Imperial Twilight by Stephen R. Platt (2018)

I really appreciated the style of this book.  The story-telling and drama kept my attention through the tedious details of the myriad names, dates, events, and dry, academic historiography, where conflicting historical evidence is analyzed. The interesting origins of the Opium War and the deep insights from each main character's point of view are very interesting. 4/5 Stars.

Seafair 2024

(Blue Angels Air acrobatics team)

(Racing boats)

Like many cities in the USA, Seattle has an annual summer event with an air show, boat regatta, boat racing, carnival tents and fairs.  And every year we head over to swim or float in the water under the air show to watch the festivities.  Here are my photos and here is a "delta break-out" video. This year the show included an F-35a doing acrobatics with flares, a C-5b fly-by, Fat Albert the C-130 AWACS for the blue angels, an F-35b doing the vertical take-off, landing tricks, and the blue angels.  Since I was on the water, the pictures are not as clear as my photos from previous years.  

We went to Seattle Sunday and ate lunch at the city center watching the air show again but suddenly,  an Opera broke out!   It was a great production of Pagliacci.

La commedia è finita! We all enjoyed the music and spectacular staging.

Diaspora by Greg Egan (1998)

Here is another "big ideas" book of a far flung future where intelligence has evolved into software on augmented and non-biological substrates and is trying to survive a deadly natural disaster that will eliminate all life.  The math is fun and the plot is unpredictable. The story and concepts a are a little too big for my comfort zone, 3/5 Stars.

The Daily Laws by Robert Greene (2021)

Here are some excerpts Robert Greene has collected from his earlier works on the topics of strategy, human nature, manipulating people, and stoic philosophy.  There is not much new that is not in his books, so if you (like me) have read them, don't bother with this one. As Robert and I both get closer to our inevitable deaths, the last few meditations were good reminders for me to live with more intensity. 3/5 Stars.

Charity Majors on Pragmatic Leadership

If you work in technology and care about leadership you should subscribe to Charity's blog.  She does not post frequently, but when she does, her ideas are always fantastic, even if you don't agree with her.  Here is her take on "politics" in the workplace and focusing on what matters most.

Der Schwarm von Frank Schätzing

Mit seinen tausend Seiten war dieses Buch für mich etwas entmutigend. Die Wissenschaft (Chemie, Biochemie) ist leider schrecklich. Ich bin immer fasziniert von Science-Fiction-Spekulationen über die 2,8 Gigatonnen Extremophilen, die in der Nähe von hydrothermalen Quellen leben. Sie sind 3,5 Milliarden Jahre alt, nur wenig jünger als die Entstehung des Erde-Mond-Systems. Was haben sie während dieser ganzen Zeit gemacht? Leider hat dieser übertriebene Thriller mit ständigen Explosionen, epischen Katastrophen und ständigen Nahtoderfahrungen zu viele lächerliche, konstruierte und unmögliche Situationen. Mir haben die Details der Charaktere, wie sie dargestellt werden, trotz ihrer archetypischen eindimensionalen Persönlichkeiten sehr gut gefallen. 2/5 Sterne.

Fission-powered rockets will fly!

Remember my rant about how 1950's technology is the cat's pajamas and still unsurpassed? We are finally starting serious steps to fly fission-powered rockets and I may live long enough to see magnetoplasmadynamic thrusters with a specific impulse of 10,000 seconds.

What's on the stack to read this year?

I recently celebrated another trip around the sun. My loving friends and family sent me some great books to read, along with many other thoughtful and wonderful presents that I really love. I had a great "haul" this year!  Many of my reservations at the libraries are now available as well.

Here is a partial list:

1. Der Schwarm von Frank Schatzing, Vor der Küste greifen plötzlich große Mengen Haie und Quallen Menschen an.
2. Forgotten Ally by Rana Mitter about the Sino-Japanese war of 1937 to 1945.
3. SPQR by Mary Beard, the authoritative History of the Roman Empire.
4. Hurra, wir leben noch! von Johannes Mario Simmel.
5. The Daily Laws by Robert Greene and Fred Sanders, excerpts from Greene's Power & War books.
6. Imperial Twilight by Mark Deakins, the exciting and authoritative history of the first Opium War.
7. The Art of Theft (Lady Sherlock #4) by Sherry Thomas.
8. Murder on Cold Street (Lady Sherlock #5) by Sherry Thomas
9. Kelwitt's Stern von Andreas Eschbach, Kelwitt der Jombuuraner kriegt unsere Sonne als Geschenk.
10. Icehenge by Kim Stanley Robinson
11. Barsk, The Elephants' Graveyard by Lawrence M Schoen
12. Raft by Stephen Baxter
13. Jahrestage von Gesine Cresspahl
14. Diaspora by Greg Egan
15. Biology and Human Behavior by Robert Sapolsky
16. Paladin of Souls by Lois McMaster Bujold
17. Hominids by Robert J Sawyer
18. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
19. Die Kinder der Finsternis von Wolf von Niebelschütz

Lost in Trans Nation by Miriam Grossman (2023)

I recently watched this Free Press interview with Steven Pinker where professor Pinker chats with Michael Moynaham on "why smart people believe in stupid things" such as conspiracy theories.  Moynahan grilled Pinker on many current events that evidence backsliding of our western societies away from rationality and enlightenment thinking, including evidence-based science. In this bit of the interview, during their discussion of Jon Haidt's book Pinker acknowledges that the political, economic, and scientific communities are retreating from science.

"The routine pathologizing of ordinary human emotion where every setback is a trauma where every difference is a neuroatypical condition and which Haidt and Greg lukanov have identified as the three great law lies: 1) whatever doesn't kill you makes you weaker 2) always trust your emotions and 3) the world may be divided into good and evil. They argue these lies are the diametric opposite to what cognitive behavior therapy tries to accomplish. And we know this therapy is one of the most successful forms of therapy of all time And the set of three great untruths may have had as much of a role as the like button on Facebook. I would add another thing. I tend to think that the Doom Mongering of mainstream media, which is easier and easier as everyone is an on-the-spot reporter.

Among the anti-science phenomena where activist bullies have destroyed evidence-based studies, enlightenment ideals, rationality, and the progress we had made in mental health treatments is the "trans" movement.  This fantastic book by Miriam Grossman is well-researched, well-written, and valuable.  The references and depth of her explanations is fantastic.  I was crying through two of the chapters as the real traumas were described in excruciating detail. All parents should read this book. 5/5 Stars.  Highly recommended.

Transcendent by Stephen Baxter (2005)

I didn't like the ending of this trilogy. The magic system and motivations became muddled and arbitrary. The theology and metaphysics were also uncompelling. 2/5 Stars.