tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29235839.post6497730501030712544..comments2024-02-05T05:15:04.759-08:00Comments on Wandering Scientist: Personal Goals List 2015Cloudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09317847285050447789noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29235839.post-13446063656535080432015-03-23T21:05:08.928-07:002015-03-23T21:05:08.928-07:00*if you really like wordbuilding mechanics*if you really like wordbuilding mechanicsMarcyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03334283552080882052noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29235839.post-25740817636675386342015-03-23T21:03:59.693-07:002015-03-23T21:03:59.693-07:00I'll third Ancillary Justice, if you haven'...I'll third Ancillary Justice, if you haven't read it since this post. Really excellent.<br /><br />One of my sisters read part of a Charles Stross novel (whatever it was that was nominated for a Hugo last year) and absolutely hated what she read, couldn't finish. She went on about why she hated it at length, enough so that I'm sure I don't want to try him. It sounds like his short stories are probably better, though... and like if you really worldbuilding mechanics, economies, etc., you might like him, but not if clunky character building bothers you. Like, not giving you any reason to like the main character, and there's some mysterious backstory that might build empathy, but right when the character is about to tell you, she clumsily interrupts herself to move on with stuff you don't care about.<br /><br />Um, okay, obviously there's some subjectivity there, and lots of people like him, despite him breaking some of the writing "rules."<br /><br />Leckie, on the other hand, gets you to really really care about her AI main character, even though there's also some empathy-building backstory you don't find out for a long time... I need to study how she does it, because that book is so impressive in every way.<br /><br />Um. Don't mind me. Anyway.Marcyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03334283552080882052noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29235839.post-81014347546166960302015-01-08T18:33:58.024-08:002015-01-08T18:33:58.024-08:00Great lists! Love the violin/viola one! I (used to...Great lists! Love the violin/viola one! I (used to) play the clarinet, and should get it back out. I want to learn to play the piano too...<br /><br />Good luck with your goals this year!Alyssahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16722440908147410632noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29235839.post-75747502069094371092015-01-08T09:05:33.155-08:002015-01-08T09:05:33.155-08:00Your goals all sound great, Cloud! And as for the ...<br />Your goals all sound great, Cloud! And as for the sci-fi reading--yes, I heartily recommend Ann Leckie's Ancillary Justice. Great fun, very cool. I also thought Nexus by Ramez Naam was very cool, especially for those of us with biology backgrounds. The biotech in his near-future world is described very well and it's a great, thought-provoking thrill ride (the most unrealistic thing, actually, is how much free time the biology grad students seem to have to pursue their unofficial research and extracurriculars--they should be slaving away at their dissertations!)<br /><br />I've never read Charles Stross, but also heard good things about him.bean-writerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09574157518553636032noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29235839.post-12185945921658316922015-01-07T12:14:34.413-08:002015-01-07T12:14:34.413-08:00Oh and congrats on the USA Today article! Oh and congrats on the USA Today article! Raising Travelershttp://www.raisingtravelers.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29235839.post-54640644647348425782015-01-07T12:13:28.130-08:002015-01-07T12:13:28.130-08:00Seems like a doable list! We're 4 days into ou...Seems like a doable list! We're 4 days into our month long adventure in NYC and slowly working on that to do list. I'm still working on a bigger list for the year but have a lot of 'maybes' on the list. Raising Travelershttp://www.raisingtravelers.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29235839.post-36687372842829001832015-01-07T11:42:17.448-08:002015-01-07T11:42:17.448-08:00I'm sorry you guys are having trouble with the...I'm sorry you guys are having trouble with the comments right now. I don't think there is anything I can do about it, unfortunately....<br /><br />I keep thinking I should move to a self-hosted wordpress site. Maybe I'll get around to that some day!Cloudhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09317847285050447789noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29235839.post-16591946955498745392015-01-07T10:25:10.630-08:002015-01-07T10:25:10.630-08:00Grrr. My comment was also eaten. So frustrating.
...Grrr. My comment was also eaten. So frustrating. <br />Anyway - I am really excited about the series of posts on productivity. I got really unorganized and unproductive recently, and your advice always resonate with me. <br />Also, it seems like a really great list. I'm sure it will be an awesome year for you. Aleksandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08868337045136624203noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29235839.post-27797226313040921112015-01-07T08:27:03.352-08:002015-01-07T08:27:03.352-08:00Thanks for the recommendations! I've also got ...Thanks for the recommendations! I've also got my eye on Ancillary Justice. I love my book club, but we don't read sci-fi- or at least not the sort of sci-fi I like. We tend to read literary authors attempting sci-fi, which rarely goes well, in my opinion. So I don't read as much sci-fi as I'd like to. But we read lots of other good things I'd probably never read on my own, so it all evens out.Cloudhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09317847285050447789noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29235839.post-77271551348963166212015-01-07T07:25:41.704-08:002015-01-07T07:25:41.704-08:00That's Charles Stross, not Michael. Sorry.That's Charles Stross, not Michael. Sorry. xykademiqzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18306861394466282929noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29235839.post-2438171240134290642015-01-06T22:41:11.148-08:002015-01-06T22:41:11.148-08:00Cool!
Stupid blogger ate my comment (you'd t...Cool! <br /><br />Stupid blogger ate my comment (you'd think I'd know by now). <br /><br />I am here to recommend sci-fi reading! <br />If you haven't read anything by Michael Stross, I recommend Neptune's Brood. I really enjoyed it.<br /><br />My son says Robopocalypse and Robogenesis are great (I bought them for myself, but he got to them first). <br /><br />Also, Old Man's War can be read with skipping. I couldn't wait for Ghost Brigades to arrive and I had everything else so I skipped it and it was fine. Still haven't read it or Zoe's Tale (Zoe's view of the last Colony). I really liked The Human Division which is a little separate, so you can pick that one up by itself (I can't wait for the next part). xykademiqzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18306861394466282929noreply@blogger.com