The Sword and Laser

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GAH! I wish I'd known there were spoilers about Anathem right in the beginning of this episode. :( I still haven't finished Anathem, and haven't listened to episode 13 yet, so was surprised to see more comments on Anathem in this episode. Oh well. Don't know what the spoilers "mean" yet but as I've got about 300 pages left, sounds like I'm in for a bit more of a wild ride..

Just listened to this week's episode at my favorite coffeeshop, while I continue to make my way thru "The Confusion". I am a huge fan of Stevenson and Gibson. I've had long discussions with friend on the differnence between Cyber Punk and Metaverse mentalities. While I like them both, I tend to like Cyber Punk more, and have really enjoyed both Spook Country and Pattern Recognition. Having said all of that I wanted to take you up on the offer to get a shout out for my podcat - it's a technology and innovation podcast that a friend and I have been doing for some time called Dogear-Nation. You can check it out at http://dogearnation.com . We've been talking about doing a book review podcast too, but our focus would be on Technology and Business books. Come check out the site, and let us know what you think. I'll be posting this week's episode sometime today. Thanks and keep up a great podcast Veronica and Tom.

Pattern Recognition:
A friend of mine handed me a copy of Pattern Recognition and told me "I'll think you'll really like this main character." I'd already read Neuromancer, Virtual Light, and Burning Chrome, so I was already familiar with William Gibson. Pattern Recognition quickly rose to the top of my favorites list. I absolutely loved Cayce's character (-- By the way it's pronounced "Case" not "Kay-Cee". It's spelled out somewhere in the middle of the book; my copy is lent to a friend at the moment so I can't look it up. --) I have an BA in Graphic Design, yet I hate advertising. I refuse to wear anything with a slogan. I remove or conceal logos on just about everything I own. I'm a devoted minimalist. So when my friend gave me the book, he really had my number.

Beyond the character, I really liked the puzzles that unfolded, the typical cultural detail Gibson (re)creates, and the refreshing departure from traditional science ficiton devices.

Spook Country I liked less, I'm not alone in that opinion and I think you nailed it in podcast #14. The interweaving plots don't stabilize early enough, and it just doesn't draw the reader in with quite the same efficiency as Pattern Recognition. Still, a worthy read.

Yay, secret agents!

I read Pattern Recognition earlier this year and really enjoyed it. But I live near a Michelin plant and it hits me every time I drive by it - no nausea, but I definitely think of William Gibson and smile.

Two things bothered me about Veronica's comments on the steel yard. Let me first preface this by saying that I don't think it reflects on Veronica specifically, it is just something I noticed.

It pains me that she didn't recognize the steel yard as occam's razor. Most people probably don't know about it, but everyone should; it is a good, quick way to compare possible explanations. This brings me to my second point. Veronica learned this important principle in a work of fiction and immediately started applying it. This tells me that she got all the way through school and (I assume) college without getting any formal education in critical thinking.

Like I said, this is something that bothers me in general. Veronica is just the one that said something, thereby giving me an excuse to get on my soapbox.

I talk more about Anathem and science here:
http://swordandlaser.ning.com/group/anathemnealstephenson/forum/topics/on-the-science

Well Josh, I guess I must have slept through that class. It may be common knowledge to you, but not everyone can know everything.

I really tried to make a point about critical thinking in general without looking like I was attacking Veronica. I guess I failed, sorry :(

I don't think it's fair to assume that someone not recognizing Occam's Razor is equivalent to not being taught critical thinking skills. Sheesh.

I have started the Lem book. As I do not drink or engage in recrecational drug use I forsee problems in finishing. Tom, you are a great guy but I fear that I must start a cabal to overthrow your dictatorship.

Veronica is an amazing lady, and I only wish I could be half as smart as she is. When you have to stop and think about every aspect of a book and what it might mean, that sometimes sucks the joy right out of a good read. For others, it makes the book much more enjoyable.

While you may find it incredibly important to the story and interesting, others may not even notice a certain point. We all read and understand on different levels and glean different things from what we read. I think we can only think critically when we have each other to bounce ideas off of. In the exchange of knowledge between many people there can be wisdom.

You should not have named names if you just wanted to point out the importance of critical thinking, but that's ok. All of us are human so we all fail to think critically at times ;). {mainly lecturing myself there}

Btw, Stanislaw Lem also wrote Solaris, which George Clooney made into a movie, although I'm told the Russian movie is better.

@RCARTWR: I'm three pages from the end, and I'm having a hard time finishing. I've decided it's best to skim a lot... I'm really hoping the punch line makes it worth it. I'm critically rethinking my whole "I got a serious crush on Tom" thing and may have to pick one of the 404 guys to be my new obsessive love interest.

Hey Tom great idea picking a Stanislaw Lem book. My personal favourite book from him is "The Cyberiad". I absolutely love his dry ironic wit. Other great books by Lem include Fiasco, The Invincible and Futurological Congress.