Thread: What non fiction books are you reading?

I enjoy a good non fiction book a couple times a month. Right now I am looking for Brian Greenes The Elegant Universe. I'm currently reading Darwin's The Voyage of the Beagle but I'm almost done. After I finish I'm going to begin reading The Science of Leonardo by Fritjof Capra.

Currently, The God Delusion. I also just recently purchased From So Simple A Beginning which I'm going to read together with my son.

I was recently gifted Blink by Malcom Gladwell (which I'm reading right now), as well as a collection of works by the Russian behaviorist Konrad Lorenz. I'm also working through Primate Behavioral Ecology by Karen Strier, the Human Career by Richard Klein, and Natural Selections by David Barash. One that I finished a few months ago that I highly recommend is Baboon Metaphysics by Cheney and Seyfarth.

Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain, Oliver Sacks.

The tales of musical hallucinations, suddenly acquired musical ability after being struck by lightning, and other mental phenomena are further evidence of the strictly biological basis of our individuality.

Dark Nature: A Natural History of Evil - Lyall Watson (quite good)

Has Hawking Erred? - Gerhard Kraus (not so good :? )

Originally Posted by (Q)

Currently, The God Delusion. I also just recently purchased From So Simple A Beginning which I'm going to read together with my son.

The God Delusion is a good book and the first of the authors books which I've read. Reading various personal reviews posted on the web concerning the book though I've learned that it no where near one of his best but still a good read in my peronal opinion.

I always enjoy reading the stories of Stanislaw Lem, the late Polish author. The most famous one is probably "Solaris", but there are dozens more and maybe even better. I often find that whatever sophisticated idea someone seems to have for a brilliant Sci-Fi movie, you find it already in Lem's stories. Just brilliant. He was the master of combining philosophical lectures of varying degree with intriguing and sometimes even funny or absurd plots. My favourites are: The star daries, Return from the stars, Fiasco, The invincible, The futurological congress

Originally Posted by Dishmaster

I always enjoy reading the stories of Stanislaw Lem, the late Polish author. The most famous one is probably "Solaris", but there are dozens more and maybe even better. I often find that whatever sophisticated idea someone seems to have for a brilliant Sci-Fi movie, you find it already in Lem's stories. Just brilliant. He was the master of combining philosophical lectures of varying degree with intriguing and sometimes even funny or absurd plots. My favourites are: The star daries, Return from the stars, Fiasco, The invincible, The futurological congress

Those are fiction books. We're talking about non-fiction here.

Kick ass Paralith! Go girl!

I am currently studying religion as part of my degree so i am reading

The Open University, Christianity, A217 Introducing Religions,

and.....

Woodhead, Linda. Christianity: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press

These Very Short Introductions the Oxford U. Press has released are very good. Small books you can slip in a pocket but packed through with very good information. There's loads of titles in the series across the board!

and i have just been to the library and i am attempting to read:

Jung, Carl Gustav. Modern Man In Search Of A Soul. Routledge.

Always interesting, i love Jung!

Sheldrake, Rupert. The Sense Of Being Stared At. Arrow Books.

Interesting stuff, makes you wonder harder! Sheldrake, a biologist, has done tests on telepathy, proper experiments that have come up with interesting results that definitely point to humans and animals having this capacity. Always good to keep an open mind (But not too open so that....yes...we...know!)

Broks, Paul. Into The Silent Land. Atlantic Books.

Story of a neuropsychologist and his dealings with patients with brain damage with interesting insights on how they perceive the world

I'm reading The Origin of Species by this fellow named...Darwin? Seems it caused quite a stir when it was first published. Wonder why?

Originally Posted by BumFluff

Originally Posted by (Q)

Currently, The God Delusion. I also just recently purchased From So Simple A Beginning which I'm going to read together with my son.

The God Delusion is a good book and the first of the authors books which I've read. Reading various personal reviews posted on the web concerning the book though I've learned that it no where near one of his best but still a good read in my peronal opinion.

The God Delusion was my second by Dawkins, I think. The first I read was Unweaving the Rainbow.

I’m reading A Short History of Modern Philosophy (1995 2nd edition) by Roger Scruton. It deals with philosophy from René Descartes to Ludwig Wittgenstein.

As a Gemini, I indulge myself in a mercurial approach to reading a mutiplicity of books at the same time. Currently on the bedside table, piano stool, or in the briefcase are:

Vital Dust by Christian de Duve
The Nobel laureate offers his take on the origin of life and concludes it is inevitable, arising from the laws of the universe. He sees consciousness and intelligence as having the same inevitability.

