YC’s Summer Reading • Hacker News Board

Re: YC’s Summer Reading

#171

Post by avindroth » Thu, Jul 28, 2016, 3:08 PM UTC

arvinsim wrote: post #132

avindroth wrote: post #120

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I write a lot while reading. Sort of like having a conversation with the author. I read less books this way, but the knowledge in the books become much more internalized. I tend to implement them much faster too. And aren't we reading, in part, to better our lives (short-term pleasure or long-term changes)? Of course, I read fiction just for the pleasure as well (like Ready Player One). This method of reading also sh…

Very interesting. I always had this fear in the back of my mind that reading books about personal development is useless since I can't retain the information long enough to apply at the right time. Your method might just be what I need to do to get better at this.

To implement what you read, employ the method of Directives[1]. These days my notes look like the following (from "The Inevitable" by Kevin Kelly):

----------

You hate updates? Get used to them. Because in the future, living — for most surrounded by technology — will be a constant stream of updates.

1. Embrace being an Endless Newbie; don't be embarrassed if you don't know something!

In the era of constant updates, we will be newbies — forever. Something else we have to get used to. You won't have time to master anything, really. Most of the technologies that will play a large role in the next thirty years have not been invented.

...

We are living in the golden age. We just don't realize it. The last thirty years has created a great starting point. It is the best time ever in human history to begin.

You are not late.

2. Study AI and Hardware. Go out and slap AI and sensors to everything.

----------

The numbered list is my list of Directives. These imperatives seamlessly organize my notes well; all other pieces of information turn into arguments for these assertions. This info-gathering process feels very intuitive. Our brain must be good at gathering evidence for a piece of advice.

Besides the general Directives, I use org-mode for my tasks. The end goal is to develop sensible systems, not drain your willpower performing these directives. So when I have an idea for implementing a sensible system, I write it down in org-mode (which has a numbered list of all my tasks).

[1]: https://sivers.org/2do

Re: YC’s Summer Reading

#172

Post by raywu » Thu, Jul 28, 2016, 3:21 PM UTC

oxymoron wrote: post #156

wrsh07 wrote: post #122

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's fun, but if you want dystopian capitalist world with a parallel vr universe, snow crash has more surprising ideas. (And better writing) Although it's a bit violent and has some... interesting mechanisms (as I was told: it gets weird) Also, the nostalgia comes baked in because it was written in the 90s. Still super relevant though

_Snow Crash_ is good fun, and I really liked the speculative elements. It led me down the path of becoming a Stephenson junky which, coming from someone that tries to avoid reading many big novels by a single author, breaks a bit with my own principles. _Cryptonomicon_ need hardly be mentioned anymore, considering it's repute, but lately I've been reading the "prequel" trilogy consisting of _Quicksilver_, _The Confus…

_Anathem_ is great. Very slow build up. The interwoven theme of race, religion, time and space makes it well worth the slow construction of the world. Here's a video of him speaking at Google for the book tour http://youtu.be/lnq-2BJwatE

Re: YC’s Summer Reading

#173

Post by facepalm » Thu, Jul 28, 2016, 4:09 PM UTC

DanBC wrote: post #170

facepalm wrote: post #160

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe I didn't read far enough, didn't think a book about souls could be atheist.

The book includes religion. That's what world building is. That doesn't mean it's pro religion, anymore than it's pro armour-clad polar bears. In the books the church is pretty oppressive.

But it's different things to include religion, which is just stuff people believe, and actual souls. Religion is just a belief. Churches are just companies.

But I admit, in that sense any fantasy novel containing magic might be "religious" in some sense. The soul thing just seemed rather Christian to me.

I am an atheist and not that well versed in Christianity, though.

Re: YC’s Summer Reading

#174

Post by facepalm » Thu, Jul 28, 2016, 4:10 PM UTC

moultano wrote: post #140

facepalm wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you can recommend more female authors on par with, say, JK Rowling, Fred Vargas, Neil Gaiman or Patrick Rothfuss, I'd be happy to read them. It's hard enough to find good books, worrying about the author's gender is very pointless. Especially since I am not interested in women's issues, which nobody should be obliged to be.

If you haven't read any Ursula K. LeGuin yet, she is amazing. Start with either The Left Hand of Darkness, The Dispossessed, or The Wizard of Earthsea, depending on whether you are most interested in gender, societal systems, or wizards, respectively.

