http://www.townx.org/blog/elliot/too-much-technology Comments for "Too much technology" en http://www.townx.org/blog/elliot/too-much-technology <p>There's been too much technology on here recently, and not enough frivolity. Ironically, this has been one of my least busy periods for a while, and I've had about 6 weeks of free evenings. So my main activities have been reading and watching <span class="caps">DVD</span>s. So why the heck not enjoy a list of my recent entertainments?</p> <p><span class="caps">DVD</span>s (and quality drama):</p> <ul> <li>Heroes. Everyone says it, but it is bloody ace.</li> <li>Battlestar Galactica. Don't laugh. I mean the new series, not the ropey old one. I'm half way through series one, and think it is possibly the best science fiction series I've ever seen. I particularly like the idea of a religious android.</li> <li>The West Wing. I'm a latecomer to this one, but can see what the fuss is about. Fantastic, zippy writing, great characters, moral dilemmas, humour, what more could you want?</li> <li>House of Cards. The <span class="caps">BBC </span>series from the early 90s, starring Ian Richardson. Marvellous, and Ian Richardson is completely convincing, horrible yet somehow sympathetic. Get it.</li> <li>Firefly. The short-lived science fiction series by Josh Whedon, of Buffy fame. Really good. Funny, interesting, quirky, good characters. Shame they didn't make more.</li> </ul> <p>As for books:</p> <ul> <li><cite>The Cogwheel Brain</cite> by Doron Swade is a great biography of Charles Babbage, written by one of the blokes who recently built a working difference engine. Vivid, thorough, and does a good job of placing Babbage (and Ada Lovelace - who apparently wasn't really the first programmer) in the context of computing history.</li> <li><cite>Rendezvous with Rama</cite> by good old Arthur C. Clarke was one of the first science fiction books I ever read, when I was about 10. It blew me away when I was that age. I got a new copy cheap recently, and have started reading it again in a fit of nostalgia. It's grand-scale hard sf, brilliantly done.</li> <li><cite>The Brief and Frightening Reign of Phil</cite> by George Saunders is one of the best books I've read for ages. I'm convinced this guy is one of the funniest and potentially most significant writers of our time. I reckon his books will eventually gain the reputation of a Pynchon or Kafka, in terms of how well he satirises and captures the spirit of his age. Not heavy like those writers, which I suppose reflects the culture which produced him, but utterly brilliant, laugh-out-loud hilarious, and piercingly perceptive.</li> </ul> http://www.townx.org/blog/elliot/too-much-technology#comments misc Fri, 07 Sep 2007 17:37:17 -0500 elliot 669 at http://www.townx.org