Lefty October 13th, 2007
A friend at work showed me Delicious Library, a new (at least to me) application that uses the built in camera in your mac to scan the barcode of books, DVDs, CDs, etc. It then automatically adds the item to your online and allows you to keep track of who you’ve lent things to by integrating with iCal and Address Book. It’s pretty slick.
I’ve also been playing around with goodreads.com, a social networking site for readers, that allows you to share your reading lists and recommendations with other book enthusiasts. My profile is here.
Both are nice usages of technology in the service of those who like to read.
Lefty January 10th, 2007
Since I’ve got a nice six week break between semesters, I’ve been trying to catch up on some reading of the non-textbook variety. I recently went out and bought three books:
The first book, which I just finished reading. is Richard Dawkins’ The God Delusion. Dawkins is a British evolutionary biologist who has written a number of highly regarded books on science in the past. The God Delusion, which is currently #6 on the NY Times bestseller list, is Dawkins’ argument for logic, reason, and enlightenment values and against religion and fundamentalism. More than that, it is an impassioned argument for atheism and science versus faith and all manner of superstition. It is also quite a page turner, as Dawkins is a witty and engaging writer. The book was based on a BBC documentary called “The Root of All Evil?â€, which I found posted on Google Video. Check it out:
I just started The Moral Consequences of Economic Growth by Benjamin Friedman, which challenges the popular idea that economic growth and morality are two conflicting forces that always need to be carefully balanced. Instead, he argues, there is clear evidence that a society’s level of economic growth is a key driver of tolerance, democracy, openness, and other key values of a free (and moral) society. I haven’t gotten very far yet, but I’m hoping to make some serious progress on the plane tomorrow.
Lastly, The Singularity is Near by Ray Kurzweil is a book I’ve been hearing about for awhile, but I haven’t yet had a chance to crack open. Kurzweil is an entrepreneur and scientist who has become known for his advocacy of an idea he calls the “singularity.†As best I can tell, he believes that the rate of technological change is progressing so rapidly, that burgeoning fields like nanotechnology, robotics, and genetics will soon make human life almost unrecognizable. These technologies will allow humankind to merge with computers to become not only immortal, but almost limitless in our intelligence and capabilities. A friend told me that Kurzweil takes 250 vitamins a day in the hope of living another 20 years, at which point mortality will become a thing of the past and we’ll all merge with our computers. It sound incredibly far-out, but I’ve read a number of people say his arguments are quite compelling.
So with any luck I’ll have an enjoyable few days of reading on vacation and before my new classes start on February 2nd.