What are you reading now?
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Just finished this book.. (Actually listened to the audio book)
Really good and really good researched. About a Dutch ship in 1628 that shipwrecked off the coast of Australia and almost a "Lord of the Flies" result for the people stranded on some small islands.
Quite interesting was the discussion of the ship and what it was like to travel on a ship like that, even for the best passengers! I dont think I will complain if I fly economy!! 555
Also, the lead mutiny guy was executed, and his punishment was to have both hands cut off and then hanged!! For his lead officers, their punishment was to have only one hand cut off then hanged!! :eek
They built a re-creation of the ship. Some interesting videos of what it really was like.
wrote on 29 Jan 2023, 07:57 last edited by@taiwan_girl thanks TG, that kind of thing is perfect for me, i love maritime tales.
added to my amazon shopping list
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wrote on 29 Jan 2023, 18:27 last edited by
Yeah, me too!
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wrote on 30 Jan 2023, 00:55 last edited by
Finished "The Emperor of All Maladies" this afternoon.
What a fantastic dive into our understanding, and lack thereof, of cancer in its various forms.
As someone who lost contact with the world of oncology in the late 1970s, I found it a fascinating journey that research and care has undergone since then. "Back in my day" we used to joke that all oncologists need to wear black coats, because the results of their care were so dismal.
We weren't wrong.
But now it's all different.
Highly recommended.
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wrote on 30 Jan 2023, 00:58 last edited by
Up next:
In a far-future, Dr. Avrana Kern is the head of a science team that has terraformed an uninhabitable planet then deliberately released a genetically designed virus to speed the evolution of monkeys. Their plan goes wrong when the monkeys' ship burns up upon entry, leaving the virus to infect a variety of creatures, eventually settling on spiders (Portia labiata). Meanwhile, the last human remnants of a dying Earth are en route to the promised paradise planet unaware of the uplifted spiders. The work plays off the contrast between the rapid advancement of the spiders and the barbaric descent of the starship crew of the last humans
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wrote on 30 Jan 2023, 01:05 last edited by
Highly recommended.
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Highly recommended.
wrote on 30 Jan 2023, 01:13 last edited by@Aqua-Letifer that looks fascinating, based on the Amazon blurb.
Thanks for the recco.
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Finished "The Emperor of All Maladies" this afternoon.
What a fantastic dive into our understanding, and lack thereof, of cancer in its various forms.
As someone who lost contact with the world of oncology in the late 1970s, I found it a fascinating journey that research and care has undergone since then. "Back in my day" we used to joke that all oncologists need to wear black coats, because the results of their care were so dismal.
We weren't wrong.
But now it's all different.
Highly recommended.
wrote on 30 Jan 2023, 09:50 last edited by@George-K yea ive used the story of the history of herceptin in several talks on how new drugs make it into clincal practice. herceptin was quite an epic tale, and a real game changer. another interesting drug story in the book is the history of gleevec.
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Finished "The Emperor of All Maladies" this afternoon.
What a fantastic dive into our understanding, and lack thereof, of cancer in its various forms.
As someone who lost contact with the world of oncology in the late 1970s, I found it a fascinating journey that research and care has undergone since then. "Back in my day" we used to joke that all oncologists need to wear black coats, because the results of their care were so dismal.
We weren't wrong.
But now it's all different.
Highly recommended.
wrote on 30 Jan 2023, 12:40 last edited by jon-nycI think you’d like The Gene, when you’re in the mood for a similar sweeping, well-written medical/political history.
I say political because he talks a lot about the history of our attempts to control genes that seems to come along with our desire to understand them.
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I think you’d like The Gene, when you’re in the mood for a similar sweeping, well-written medical/political history.
I say political because he talks a lot about the history of our attempts to control genes that seems to come along with our desire to understand them.
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wrote on 30 Jan 2023, 12:46 last edited by
Yeah, I figured you’d want to space them out a bit.
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Up next:
In a far-future, Dr. Avrana Kern is the head of a science team that has terraformed an uninhabitable planet then deliberately released a genetically designed virus to speed the evolution of monkeys. Their plan goes wrong when the monkeys' ship burns up upon entry, leaving the virus to infect a variety of creatures, eventually settling on spiders (Portia labiata). Meanwhile, the last human remnants of a dying Earth are en route to the promised paradise planet unaware of the uplifted spiders. The work plays off the contrast between the rapid advancement of the spiders and the barbaric descent of the starship crew of the last humans
wrote on 3 Feb 2023, 00:58 last edited by@George-K said in What are you reading now?:
In a far-future, Dr. Avrana Kern is the head of a science team that has terraformed an uninhabitable planet then deliberately released a genetically designed virus to speed the evolution of monkeys. Their plan goes wrong when the monkeys' ship burns up upon entry, leaving the virus to infect a variety of creatures, eventually settling on spiders (Portia labiata). Meanwhile, the last human remnants of a dying Earth are en route to the promised paradise planet unaware of the uplifted spiders. The work plays off the contrast between the rapid advancement of the spiders and the barbaric descent of the starship crew of the last humans
This is big, BIG, science fiction. I'm only about ¼ of the way through it, and it's on the order of stuff written by Alastair Reynolds. Reynolds is, as I've said, a very "dense" writer. This book, though comparable in scope to Reynolds' stuff is a much easier read. It's not challenging, but a very good space yarn.
