Tribe: On Homecoming and Belonging

Book 24 of 2018 is Tribe: On Homecoming and Belonging by Sebastian Junger.

He talks about ancient cultures and primal cultures and current native cultures. He talks about how they have support and lack high rates of suicide because of support. The idea that the tribe and building a tribe is the way humans are meant to live.

Although I come from a modern tribal culture and the idea of building your clan, I disagree with the modern and ancient culture of total acceptance of who you. I can name many things like homosexuality, refusal to breed and wanting to leave the group as reasons why traditional tribes are not perfect.

He doesn't use data but instead make declarative statements about how the world should be and how a group of people you conform to makes that better.

There were some great ideas. We do need people. We do need acceptance or at least the place to voice who we are. We do need belonging.

My challenge is that it isn't as easy as finding a group to belong to. I belong to may groups and they satisfy a lot of my needs and wants. It's not black and white.

3 white defects to native American tribes out of 5.

Should I read this? Only with the intention to expand your philosophical views. Otherwise, nay.
What did I learn? We build our networks. They do not pick us.

Island

Book 16 of 2018 is Island by Aldous Huxley.

I've read reviews of this book that say it is one of his best but like most last-books-written by authors, this fell way too short for me.

Like all classic sci-fi of old, the author is more philosophical than a story teller. In this book, he preaches about how life can be lived well in contrast to the failings of modern western culture.

That got boring fast.

With some many other books of his being in my pile of favourites, this one will have to take a backseat. Not worth the time except to understand the references that people make to it. You can however gain that understanding using Wikipedia and save yourself the time.

2 attentions out of 5.

Should I read this? Nope.
What did I learn? I don't quite agree with what others think are classics.

The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life

Book 60 is The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life by Mark Manson.

This book is a best seller and an enjoyable read. Manson is witty and straightforward, as you can guess from the title.

Nothing he said was new, if you've read enough self help books but he tells it differently in that he insists you take responsibility for your own life, thoughts and outcomes.

As someone who values the idea that happiness is intrinsic and that you don't always have to be happy, I enjoyed the way he brought those two ideas together.

This book felt very aimed at people who wouldn't usually be seen dead reading self help books and I'm a little too old for that "too cool for school" attitude.

The author does redeem himself by showing vulnerability but he never quite stopped me thinking that his cockiness made me want to listen to him less.

Still worth the read.

4 truths out of 5.

Should I read this? Anything that helps you pull back from over-indexing on introspection and gives solid tips for how to change you thinking is worth the read. So, yes.
What did I learn? I can spend more time facing my challenges.

The End of Eternity

Book 35 of 2017 is The End of Eternity by Isaac Asimov.

Wow, Asimov. Wow.

Every time I pick up a classic, I expect to be disappointed. Let me explain. Classics changed the world in their time and don't always travel through time well. I should have known that a time travel book would do so. Lesson learnt.

I picked this up this morning and was sad when I had to leave it with two chapters to go to head out to brunch with a friend. On returning, I consumed it fully and now can't recommend it more vehemently than this.

Read this book. For sci-fi lovers and book lover alike.

5 kettles out of 5.

Should I read this? Yeah, duh.
What did I learn? Asimov persists as one of the greatest sci-fi writers in history but does he have a time machine.

The Art of War

Book 17 of 2017 is The Art of War by Sun Tzu.

It felt like the right time in my working life to re-read this. It is a short read. The first and last time I read it, I was in my early 20s and I didn't see why any of it mattered. Working in the corporate world 15 years later, it seems more relevant.

Even though this is a 2000 year old Chinese military text, I read it thinking of European warfare and American business. I guess in the end, strategy is strategy.

3 strategies out of 5.

Should I read this? Yeah, every couple of years.
What did I learn? Confusion is a tactic.

2016 Didn't Suck

As an eternal optimist, it takes some effort to listen to the way people are voicing their dislike of 2016. Despite what I think, it is important that I do listen and try to understand why people are so disappointed and dismayed at the last 11 months.

In my short 40 years on this planet, I've seen the world change in ways I did not expect. Events like the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests;  the Arab Spring; the Collapse of Apartheid in South Africa; and many other pivotal moments/revolutions/movements.

Apart from political disruption and change, just this year there have been significant discoveries in science like mapping the epigenome; surprise concessions from religious leaders like the Pope allowing priests to absolve people of sins of abortion (no, I'm not religious, just surprised);  and the undeniable rise of Corpratocracy.

There are people swearing about the death of legendary entertainers from our lifetime. There are people screaming at people who voted a different way to them. There are people throwing their hands in air not knowing what to do. A lot of people think this year was awful and that the world is going to hell.

I don't agree.

Has the world all of a sudden become a cesspool or are we just more aware of what is going on?

I believe it is the latter.

The slow questioning of mainstream media, the rise and rise of social media and the increased pressure for individual critical thinking is pulling people away from their cat videos and making people think.

Conspiracy theorists are running with this. Liberals are smugly nodding that they told you so. People who took TV and newspaper news as gospel are the ones who are finding this the most revealing. They are wondering if anyone can be trusted and are now looking for new leadership. I truly don't know the answer but I have faith in people doing what is best for the group and not just themselves.

These are interesting times. Thing is, they have always been interesting times. People are now awakening to the fact that mowing their lawns, finding bargains online and watching the Kardashians may not be all that matters.

Realities may have to be readjusted. People may have to give when they once took and take when they were once taken from. Societies may have to take a long look in the mirror and decide how to improve.

As an eternal optimist, I don't think this is a bad thing. It is an uncomfortable awakening but an awakening all the same.

What is Life? How Chemistry Becomes Biology

Book 39 of 2015 is What is Life? How Chemistry Becomes Biology by Addy Pross.

Someone recently called my understanding of science unsophisticated. When I probed deeper in to what was meant by this, I found that he saw my acceptance of scientific facts as me lacking the ability to challenge an idea.

I thought about this for a while and dispute his perception of this because facts are facts. And facts determined using the scientific method are solid in my world. Damn us rational people.

What I think he thought was that I accepted scientific philosophy and hypothesis as facts when they were not yet proven. That isn't something I do. To prove that to myself, I choose a few books and have started reading the more interesting ideas in current scientific thinking.

This book is about Systems Chemistry which I hoped would help me extend my Systems Thinking views as well. Unfortunately, it did not.

Firstly, I should state that I haven't touched the wet sciences (Chem and Biology) since final year high school and my science is the most theoretical it gets in computer science and discrete maths. Maybe that meant I was lacking the basic knowledge required to call bullshit on this book or not.

The book is actually quite good and encourages you to think about micro systems in a macro systems fashion. In this case, the author tries to think about the essence of life in a chemical way using biological concepts like Darwin's Theory of Evolution.

The problem I had with this book is that the first half is spent on ideas like Teleonomy and on discussions that seemed to be heading towards Intelligent Design. Still, I continued.

The second problem I had with it is that if you look for patterns you will find them but that doesn't mean they are confirmation of your theory. Scientific method will make it fact. THEN I will buy in more.

What the final half of the book did do was try to extrapolate out from biological fact to philosophise on what is the clinching factor that brought molecules together to attain a spark of life. It isn't about god and thank the flying spaghetti monster for that.

As a book, it is easy to read although it does maintain a condescending overtone. You need at least high school biology, chemistry and physics to start this book. A critical and open thinker will enjoy this.

3 RNA strands out of 5.


Should I read this? Only if you care about thinking about thinking about science. Yes, I meant both "think about"s.
What did I learn? My understanding of science is not unsophisticated. In fact, I'm pretty well rounded but I do need to read more philosophical thought in general.