Thanks - I've read and liked Earthsea, but it might be time for another one.

Re: YC’s Summer Reading

#175

Post by sctb » Thu, Jul 28, 2016, 6:55 PM UTC

schlupp wrote: post #130

mrweasel wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Does anyone seriously believe that there where books that didn't make the list because of the gender of the author? It's "Alan Kay's reading list" all over again. No one discard books based on the sex of the author, perhaps except extreme feminists. Books are picked because of their content.

Oh are they? Then explain to me, why it's always white men If your argument would be valid, it would be a random selection of the author's gender/race. So either we live in the most amazing statistical anomaly or you are full of shit.

We've banned this account for serial trolling.

Re: YC’s Summer Reading

#176

Post by wrsh07 » Thu, Jul 28, 2016, 7:56 PM UTC

overcast wrote: post #167

wrsh07 wrote: post #122

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's fun, but if you want dystopian capitalist world with a parallel vr universe, snow crash has more surprising ideas. (And better writing) Although it's a bit violent and has some... interesting mechanisms (as I was told: it gets weird) Also, the nostalgia comes baked in because it was written in the 90s. Still super relevant though

I thought SnowCrash was horrendous, with terrible writing. Most overrated book I've read to date, by far.

Have you read RP1? If you haven't and that's your impression of Snow Crash: Don't.

Re: YC’s Summer Reading

#177

Post by sn9 » Thu, Jul 28, 2016, 9:12 PM UTC

facepalm wrote: post #158

Fraterkes wrote: post #155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, and an important plotpoint is that a church is trying to get rid of the soulmates because they are part of the original sin. So you should prob turn you view around 180 degrees.

Then probably I didn't get that far while reading, sorry about that. Still not sure how it can be atheist if it is all about souls, though.

It was profoundly humanist scifi/fantasy.

Re: YC’s Summer Reading

#178

Post by sn9 » Thu, Jul 28, 2016, 9:14 PM UTC

tgb wrote: post #145

sn9 wrote: post #109

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you set a goal of about 50 pages per night, you'd be surprised how much you can read.

How fast do you read that though? I'm like the grand parent post, 50 pages is an onerous commitment, something I'll only get done if I'm really really into a book and have nothing else to do that day, or am stuck on a plane. It'll take me around eight hours of reading to finish a short young adult book, for example.

Not particularly fast. I'm probably average for the typical college-educated adult.

Obviously it varies with the density of the material.

You can work up to 50 pages. Start with 10 pages per night. After a week, add 10 pages. Repeat until you hit a number of pages you find worthwhile.

Re: YC’s Summer Reading

#179

Post by DanBC » Thu, Jul 28, 2016, 9:57 PM UTC

facepalm wrote: post #135

schlupp wrote: post #130

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Oh are they? Then explain to me, why it's always white men If your argument would be valid, it would be a random selection of the author's gender/race. So either we live in the most amazing statistical anomaly or you are full of shit.

There are two possibilities: 1. Women write the same books as men. Then it doesn't matter what gender the author of a book has (from the perspective of the reader who only cares about a quality reading experience) 2. Women write different books than men. Then it is possible that certain groups of people simply like books written by men better than books written by women. It could be simply a matter of subject. For ex…

> Fred Vargas

It's great to see Fred Vargas get some recognition on HN.

I'd recommend anything by Lauren Beukes, Susan Hill, or Caitlin Horrocks. (These aren't much like Fred Vargas.)

Caitlin Horrocks' "This is not your city" collection of shorts is, I think, good.

Susan Hill has written some great police procedurals, among others. "The Various Haunts of Men" is a great book.

http://laurenbeukes.com/

http://www.caitlinhorrocks.com/

http://www.susanhill.org.uk/various-haunts-men

Re: YC’s Summer Reading

#180

Post by miraj » Fri, Jul 29, 2016, 1:59 AM UTC

facepalm wrote: post #135

schlupp wrote: post #130

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Oh are they? Then explain to me, why it's always white men If your argument would be valid, it would be a random selection of the author's gender/race. So either we live in the most amazing statistical anomaly or you are full of shit.

There are two possibilities: 1. Women write the same books as men. Then it doesn't matter what gender the author of a book has (from the perspective of the reader who only cares about a quality reading experience) 2. Women write different books than men. Then it is possible that certain groups of people simply like books written by men better than books written by women. It could be simply a matter of subject. For ex…