Monthly Archives: August 2018

And now, the News (2)

Posted on August 10, 2018 by smellincoffee

Back when I read Alain de Botton’s The News: A  User’s Manual, I shared an excerpt from it.  While poking through my draft posts I found another quotation I’d jotted down that remains worth sharing. Herein lies a central paradox … Continue reading →

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Broad Band

Posted on August 9, 2018 by smellincoffee

Broad Band: The Untold Story of the Women Who Made the Internet © 2018 Claire Evans288 pages When the ENIAC was first displayed for the public, its proponents bragged that it could do complex mathematical calculations in seconds which would have … Continue reading →

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Force and Motion

Posted on August 8, 2018 by smellincoffee

 ST DS9: Force and Motion© 2016 Jeffrey Lang352 pages All Miles O’Brien wanted to do was visit a research lab and catch up with an old friend, along with his engineering chum Nog.  He didn’t expect to be thrown into … Continue reading →

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Cloud from the Machine

Posted on August 7, 2018 by smellincoffee

“The Internet is a funny thing.Then and now, it has been a thing: an infrastructural backbone of immeasurable complexity, a scaffolding over modern life that has grown stronger than the building itself, which seems to have crumbled under its weight. … Continue reading →

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Inside the mind of a thief

Posted on August 5, 2018 by smellincoffee

This is a related video for A Burglar’s Guide to the City. It’s an interview between a Plano City police officer and a three-time offender (Michael Durden) about his experience breaking into homes.  According to the interview,  Duren was a ‘thief’ … Continue reading →

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Artemis

Posted on August 4, 2018 by smellincoffee

Artemis© 2017 Andy Weir320 pages “This is a results-oriented profession. The moon’s a mean old bitch. She doesn’t care why your suit fails. She just kills you when it does.” Jazz Bashara only wanted to engage in a little industrial … Continue reading →

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Versatile Blogging Award

Posted on August 3, 2018 by smellincoffee

Sarah of All the Book Blog Names Are Taken has nominated me for a Versatile Blogger’s Award, the acceptance of which means I have to share seven facts about myself and then nominate seven other people.   Strangely enough when this … Continue reading →

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Machine Man

Posted on August 2, 2018 by smellincoffee

Machine Man© 2009 Max Barry277 pages Who knew crushing your limbs in the industrial machinery at work could be so addictive?  When Charlie Neumann accidentally crushed his leg in a fit of absentmindedness and was fitted with state-of-the-art prosthesis, he … Continue reading →

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Reads to Reels: Ready Player One

Posted on August 1, 2018 by smellincoffee

The Redbox technician hadn’t long placed copies of Ready Player One in my local machine before I eagerly rented one. I experienced the  book a few weeks back, enthralled by the story and Wil Wheaton’s delivery of it,  and so … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews, science fiction | Tagged , | 2 Comments