Category Archives: Books

Science Non-Fiction

Posted on June 1, 2012 by

“Then the terrible teens hit, with a global recession followed by a stuttering shock wave of corporate scandals as rock-ribbed enterprises were exposed as hollow husks run by conscience-free predators who were even less community-minded and altruistic than gangsters.  The … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Politics | Leave a comment

“Model Behavior”

Posted on May 31, 2012 by

Laurie Penny on feminism in the 21st century: “Drag queens of all genders know that performing femininity is always contingent, always within the context of a world where beauty means disguise, means conformity and misogyny and racism and self-erasure — but that one can … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Politics | Leave a comment

The Future Is Here, And It’s Awful

Posted on May 27, 2012 by

Charles Stross, another of my favorite writers, also has something to say about science fiction and how lately the genre has been turned on its head: “I’d put it down to us mistaking Sense of Wonder for Innovation. We used … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Books, Kultur | Leave a comment

“dirt in the corners”

Posted on May 27, 2012 by

An interview with William Gibson in The Paris Review: “I didn’t have a manifesto. I had some discontent. It seemed to me that midcentury mainstream American science fiction had often been triumphalist and militaristic, a sort of folk propaganda for … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Books, Kultur | Leave a comment

Why You’re Not Famous At All

Posted on May 23, 2012 by

Tom Vanderbilt on the strangeness of literary fame (or lack thereof): “Why do best-sellers rarely survive the ‘tooth of time’? One theory is that many best-sellers simply weren’t very good or interesting books in the first place; they were empty … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Kultur | Leave a comment

Korea and Confidence

Posted on May 22, 2012 by

An interview with long-term South Korea resident and businessman Peter Underwood: “There’s a very odd element of the Korean character that is a combination of tremendous self-confidence and at the same time a lack of confidence. That’s one of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Korea, Kultur | Leave a comment

“Garage Philosopher”

Posted on May 22, 2012 by

Simon Critchley on the philosophical significance of Philip K. Dick: “This leads me to an important point. Dick was a consummate autodidact. He survived for less than one semester at college, at the University of California, Berkeley, in 1949, taking … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Books | Leave a comment

Hardcore, Man

Posted on May 10, 2012 by

Tune-Yards, “The Burning Spear” (Sonic Youth cover) Fantastic Metafilter post chock full of great video clips as current bands pay homage to 80′s and 90′s acts to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Michael Azzerad’s Our Band Could Be Your Life.

Posted in Books, Music | Leave a comment

Here’s Your Future

Posted on April 30, 2012 by

Laurie Penny reviews William Gibson’s latest book a collection of essays: “In essays here on Tokyo, on Singapore, on London, Gibson opens the skin of cities like old watches and looks for the peculiar synergy of metal and emotion that … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Politics | Leave a comment

Game of Thrones Nerdery

Posted on April 24, 2012 by

I like the changes HBO is making to Game of Thrones.  Setting up Robb to get with the nurse character?  Considering that Robb literally disappears from the action in Martin’s version, I’d say this is a good thing.  And while … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, TV | Leave a comment