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Finished "The Emperor of All Maladies" this afternoon.
What a fantastic dive into our understanding, and lack thereof, of cancer in its various forms.
As someone who lost contact with the world of oncology in the late 1970s, I found it a fascinating journey that research and care has undergone since then. "Back in my day" we used to joke that all oncologists need to wear black coats, because the results of their care were so dismal.
We weren't wrong.
But now it's all different.
Highly recommended.
wrote on 3 Feb 2023, 10:30 last edited byI really enjoyed "Children of Time". I thought it was pretty imaginative. It's sequel "Children of Ruin" was fine, but not fine enough to get me to read the final book of the trilogy.
But I like Adrian Tchaikovsky's writing. He has this one-off that I also liked, "Guns of Dawn". Not at all sci-fi; it's flintlock fantasy about a gentry woman in a swampy war. If you get tired of sci-fi, but want more Tchaikovsky, you might like this.
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I really enjoyed "Children of Time". I thought it was pretty imaginative. It's sequel "Children of Ruin" was fine, but not fine enough to get me to read the final book of the trilogy.
But I like Adrian Tchaikovsky's writing. He has this one-off that I also liked, "Guns of Dawn". Not at all sci-fi; it's flintlock fantasy about a gentry woman in a swampy war. If you get tired of sci-fi, but want more Tchaikovsky, you might like this.
wrote on 11 Feb 2023, 23:05 last edited by@Friday said in What are you reading now?:
I really enjoyed "Children of Time". I thought it was pretty imaginative.
Thoroughly enjoyable, indeed. Nice, satisfying ending which completes the tale, and yet opens the door for sequels.
Up next, on @Aqua-Letifer 's recommendation - Music: A Subversive History.
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wrote on 4 Mar 2023, 02:03 last edited by
A story about a Korean American who spends timing teaching at the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology. Interesting story for anyone who wants an insight into a specific part of the DPRK society.
If you are interesting, here is the link to the PUST website.
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A story about a Korean American who spends timing teaching at the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology. Interesting story for anyone who wants an insight into a specific part of the DPRK society.
If you are interesting, here is the link to the PUST website.
wrote on 4 Mar 2023, 03:29 last edited by@taiwan_girl thanks for the suggestion and the link.
Curious what you might know of PUST. Are you familiar with its founding, and whether it is or was successful? Website is outdated. -
@taiwan_girl thanks for the suggestion and the link.
Curious what you might know of PUST. Are you familiar with its founding, and whether it is or was successful? Website is outdated.wrote on 5 Mar 2023, 02:54 last edited by@Rainman said in What are you reading now?:
@taiwan_girl thanks for the suggestion and the link.
Curious what you might know of PUST. Are you familiar with its founding, and whether it is or was successful? Website is outdated.It was started by an evangelical Christian ethnic Korean. They have a campus in Shanghai also. I believe that he wanted to use the university as a back door to get religion into the DPRK, but the campus is pretty isolated and DPRK is quite strict about bringing religious material into the country. (there are a couple of churches in DPRK but pretty much "show churches") Below is a picture of one. (Not my picture - never did go to any while I was there).
Teachers at PUST are unpaid, so it is a volunteer assignment. I haven't heard much about it recently, but it was pretty much shut down during COVID with no in person classes even until now.
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wrote on 5 Mar 2023, 04:13 last edited by
Thanks TG!
I don't want to veer off topic on this thread, but wanted to ask if you ever posted your experience(s) of NK, and if so, do you remember what the thread was named? Maybe it was on the old board? -
Thanks TG!
I don't want to veer off topic on this thread, but wanted to ask if you ever posted your experience(s) of NK, and if so, do you remember what the thread was named? Maybe it was on the old board?wrote on 5 Mar 2023, 17:47 last edited by@Rainman Pretty sure it was on the old board. I will see if I can go to the old one and find it. If not, I can repost some of the pictures I have from there.
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Thanks TG!
I don't want to veer off topic on this thread, but wanted to ask if you ever posted your experience(s) of NK, and if so, do you remember what the thread was named? Maybe it was on the old board?wrote on 7 Mar 2023, 03:29 last edited byHere are a couple of links from the "old" forum board with some pictures. I dont know why they have the "watermark". In fact, I dont even have been on the Photobucket account for a long long time.
https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_new_coffee_room/hello-a-few-pictures-t66526.html
https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/the_new_coffee_room/viewtopic.php?p=855769#p855769
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wrote on 7 Mar 2023, 06:32 last edited by
Thanks TG, the pictures are/were great!
Have you ever explained why you were invited to go to North Korea? Were you allowed to take more pictures than the typical tourist?
Please don't feel obliged to answer all of my incessant questions. Actually, it's not me asking, it's ummm, I'm asking for a friend.