"Over the years, her friends wondered what ever happened to Antonietta. Was she safe? Was she being well-cared for? Was she even still alive?" —Maria Iqbal for Toronto Star
"A shocking act of violence attracted international attention and split the town over questions of truth and justice. Grand Marais is still trying to piece itself back together."
-The psychology of a mass shooter (Mother Jones)
-The phenomenon of Novak Djokovic (The Atlantic)
-Plant anatomy to understand human emotion (Virginia Quarterly Review)
-Lunches with a literary legend (Taste Magazine)
-Surfing . . . in a mall (Slate)
Artificial Negligence: The Book About AI for People Who Would Never Buy a Book About AI by James Wilson, 2022
Written in an accessible, balanced, light-hearted way, it is intended for those of you who wouldn't normally pick up a science or philosophy book. Using clear, and generally amusing, analogies and examples, it will ensure you can face the future with confidence and optimism.
Unweaving the Rainbow: Science, Delusion and the Appetite for Wonder by Richard Dawkins, 2020
With the wit, insight, and spellbinding prose that have made him a bestselling author, Dawkins takes up the most important and compelling topics in modern science, from astronomy and genetics to language and virtual reality, combining them in a landmark statement of the human appetite for wonder.
Human Compatible: Artificial Intelligence and the Problem of Control by Stuart Russell, 2019
A leading artificial intelligence researcher lays out a new approach to AI that will enable us to coexist successfully with increasingly intelligent machines.
"Then she fishes half a glossy purple eggplant from the fridge, and a ball of fresh mozzarella, too. She hands me a knife, and we both begin to slice. We work close together. Our shoulders almost touch." Sara Franklin for Taste
The Reader's Brain: How Neuroscience Can Make You a Better Writer by Yellowlees Douglas, 2015
The Reader's Brain is the first science-based guide to writing, employing cutting-edge research on how our minds process written language, to ensure your writing can be read quickly, assimilated easily, and recalled precisely - exactly what we need to transform anyone into a highly effective writer.
Our Moon: How Earth's Celestial Companion Transformed the Planet, Guided Evolution, and Made Us Who We Are by Rebecca Boyle, 2024
Acclaimed journalist Rebecca Boyle takes readers on a dazzling tour to reveal the intimate role that our 4.51-billion-year-old companion has played in our biological and cultural evolution.
Disobey The Philosophy of Resistance by Frédéric Gros
In this provocative essay, Frédéric Gros explores the roots of political obedience. Social conformity, economic subjection, respect for authorities, constitutional consensus? Examining the various styles of obedience provides tools to study, invent and induce new forms of civic disobedience and protest.
Mind Design III: Philosophy, Psychology, and Artificial Intelligence by John Haugeland, 2023
The essential reader on the philosophical foundations and implications of artificial intelligence, now comprehensively updated for the twenty-first century.
Third Millennium Thinking Creating Sense in a World of Nonsense by Saul Perlmutter, John Campbell, Robert MacCoun, 2024
Based on a wildly popular UC Berkeley course, how to use scientists’ tricks of the trade to make the best decisions and solve the hardest problems in age of uncertainty and overwhelming information.
I wrote a book and now I have to wrap it up. In that effort, I have many! facts to check. I think I can plow through the bulk of it at ~60 facts per/day for ~30 days (spread across ~10 sources). My new hobby, I guess?
This type of tedious, detailed work is not my favorite thing. I have the source material, but I need to go back and scrutinize what I wrote in detail to make sure it's correct.
On one hand, it may have been easier if past Nicole did a better job at documenting details along the way. On the other hand, it was really unclear what would make it through the final filter and documenting every little thing would have been even more tedious (and would have disrupted the process of connecting it all together).
Any tips for how to make this new hobby of mine easier or more pleasant?
In her book #AttentionSpan, Gloria Mark, PhD dedicates a chapter to the discussion of free will.
Though it seems to me a tangent, I appreciate the implication that "taking control of our attention" isn't entirely a matter of choice. Whatever TF choice is.
I mean, choice is supposedly the thing that controls attention, but… elaboration fades to infinity #nonfiction#psychology#allostasis
This is a very good comic, and it describes every author (or #artist) who is unsure of themself. Don't let this be you!
Complete stories (your vision) regardless of the merit you see in them.
Start a next one. Full stop. Then another.
Complete and send out more stories even if some editor (or commenter) doesn't buy or like them.
It's all practice, every single failure or not-good-enough. Practice makes you better, whatever they think, or you think. Keep practicing.
Take from criticism only whatever helps you identify or fix problems; reject being put in your place or ridiculed. It's practice. Your art is unique to you. Be truthful with yourself, though.
Keep starting and completing stories. Statistically, some will be good—and you will start to recognize the wheat in the chaff.
Their first stories weren't fabulous. Neither may be yours. The difference? They kept on starting, completing, sending (or posting), until they found success. Let that be you.
Please remember: #boostingIsSharing and boost to give others a moral boost.
I've realized I don't feel productive unless I'm learning something. So far today I've listened to part of a #podcast and now I'm reading a little bit of a #nonfiction#book I've been working on. Things are going well. 😁 :blobcatread: #bookstodon#sunday
#JustFinished Blood in the Machine by Brian Merchant
This has been an absolutely fascinating book to read and is perhaps the most important book I'll read all year. Merchant is spot on with his commentary about the parallels between the first Industrial Revolution and now. We have not learned a thing about protecting our populations and economies from mass unemployment during technological upheaval.
Space at the Speed of Light: The History of 14 Billion Years for People Short on Time by Becky Smethurst, 2020
From the big bang to black holes, this fast-paced illustrated tour of time and space for the astro-curious unlocks the science of the stars to reveal fascinating theories, surprising discoveries, and ongoing mysteries in modern #astronomy and #astrophysics.
Frontlines Stories of Environmental Justice by Nick Meynen, 2019
Every unpacked frontline is one cutting edge of an economic system and political ideology that is destroying life on earth. Revealing our ecosystems to be under a sustained attack, Nick Meynen finds causes for hope in unconventional places.
Fixation How to Have Stuff Without Breaking the Planet by Sandra Goldmark, 2020
Our massive, global system of consumption is broken. Our individual relationship with our stuff is broken. In each of our homes, some stuff is broken. And the strain of rampant consumerism and manufacturing is breaking our planet. We need big, systemic changes, from public policy to global economic systems. But we don't need to wait for them.
Human Longevity: The Major Determining Factors by Joseph A. Knight, 2010
Two thousand years ago, the average life expectancy from birth to death of a Roman citizen, an individual better off than most people at that time, was about 22 years (wars, infectious diseases, trauma, etc.). This progressively increased to about 47 years in the U.S. and most European countries by 1900.