Reading List #8

So far the Reading Lists have always been focused on printed media as well as being a thematic triptych. Slight change this time as it's been a slow summer and I'm procrastinating. I've been a long time admirer of good data visualization methods so when you're able to accomplish that through blog feeds and a healthy dash of humor, you've won my heart and mind.

In no particular order:

• Anything graph-related at xkcd.com
• GraphJam
• INDEXED

There you have it. Data geek humor and reading habits. Now, it's time to change into my scatter plot jammers and get to bed.

Reading List #7

A recipe for success:

• a spoonful of J.K. Rowling
• two large dollops of Madeline L'Engle
• one jigger of C.S. Lewis
• a liberal dusting of John Milton

Mix thoroughly in a steampunk bowl with a biblical spoon until "His Dark Materials" forms.

After my previous foray into and completion of Neal Stephenson's Baroque Cycle trilogy, I was thrilled that this trilogy - a virtual trifecta of literary quality - found its way to me.

Enjoy!

Reading List #6

I'm winding down from vacation so here's another Reading List comprised of three selections obtained from Sherman's Books & Stationary in Freeport, Maine:

Enjoy!

Reading List #5

During a lovely week relaxing in York Beach, Maine, the following books were either started or finished:

Enjoy!

Reading List #4

In commemoration of the recent death of Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., I offer the following as the three most influential of his writings, relative to my life. They are:

Enjoy!

Reading List #3

Three books I read late last year came to mind while working on my recent post concerning arbitrage opportunities in Second Life. They are:

Enjoy!

Reading List #2

I certainly didn't read the next three recommendations since the last Reading List post...I'm tidying-up a bit and happened to find three I read last summer that fit the bill:

Enjoy!

Reading List #1

In anticipation of Douglas Hofstadter's latest book, I Am a Strange Loop, I decided to re-read his first work, Godel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid. That got me thinking that I tend to read in a Wikipedia-like fashion; I take notes of referenced works or concepts explored in the original book and start following them serially, reading whatever falls within my field of interest.

That being said, instead of traditional book reviews (of which there is no short supply), I decided to simply list a few loosely linked or tangentially related books that I have enjoyed with minimal commentary. Here is round 1:

Enjoy!