Biocosm The new scientific theory of evolution: intelligent life is the architect of the Universe by James N. Gardener
The Strong Anthropic Principle on steroids. Imaginative and falsifiable.

The Structure of Evolutionary Theory by Stephen J. Gould
The co-author of the theory of punctuated equilibrium left his magnum opus as his final legacy. At 1431 pages in length, I am taking my time working through it.

Track Plans by C.J.Freezer
A selection of varied track plans for model railways. (Everyone should have a hobby. )

A History of the English Speaking Peoples by Winston S. Churchill
Finally got around to reading this. Only at Volume one and, only as far as King Alfred.

Originally Posted by smellincoffee

I'm reading The Origin of Species by this fellow named...Darwin? Seems it caused quite a stir when it was first published.

:wink:

I've bought a few books recently and after I finish reading the one I'm currently working on, Darwin the Indelible Stamp (4 of his books in one), I plan on reading them. Them being The Living Cosmos by Chris Impey, Grave Secrets of Dinosaurs by Phillip Manning and Physics of the Impossible by Michio Kaku. The last of which I've heard posted in this forum before.

Originally Posted by Ophiolite

As a Gemini, I indulge myself in a mercurial approach to reading a mutiplicity of books at the same time.

in that case i must be a crypto-gemini

i have the following on the go at the moment :

God is not great - Christopher Hitchens
A perfect mess - Eric Abrahamson & David Freedman
The economic naturalist - Robert Frank
The revenge of Gaia - James Lovelock

I just finished the book 'Harmonic Wealth' by James Ray and thought it might interest you. It deals with all five pillars of your life (financial, relational, mental, physical, and spiritual) and shows you how to create true wealth (as in well-being!) in your life. The very practical applications have made a big difference in my life – and could do the same for you.
Â*
Here’s the link: harmonicwealth.com/read

a James Ray fan

I've been reading Ingenious Pursuits (1999) by Lisa Jardine, a book about the development of Western science in the 17th and 18th centuries.

This second none but its hard to read with a computer on your lap, ignoring that if you count this I am reading Alexander Pope's "Essay on Critism" (sorry if I spelt that wrong) in prepration for my English Literture exam, also at night I will also be reading the The God Delusion but it seems like his work has gone down since the The Blind Watch Maker if I read the table of contence and back right.

I read in spurts. Most non-fiction today is not worth reading so I check out books from the public libary instead of buying them from dealers and currently I have 24 non-fiction books on loan as we sit.
As follows...

Musicophilia by Oliver Sacks.
Comment: Interesting subject but I found Oliver Sacks not so bright.

Thousand Mile Song: Whale Music in a Sea of Sound by David Rothenberg
Comment: Interesting subject but not much new information. Might finish, might not.

Matisse by John Russell
Comment: My kind of book inasmuch as I admire Matisse and his running buddies. This one I'll probably finish.

Invisible Nation by Quil Lawrence
Comment: Well researched book about the Kurd's quest for statehood in the middle east. Fascinating, but so far I've only read chapters one, two, and three.

Okla Hannali by R.A. Lafferty
Comment: A re-read of Lafferty's investigation into the cultural directives of the Choctaw Indians. Brilliant.

Armageddon in Retrospect by Kurt Vonnegut
Comment: Depressing but necessary stories by Vonnegut of his war experences during WWII.

And so it goes...

I thought the “God Delusion�, while ‘good’ - in the sense that someone was even allowed to say what it does in print - was pretty pedestrian. It was so bad, though, I could have written it myself.

I’ve read "The Dawkins Delusion�, a Christian reposte, to which my above comments also apply.

(But my comment now is: have you read it? I think not).


But my book of the year is “The End Of Science�, by John Horgan.

It’s really a series of interviews put into book form, belatedly hung with the theme: has Science discovered all the big things, it’s gunna?

While 98% of people here will scoff and rail against my last sentence, 98% of people here will enjoy this book. Because it’s 98% about the very various views of the very various scientists that are interviewed - about everything.

The Selfish Gene - Richard Dawkins (awesome)
The Human Touch - Michael Frayn (bit waffly)

might put in the chronicles of narnia just because of the extreme amount of allegory

Originally Posted by BumFluff

I enjoy a good non fiction book a couple times a month. Right now I am looking for Brian Greenes The Elegant Universe. I'm currently reading Darwin's The Voyage of the Beagle but I'm almost done. After I finish I'm going to begin reading The Science of Leonardo by Fritjof Capra.

Mary Beard on the Roman Triumph.

http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog/BEAROT.html