Our beloved 20th Century Science Fiction did us a great disservice as it omitted all of the hard problems that remain for humans to settle other than on the earth. So book looks at all the aspects of humanity's future in space.
One important factor that it beings up is that we don't yet know whether humans can thrive long-term in less than one 1G. We know that we can survive in 1G and that 0G causes many health problems but we have no experience, long term of anything in between.
Definitely, getting to Mars more quickly using nuclear rockets would be a huge advantage as we don't know if the astronauts will even be able to walk after a lengthy trip to Mars or how long it would take for them to recuperate in Mars' 38% gravity. Let alone the problems with dust once they got there.
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Stuart Woodward reviewed Spacefarers by Christopher Wanjek
Review of 'Spacefarers' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
Our beloved 20th Century Science Fiction did us a great disservice as it omitted all of the hard problems that remain for humans to settle other than on the earth. So book looks at all the aspects of humanity's future in space.
One important factor that it beings up is that we don't yet know whether humans can thrive long-term in less than one 1G. We know that we can survive in 1G and that 0G causes many health problems but we have no experience, long term of anything in between.
Definitely, getting to Mars more quickly using nuclear rockets would be a huge advantage as we don't know if the astronauts will even be able to walk after a lengthy trip to Mars or how long it would take for them to recuperate in Mars' 38% gravity. Let alone the problems with dust once they got there.
If you are interested in the topic it is worth reading but note, even though it is a fairly contemporary book many of the projects it mentions have already been completed.
Stuart Woodward reviewed Myths to Live By by Joseph Campbell
Review of 'Myths to Live By' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Some sublime moments in this book. Reading Joseph Campbell is an antidote to religion, because his knowledge of comparative stories in many religions make sense of the "unique" stories in particular religions, however, you can get a little bit overdosed by reading too much Joseph Campbell and get the feeling that you can't argue with him, just because he knows everything and has a reason an explanation for everything even though it's sometimes sounds like he's making it up as he goes along.
I'll read it and take notes next time.
Stuart Woodward reviewed Tracers in the Dark by Andy Greenberg
Over the last decade, a single innovation has massively fueled digital black markets: cryptocurrency. Crime …
Review of 'Tracers in the Dark' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
A good history of cryptocurrencies from the perspective of how tools and services have been developed to trace transactions and how this lead to successful prosecutions of people who had assumed that they were anonymous. Worth a read.
Review of 'Just Six Numbers: The Deep Forces That Shape the Universe' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Great book. I will definitely read it again sometime. Covers in depth the 6 constants that govern the way the universe is and what it would be like if they were different.
Stuart Woodward reviewed Ludicrous by Edward Niedermeyer
Review of 'Ludicrous' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Elon Musk, obviously has something. Being the charismatic CEO of any of his companies would have earned him fame.
I hadn't followed the Tesla story apart from the headlines. I am much more up on SpaceX which I have avidly followed from the start.
Tesla seems to be more chaotic than SpaceX. Both piggyback on the government's purse. Tesla in fulfilling green initiatives and SpaceX in supplying the government with a launch vehicle to space. In both, the breakneck continuous innovation in software and hardware play a big part of their success.
This book was written before Twitter though Twitter does play a part in the story as it was thought that his constant PR via Twitter was the source of a lot of trouble and controversy relating to Tesla.
You can't doubt that a lot of the success of Tesla is down to Musk. But a lot of Tesla's …
Elon Musk, obviously has something. Being the charismatic CEO of any of his companies would have earned him fame.
I hadn't followed the Tesla story apart from the headlines. I am much more up on SpaceX which I have avidly followed from the start.
Tesla seems to be more chaotic than SpaceX. Both piggyback on the government's purse. Tesla in fulfilling green initiatives and SpaceX in supplying the government with a launch vehicle to space. In both, the breakneck continuous innovation in software and hardware play a big part of their success.
This book was written before Twitter though Twitter does play a part in the story as it was thought that his constant PR via Twitter was the source of a lot of trouble and controversy relating to Tesla.
You can't doubt that a lot of the success of Tesla is down to Musk. But a lot of Tesla's success is powered by the Musk's hype machine and his army of fans, many who have put their money where their mouth is to pre fund the development of their cars. He reminds me very much of Steve Jobs who was also able to inspire fanatical support, was the master of product announcement and seamless U-Turns and spinning unfinished software into some kind of advantage with his "reality distortion field".
You probably won't be a Tesla fan after reading it.
Stuart Woodward reviewed Creepy crawling by Jeffrey Paul Melnick
""Creepy crawling" was the Manson Family's practice of secretly entering someone's home and, without harming …
Review of 'Creepy crawling' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
I can't say that I can recommend this.
I thought it was going to be more detail on the "creepy crawling", the night time break-ins conducted by the Mason family where they would go into people's houses and move stuff around just to creep people out.
In fact the author redefines "creepy crawling" to be the cultural history of Manson family and how they "crept" their way into the psyche of America and the culture of the 1960s.
