
No comparison thar.
The 'yes but at 600 yards in the hands of a trained marksman...' argument is irrelevant so don't bother
Last edited by Dilbert_X (2010-09-23 23:28:10)
Русский военный корабль, иди на хуй!
Ignoring chance for the moment, controlled bursts or single shots are going to find their mark way more often than wild full-auto bang-bang. And the M16 is pretty damn accurate.
Accuracy is sometimes counterproductive, auto shotguns can be more useful in close quarters than single shot sniper rifles for example. Bren gunners preferred worn out barrels to brand new ones too, they gave a better spread and a greater chance of a hit.
Back on topic:
Success Through Failure - Henry Petroski
A book devoted to nailing the canard that experience is more useful than fundamental understanding of what you're designing.
Experience of success leads to gross complacency and leads ultimately to gross failures.
On a related note, every engineer should read the two shuttle failure enquiry reports.
Back on topic:
Success Through Failure - Henry Petroski
A book devoted to nailing the canard that experience is more useful than fundamental understanding of what you're designing.
Experience of success leads to gross complacency and leads ultimately to gross failures.
On a related note, every engineer should read the two shuttle failure enquiry reports.
Last edited by Dilbert_X (2010-09-24 16:55:08)
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Bourne Identity - Robert Ludlum
Terrible. Nothing at all like the movie. And everyone of Bourne's two friends reveal everything he needs to know rather than have him work it out for himself. The doc pretty much tells him he's an assassin in the opening chapter. The girl he is on the run with is a professor of economics and able to trace the money he discovered in the bank - and is able to tell him everything about his arch nemesis assassin Carlos the Jackal for some reason.
I'm moving on to The Spy Who Came in from the Cold next.
Terrible. Nothing at all like the movie. And everyone of Bourne's two friends reveal everything he needs to know rather than have him work it out for himself. The doc pretty much tells him he's an assassin in the opening chapter. The girl he is on the run with is a professor of economics and able to trace the money he discovered in the bank - and is able to tell him everything about his arch nemesis assassin Carlos the Jackal for some reason.
I'm moving on to The Spy Who Came in from the Cold next.
stop fucking around with awful fucking examples of the genre and go read some of that le carre like right nowAussieReaper wrote:
Bourne Identity - Robert Ludlum
Terrible. Nothing at all like the movie. And everyone of Bourne's two friends reveal everything he needs to know rather than have him work it out for himself. The doc pretty much tells him he's an assassin in the opening chapter. The girl he is on the run with is a professor of economics and able to trace the money he discovered in the bank - and is able to tell him everything about his arch nemesis assassin Carlos the Jackal for some reason.
I'm moving on to The Spy Who Came in from the Cold next.
Last edited by Uzique (2010-09-29 07:30:00)
libertarian benefit collector - anti-academic super-intellectual. http://mixlr.com/the-little-phrase/
Eichmann in my hands - Peter Z. Malkin and Harry Stein
I loved this book. It talks in detail of how a real spying mission works, told and written by the actual Mossad agents. The story is the abduction of Adolph Eichmann, a Nazi high ranking officer (known as the "holocaust architect"), in Argentina by Mossad. A portion of the book deals with Malkin's (the agent who actually captured him) talks with Eichmann while he was in captivity in Argentina. Its interesting to see an Israeli talking to a Nazi high officer.
Good book, true account of a an espionage mission, no nonsense.
I loved this book. It talks in detail of how a real spying mission works, told and written by the actual Mossad agents. The story is the abduction of Adolph Eichmann, a Nazi high ranking officer (known as the "holocaust architect"), in Argentina by Mossad. A portion of the book deals with Malkin's (the agent who actually captured him) talks with Eichmann while he was in captivity in Argentina. Its interesting to see an Israeli talking to a Nazi high officer.
Good book, true account of a an espionage mission, no nonsense.
"All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover them."
Galileo Galilei (1564-1642)
Galileo Galilei (1564-1642)
im really enjoying my emerson and transcendentalism lately.
also reading thoreau's 'walden' and some james on pragmatism. good stuff.
also reading thoreau's 'walden' and some james on pragmatism. good stuff.
libertarian benefit collector - anti-academic super-intellectual. http://mixlr.com/the-little-phrase/
'Pincher Martin' - William Golding
I liked the writing style and the concept, not really sure what its all about - we're all scrabbling randomly towards a death the ego can't deal with?
Maybe this is where the 'Lost' writers got their ideas from, and the first few pages of 'The Stars My Destination' are somewhat similar.
I liked the writing style and the concept, not really sure what its all about - we're all scrabbling randomly towards a death the ego can't deal with?
Maybe this is where the 'Lost' writers got their ideas from, and the first few pages of 'The Stars My Destination' are somewhat similar.
Русский военный корабль, иди на хуй!
Was wondering if anyone's read anything by Isaiah Berlin. Thinking of buying this one in particular. He seems interestingly pessimistic from a first glance...
ƒ³
Well they certainly got half the plot from Golding's Lord of the Flies, so...Dilbert_X wrote:
'Pincher Martin' - William Golding
I liked the writing style and the concept, not really sure what its all about - we're all scrabbling randomly towards a death the ego can't deal with?
Maybe this is where the 'Lost' writers got their ideas from, and the first few pages of 'The Stars My Destination' are somewhat similar.
ƒ³
... which is taken pretty much from treasure island, so...
i don't rate golding as an author. he wrote about what he knew best, that was all.
i don't rate golding as an author. he wrote about what he knew best, that was all.
libertarian benefit collector - anti-academic super-intellectual. http://mixlr.com/the-little-phrase/
Yeah, a Nobel prize-winning author doesn't 'rate'.....
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