Book Recommendations

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Ok, PPR, I want to see what you could possibly recommend as reading material. I recently received an Amazon gift certificate, and I am looking for the following things from a book:

1) Deep without being too hard to follow. (the major point shouldn't be a difficult matter of math or logic, but possibly easily stated without using symbolic logic or whatever, and the book easy to follow if one doesn't enjoy math/symbolic logic)
2) Intellectually oriented, such as philosophy, psychology, sociology, religion, etc.
3) Powerful, important, paradigm-shifting, etc.
4) Not public domain. (public domain books can be downloaded without problems in many cases)
5) Fiction and non-fiction works are both valid. (sometimes fiction works can also be well-regarded as intellectually stimulating)

Btw, in case anybody has forgotten, I am STRIDENTLY atheistic.
(This message has been paid for by the commission to awesomize Awesomelyglorious)

lol stridence.

Science and Nonbelief by the arse-kickingly good Taner Edis.

The End of Eden: The Comet that Changed Civilization.

Its a book that holds a theory of how humanity became violent and monotheistic.

It is entirely from a materialistic point of view and provides scientific an historical evidence of how the theory is feasible.

That's public domain.


Ok, he's an alright author, and the topic isn't too bad, but "science v religion" seems overdone. Plus, I tend to be *very* cheap on books. The cheapest copy of the book available would be around $10 on Amazon. http://www.amazon.com/Science-Nonbelief ... 769&sr=1-1 The problem being that I could perhaps buy 2 books for the same price if I budget right.


I probably won't go into this at all.

From the man's website it says this:
"Graham Phillips has been described as an historical detective, a modern-day adventurer and a real-life Indiana Jones. Whether you agree with his conclusions or not, Graham’s findings are always original and thought provoking and his books make an exciting read."

http://www.grahamphillips.net/

The issue is that while it is entirely possible that he is a genuinely good author and that this is a genuinely good book, the self-description sounds like that of a crank, not of a serious scholar. Particularly when one delves into the kinds of writings that he is engaging in, as the man claims to have found the Holy Grail, King Arthur's tomb, Camelot, the location of the real Mount Sinai, the staff of Moses, the tomb of the Virgin Mary, and even evidence for William Shakespeare being a spy, and evidence that the plagues of Egypt and Exodus occurred. So.... I doubt that the book is even information as much as misinformation, just as a matter of first judgment.

You might want to check out Denialism by Michael Specter. I've mentioned Specter to you before, and you can see his TED talk here. He lays out his case for why anti-scientific beliefs are a socially harmful thing that must be STRIDENTLY opposed.

Because we weren't violent before monotheism? Not buying it. Sounds like the author just has an axe to grind.

Plus it sucks. Have you ever tried to sit down and read Origin of Species? The man was a lousy writer, and the science is badly outdated on many points.

The thing is that it isn't a simple "science vs. religion" - Edis goes into some pretty big details does some sociological analysis (noting how applied scientists like engineers and physicians tend to be religious while research scientists tend to be uber-secular, takes on Quantum mysticism, and develops a naturalist paradigm in which chance and causation are equally fundamental to the universe.

It has seemed pretty straight forward thus far talking mostly about the construction of stone henge in which the focus is that the people would likely have been unable or willing to assemble a structure such as the stone henge if their wasn't a need or if they were at conflict with other groups of people.

It has been an interesting read thus far and very straight forward.

Well, I am not saying it is a dumb book, it just isn't likely groundbreaking. (there are likely a lot of substitutes, including free substitutes to be found online) It also isn't likely worth two other books.


I'll look at the TED talk, and if I am impressed, I might buy it. It is on the higher end of my price range if used http://www.amazon.com/Denialism-Irratio ... 1594202303 , but quality is quality.

I specialized in clarinet throughout college, even in my graduate composition studies (I had ALMOST as many credits in clarinet performance as I did theory and composition), and the piano has also been a constant and faithful companion throughout my career.

That said, I recommend this one: The Complete Classical Guitarist by Jerry Willard. It's finger-pickin' good. For me, it fulfilled all the guidelines you gave for suitable reading.

To facilitate effective reading, I went a little postmodern in my approach to learning by purchasing a "Made in Mexico" Fender Telecaster which I hot-rodded, before which I'd had NO experience whatsoever with a solder iron. Since guitar is by no means something I take overly seriously, I only bought a Marshall MG10 practice amp. For me it was intellectually stimulating and paradigm-shifting. Classical guitar is also relaxing and contemplative. Highly recommended, even for non-musician types.

I don't own a guitar. Guitar is not recommended for people without guitars, as air-guitar is known for its lameness.

If we're recommending books in our special interests regardless of whether AG would care, try My System by Aron Nimzowitsch. It meets all your requirements:

1) Deep without being too hard to follow: It is a very deep book, and intended to be for instruction of improving chess players so the explanations throughout are very thorough.
2) Intellectually oriented: What's more intellectual than chess?
3) Powerful, important, paradigm-shifting, etc: Nimzowitsch's style of hypermodernism revolutionized chess, both in practical tournament play and in the way theorists fundamentally analyzed the game.
4) Not public domain: As far as I know, it is not. The original German edition is from 1925 and may or may not be public domain, but you want the recent (1991) edition with updated algebraic notation.
5) Fiction and non-fiction: It probably contains a little of both. It has annotated games that actually happened, and Nimzowitsch has been known to somewhat exaggerate his skill and the value of his ideas.

Justine, Philosophy in the Bedroom, and Other Writings. You could follow it up with Juliette.

In favor of autodidactism, I'd recommend Carry On, Mr. Bowditch..

In opposition to alchemy, I'd recommend The Sceptical Chymist.

In favor of freaking neighbors out, I'd recommend this.

I have philosophy in the bedroom as an e-book, and I think I might get "Crimes of Love", but I probably won't go for Justine or Juliette, although they do tempt me, and I very likely will get them in a future book purchase.

Philosophy in the Bedroom, the e-book, can be found here:
http://supervert.com/elibrary/marquis_de_sade (replaced the link with a better link)

Also, I am pro-alchemy.