Every year, I try to read something that’s a little more leadership focused so that I can continue to hone my supervisory skills. This year, I read Crucial Conversations by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan and Al Switzler, which was recommended to me by my friend Cam. Overall, I liked the book, though it does oversell itself in the first chapter (which I find to be an annoying pattern in books from this genre.) Continue reading Crucial Conversations
Category Archives: Books
Mallworld
I recently finished reading the Ultimate, Ultimate, Ultimate Mallworld by S. P. Somtow, and I’m very happy I picked up this book. I may sum it up by saying it’s like Idiocracy mashed up with a parody of 1980s consumerism then launched into space, but I actually found out it was more than that. Somtow creates here a consistent (if zany) universe that has a lot to say about how we treat history today. Continue reading Mallworld
Iterative Methods for Linear and Nonlinear Systems
As part of my resolution to read some Numerical Analysis stuff this year, I read C. T. Kelly’s Iterative Methods for Linear and Nonlinear Systems. I can say with certainty, that on the surface I underestimated this book. I expected a thin book on iterative methods (it certainly has less pages than Nocedal and Wright or Yousef Saad’s book), but it certainly has some substance to it. Continue reading Iterative Methods for Linear and Nonlinear Systems
On the Reliability of Newton’s Method
I recently re-read my thesis, “On the Reliability of Newton’s Method in the Presence of Singularity” as a way to get back into thinking about numerical analysis. On the one hand, it was interesting reading something that I wrote seven years ago, on the other hand… …Yeah, I’m pretty rusty. Continue reading On the Reliability of Newton’s Method
Children of the Lens
(or The Boskonian War is over.)
I’ve now completed Children of the Lens, and I must admit to really enjoying the ride. This book focuses on Kimball and Clarissa Kinnison’s five children, one boy and two pairs of twin girls, as they figure out how to complete the true objective of the Galactic Patrol – to take out the Eddorans.
Some spoilers and my thoughts after the jump. Continue reading Children of the Lens
Second Stage Lensmen
So, if you’ve read any post on my blog with “Lens” in the title over the last year, you know what this one is about – I recently finished Second Stage Lensmen by E. E. “Doc” Smith. Though the title is plural, the story really focuses on Second Stage Lensman Kimball Kinnison, though, to be fair, Worsel and Nadrek both have their part to play (I can’t remember Tegonsee making an appearance at all, however.) A bit of a summary below the fold. Continue reading Second Stage Lensmen
The Demon Awakens
A long while back, I saw The Demonwars series by R. A. Salvatore on audio book on the Humble Book Bundle. Now, I really like this series, so I picked it up even though I already own a copy of the physical books. A few weeks back, when I was looking for something to listen to on my way to Grand Junction, I stumbled across the MP3s; even though I didn’t listen to them on the trip (I had a passenger then), I dropped them in one afternoon while I was hanging around the house, and in a little more than a week, I had listened through the entire first book. Continue reading The Demon Awakens
Gray Lensman
I recently finished reading Gray Lensman by E. E. “Doc” Smith – the next book in the Lensman series. Like Galactic Patrol, this book focuses on Kimball Kinnison (the titular Gray Lensman), but I actually liked this one better than its predecessor, for reasons I will discuss after the fold. Continue reading Gray Lensman
Galactic Patrol
Though it’s been a while, I just finished Galactic Patrol by E. E. “Doc” Smith. This was another entertaining addition to the series, and definitely had some great moments. However, I didn’t think it was as good as First Lensman. That’s not the reason that it took me longer to read though – that was more that I have spent less time reading in the last month, primarily due to the copious holidays, and because of how much writing I did at the tail end of the year. At any rate, my discussion of the book, along with some minor spoilers, follows. Continue reading Galactic Patrol
What Sci-Fi Universe Would You Not Live In?
Similar to last week, I have recently been asked, “Given any Sci-Fi Universe, which would you not want to live in?” This question, I think, is a bit more difficult than the last, because even dystopias can seem pretty good when you’re in the midst of them. However, a good dystopia has a caveat to the goodness, and asks the question, “What does it cost?” Continue reading What Sci-Fi Universe Would You Not Live In?