Zompist Bboard Again

Raphael wrote: ↑Sat Jun 07, 2025 2:43 am I just read this brief biography of a 20th Century Chinese historical figure:

https://nathangoldwag.wordpress.com/202 ... ng-career/

Fascinating!

Very interesting! He's in my China book (in just one paragraph), but it's great to learn more about him. I didn't know Chiang kept him prisoner. Also, pretty much reinforces my view that Chiang was a bastard.

I am currently reading Deciphering the Indus Script by Asko Parpola. The title is somewhat pompous, as the book doesn't really contain a decipherment (which has not been achieved yet), only an introduction to the art of decipherment and preliminaries to the decipherment of the Indus script. Nevertheless, it is an interesting read, and should be mandatory reading for those who try their luck on the Indus script.

Just finished A History of Rome in Seven Sackings. That's Rome the city, not a football club.

Raphael wrote: ↑Sat Jun 07, 2025 2:43 am I just read this brief biography of a 20th Century Chinese historical figure:

https://nathangoldwag.wordpress.com/202 ... ng-career/

Fascinating!

This was quite interesting! In addition, the blogger who posted this (Nathan Goldwag) seems to have other interesting posts as well...I may have a new blog to visit.

Some of my current reading:

Crusaders: The Epic History of the Wars for the Holy Lands by Dan Jones (popular history)

The Odyssey, translated by W.H.D. Rouse (this is a 1937 translation that my father acquired in the 1960s)

Strange New World: A Dr. Greta Helsing Novel by Vivian Shaw (urban fantasy; this is the fourth book in a series, which started with Strange Practice)

I have been reading The Investigations of Mossa and Pleti by Malka Older; the first two books are The Mimicking of Known Successes and The Imposition of Unnecessary Obstacles, and the third book has just come out. These are science fiction mysteries with a loosely Holmesian feel; I don't know that they would be for everyone, but my wife and I have been enjoying them.

(Other speculative fiction series that we have been reading together over the years include the Greta Helsing series above, the Incryptid series by Seanan McGuire, the Rivers of London series by Ben Aaronovitch, the Mercy Thompson series by Patricia Briggs, and more recently The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells.)

Seconding the recommendation for Goldwag; he spends a lot of posts on SF, Fantasy and Anime novels and shows that I haven't read / watched, but his history posts are quite interesting and well-informed.
The Rivers of London series is one of my favourites, too.

WeepingElf wrote: ↑Sat Jun 07, 2025 6:02 am I am currently reading Deciphering the Indus Script by Asko Parpola. The title is somewhat pompous, as the book doesn't really contain a decipherment (which has not been achieved yet), only an introduction to the art of decipherment and preliminaries to the decipherment of the Indus script. Nevertheless, it is an interesting read, and should be mandatory reading for those who try their luck on the Indus script.

I have finished it. Was an interesting read, though the later chapters are just drawn-out speculations involving Dravidian homophones and Indian myths and traditions. Yet, the basic thesis that the language of the Indus script was Dravidian (perhaps Proto-Dravidian itself) makes sense to me, though that remains uncertain.

High Frontier 4 All, the rocket science board game, is now available as an Android app.

PS. I aspire to read The Probability Map of the Universe: Essays on David Albert's Time and Chance.

Fantastic Numbers and Where to Find Them.

alice wrote: ↑Thu Jun 12, 2025 2:34 pm Fantastic Numbers and Where to Find Them.

Who's the author? I have a feeling I might have read that a while ago myself.

Lērisama wrote: ↑Thu Jun 12, 2025 4:01 pm

alice wrote: ↑Thu Jun 12, 2025 2:34 pm Fantastic Numbers and Where to Find Them.

Who's the author? I have a feeling I might have read that a while ago myself.

Antonio Padilla.

I've been watching a lot of anime, but because of it i've developed an appreciation for mature western cartoons. In particular, the ones that aren't frat boy/ boomer hoomer comedies have really snuck up on me. Turns out there's more than you'd think. I'd give a good recommendation to The Head.

1. Classic anarchist science fiction: https://www.abelard.org/e-f-russell.php The problem is that the empire doesn't care whether you are of use to them alive or dead. They will absolutely kill you for defiance. Regardless of the objective utility of your work, they don't want others to emulate your example and they think of you as a burden. Since when has the truth prevailed?

2. Apparently, only US defense contractors are spiritually clean: https://www.nplusonemag.com/issue-50/es ... ayahuasca/

PS. FPS game published as a book: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SiUnqMJEVU

In case you missed my post on it, over the weekend, I read Thomas Frank's Listen, Liberal or, what ever happened to the party of the people? I've posted my thoughts on it in the US Politics Thread:

https://www.verduria.org/viewtopic.php?p=96549#p96549

Uncle Tungsten, which I found in the local Amnesty International bookshop and remembered that Zompist recommended it.

alice wrote: ↑Mon Jun 23, 2025 2:19 pm Uncle Tungsten, which I found in the local Amnesty International bookshop and remembered that Zompist recommended it.

Haven't read it, so I can't judge it as a book, but what does it have to do with human rights?

Raphael wrote: ↑Mon Jun 23, 2025 2:22 pm

alice wrote: ↑Mon Jun 23, 2025 2:19 pm Uncle Tungsten, which I found in the local Amnesty International bookshop and remembered that Zompist recommended it.

Haven't read it, so I can't judge it as a book, but what does it have to do with human rights?

Such bookshops are usually second-hand ones run by a charity in order to raise money for it. I assume that's why it was in there.

Lērisama wrote: ↑Tue Jun 24, 2025 5:18 am

Such bookshops are usually second-hand ones run by a charity in order to raise money for it. I assume that's why it was in there.

Ah, thank you.

Raphael wrote: ↑Tue Jun 24, 2025 5:21 am

Lērisama wrote: ↑Tue Jun 24, 2025 5:18 am

Such bookshops are usually second-hand ones run by a charity in order to raise money for it. I assume that's why it was in there.

Ah, thank you.

Lērisama is almost correct; it also has a small stock of new releases, some of them niche political publications with titles like "Climate Change and the Internet: why the new world economy is in terminal danger".