Tag Archives: Technology and Society

Hiking grandmas, irreligious hombres, and unjacking from the Matrix

Posted on May 3, 2021 by smellincoffee

As an avid hiker I couldn’t help but be hooked by the story of Emma Gatewood, who in 1955 became the first woman to through-hike the Appalachian Trail. She did so with a minimum of preparation, without much of the … Continue reading →

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Re-tooling tech: a reading

Posted on April 27, 2021 by smellincoffee

From The Tech-Wise Family: Technology is in its proper place when it helps us bond with the real people we have been given to love. It’s out of its proper place when we end up bonding with people at a … Continue reading →

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Permanent Record

Posted on January 7, 2021 by smellincoffee

Permanent Record© Edward Snowden352 pages Nearly a decade ago we bore witness to magnificent acts of rebellion and alarm-calling, as dissidents like Julian Assange and Edward Snowden began exposing DC’s global surveillance state and abuses of power. DC acted with … Continue reading →

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Too Much Magic: Same arguments, different cover

Posted on November 25, 2020 by smellincoffee

Too Much Magic: Wishful Thinking, Technology, and the Fate of the Nation© 2012 Jim Kunstler336 pages Twelve years ago, at the urging of my sociology professor, I attended a lecture on Peak Oil and the Future of Suburbia, by a … Continue reading →

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Harvard and the Unabomber

Posted on July 23, 2020 by smellincoffee

Harvard and the Unabomber: The Education of an American Terrorist Original title: A Mind for Murder © 2003 Alston Chase 352 pages Ted Kaczynski was hunted fruitlessly by the FBI for eighteen years, until finally being done in by his … Continue reading →

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How To Break Up With Your Phone

Posted on October 12, 2019 by smellincoffee

How To Break Up With Your Phone © 2018 Catherine Price 192 pages In just over a decade, smartphones have become ubiquitous and transformative. But for all the ease they add to our lives,   smartphones also have an inherent capacity … Continue reading →

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Dinosaurs, India, and the smartphone

Posted on May 31, 2019 by smellincoffee

We in the United States  recently enjoyed a three-day weekend, ostensibly for the purpose of honoring fallen soldiers, though I suspect for most it’s just an occasion to shop and cook out before the summer heat becomes unbearable.  I took … Continue reading →

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Better Off

Posted on May 24, 2019 by smellincoffee

Better Off: Flipping the Switch on Technology© 2004 Eric Bende256 pages When Eric and Mary Bendes tied the knot, they chose to kick off their marriage in the traditional fashion: struggling together to make a go of a family farm.  … Continue reading →

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Alice Roosevelt, Linux, and Death

Posted on March 29, 2019 by smellincoffee

Approaching the end of the month, as we are, time to post a few also-reads: Alice and the Assassin, R.J. Koreto. Entertaining historical fiction following the infamous pistol-packing Alice Roosevelt and her cowboy Secret Service bodyguard.  Following the assassination of … Continue reading →

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Alone Together

Posted on March 7, 2019 by smellincoffee

Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less From Each Other © 2011 Sherry Turkle 384 pages Alone Together has been on my to-read list since it was released, though it’s taken me years to actually read it.  … Continue reading →

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