As such it is a long and forgettable book based on the conjecture of the author like a student sociology thesis.
Stuart Woodward reviewed Exploring Kamakura by Cooper, Michael
Review of 'Exploring Kamakura' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
When I came to Japan in 1988 I inherited a copy of Exploring Kamakura and have used it many times when visiting there.
Actually, it formed the basis for many trips as the routes and grouping of places to visit, if followed, will take you many temples and shrines neglected by even the most seasoned tourist. I think it is valuable for this alone.
It's a very personal book too with anecdotes about the fellow visitors and the many repeated visits that the author made to particular temples.
I did note however, this time, with the wealth of cross referenced information in Wikipedia, that this book had lost a little magic as my go-to source of information. A few minutes searching pulled out answers to questions that even the author had had and corrections to his suppositions. It would be an interesting project to make a contemporary video commentary on …
When I came to Japan in 1988 I inherited a copy of Exploring Kamakura and have used it many times when visiting there.
Actually, it formed the basis for many trips as the routes and grouping of places to visit, if followed, will take you many temples and shrines neglected by even the most seasoned tourist. I think it is valuable for this alone.
It's a very personal book too with anecdotes about the fellow visitors and the many repeated visits that the author made to particular temples.
I did note however, this time, with the wealth of cross referenced information in Wikipedia, that this book had lost a little magic as my go-to source of information. A few minutes searching pulled out answers to questions that even the author had had and corrections to his suppositions. It would be an interesting project to make a contemporary video commentary on the text and visit all of the places mentioned.
A must, if you love Kamakura.
Stuart Woodward reviewed Sandy Hook by Elizabeth Williamson
Review of 'Sandy Hook' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Very comprehensive coverage of Sandy Hook and the hell that the parents went through due to conspiracy theorists.
Review of 'Trapped! the Story of Floyd Collins' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
I read Roger Brucker's "The Longest Cave" many years ago and really enjoyed it so when I saw Trapped! on Audible I really wanted to listen to it.
Actually, from Roger Brucker's other books I knew quite a lot about Floyd Collins's story and wondered if I had actually read Trapped! before. Even so I still wanted to listen to the audiobook.
Floyd Collins got trapped and died in a Kentucky cave in 1925 and at the time the story of his attempted rescue was the biggest news story in America.
This book is not only about the story of Floyd Collins but also about how subsequent retellings and contemporary reports twisted the story.
A really interesting story even you are not into caving.
Stuart Woodward reviewed Hunting Ghislaine by John Sweeney
Review of 'Hunting Ghislaine' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
The other side of the Epstein story. A typical John Sweeney reading. Seems to be mostly based on his podcast overing the same topic.
Stuart Woodward reviewed Confidence Man by Maggie Haberman
Review of 'Confidence Man' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Fair assessment of Trumps business and political career. He hasn’t changed much over the years so what you see is what you get.
Stuart Woodward reviewed Game Wizards by Jon Peterson
The story of the arcane table-top game that became a pop culture phenomenon and the …
Review of 'Game Wizards' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Wow! What a great book. I listened to this book as I thought it would be interesting to hear the story Gary Gygax and how D&D started but in the end the story of the rise and fall of TSR was fascinating.
This is business book. TSR grew quickly and created a new genre so in hindsight a lot of mistakes were made that today look laughable but, hey, mortgaging your house to fund a game looks laughable too but when it worked out that it looks like a genius idea in retrospect.
It is also a book a human relations. How to value your staff and how to run a company.
It is a book that charts the growth of Wizards of the Coast and how they came to own the TSR. I have a huge respect for them now that I understand the story.
There is a lot …
Wow! What a great book. I listened to this book as I thought it would be interesting to hear the story Gary Gygax and how D&D started but in the end the story of the rise and fall of TSR was fascinating.
This is business book. TSR grew quickly and created a new genre so in hindsight a lot of mistakes were made that today look laughable but, hey, mortgaging your house to fund a game looks laughable too but when it worked out that it looks like a genius idea in retrospect.
It is also a book a human relations. How to value your staff and how to run a company.
It is a book that charts the growth of Wizards of the Coast and how they came to own the TSR. I have a huge respect for them now that I understand the story.
There is a lot of subtly in the reasons why TSR became unprofitable and the business reasons behind it which explains how the bad decisions were made. Decisions which led them further and further into debt and stifled their ability to compete.
I'd be happy to listen to this again. A great book if you are interested in business, money, fame and D&D.
Review of "82 Days on Okinawa: A Memoir of the Pacific's Greatest Battle" on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
A good introduction to the horror and tragedy that was the battle for Okinawa which ended with Japanese surrender after the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
If you listen to the audiobook you’ll need a map of the battle zones to be able to understand the narrative.
Review of 'This searing light, the sun and everything else : Joy Division' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Oral history from contemporary interviews really interesting for the hard core Joy Division/New Order fan.