rblog

Author: George Orwell
Amazon info

I read this as a free download on the Sony eBook - taking advantage of the "read 100 classic books free" offer from Sony. The catch is that I have to download all 100 books by Feb 28th (although I don't really understand why). In any case, on to the book review.

Like most people, I read 1984 in high school as an "assigned book" and I surprised myself with how much I remembered. Boy does this book stand up to a re-reading - it was much better the second time through. And in the 30 years since I have read this book, I have not encountered anything that approaches this type of dystopia - such a disturbing vision of the future. Even though the premises of the book are somewhat obliterated by the widespread revolutions of the 1980s and 1990s this is still a compelling read.

One random note - I have now read several "future oriented" books that were written in the 1940s and it is interesting to see some common threads:
* No one anticipated the significant decline in smoking, especially among the college-educates/scientific classes.
* While it is reasonable to assume that no one would have anticipated the computer or a "world wide network" - it is surprising to see that the pneumatic tube was envisioned to play a major role in future communications.

Recommended: All - especially those who read it a long time ago.

Posted by Richard Berger at 08:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The gifts for 2007 were an interesting mix - here are some of the highlights.

• Amazon Kindle - We now have both a Kindle and a Sony eBook (PRS-500, not the newly released 505). Quick review (I have not yet read any books on the Kindle, as I can't get it out of Molly's hands) . The biggest win for the Kindle is the availability of books - over 94,000 already - probably 4x the eBook. I also like the built in dictionary and the choice of six fonts and it was kinda neat to be able to purchase books directly from the Kindle. All in all, the Kindle has more functionality than the eBook, but the eBook better accomplishes the goal the Kindle sets out - to "disappear" during the reading process, to let the reader feel that there is nothing between them and the text. The eBook accomplishes this by being simpler and more limited. And the eBook has better usability - the power switch is in a better place, the cover works better and it just feels nicer (and the 505 fixed the placement of the "next page" buttons). Both the Kindle and the eBook 500 share the eInk technology and are extremely readable. It will be interesting to see if the eBook 505 (which improves the display and speed of page turns) is a significantly noticeable improvement. But I think the bottom line is the availability of titles - and will libraries support either of these devices?


• Emerson Clock - Officially called the Emerson CKS3516 SmartSet Dual-Alarm Clock Radio with Time Projection System - this is one of those "atomic clocks" that synchronizes with a radio signal that broadcasts the precise time. When you power on the clock it sets the minute, hour, day, month, and year in about 5 seconds - very cool. In addition to a very readable display and the ability to set two alarms - in daily, weekday, or weekend mode - this clock projects the time onto the ceiling - perfect for viewing when awaking at night. I am thrilled with this present. (Sure, I picked it out for me, but that doesn't diminish the enjoyment).
  


• Comforter - Somehow, I have the image of the perfect down comforter locked into my mind (perhaps it was the first one I ever saw, owned by my roommate Mike in college). I am not sure that that comforter actually exists, but for Xmas, we are trying a new one - the old one having lasted 10 years or so. This one is the top of the line from Macy's - the Pacific Coast Feather® Six Star® Grand Embrace® Comforter. I put it out in the sun for about 45 minutes to fluff it up and then ran it through for 30 minutes on the fluff cycle in the dryer - but tonight is its first test on the bed. Then tomorrow it goes into the duvet for the real test.
  


• Massage Cushion - I think the favorite gift for the whole family was the Homedics® Shiatsu One Massage Cushion, which turns any chair or couch into a massage chair. I can't say much about it because I am not a big fan of massage chairs - but everyone else seems to like it.
  


• Foot Massager - Now here is a massage item that I do like - the Equalizer Foot Pro Massager. It is not really a massager it is far more percussive, similar to the devices you find at county fairs which seem to rejuvenate tired feet and legs. We have set this up on the corner seat of the couch - along with the massage cushion, an electric blanket, and a nearby laptop. We call this our "cozy corner".
  


• e260 MP3 Player - We got Emily a new MP3 player as her first one has run out of space (512MB). This one is 2GB but more importantly, accepts an SD card for essentially unlimited memory. Plus it has a screen for watching video - if we only had any video that was worth watching on a 1.5" screen. But the big win here was that it worked with our Yahoo Music Unlimited To Go subscription without any hassle whatsoever.
  

Posted by Richard Berger at 07:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Author: Philip Pullman
Amazon info

I should really have a single review for the trilogy (hence the Amazon link to the trilogy), but since I already wrote the review for the first book, I will add this review for the final two books.

I don't think that this trilogy is destined to become a classic, but it was certainly worth reading. I can't think of any other large work of fantasy fiction - especially one that targets kids - that supports an atheistic viewpoint. Well, at least what I think is an atheistic viewpoint. The figure who is considered by most to be God - named "The Authority" - dies. As does his Regent. The Church is shown to be anti-progress, pro-fear, and is discredited. But the book also states that "The Authority" was not the creator - he was just the first angel who usurped the role of God - thus, leaving room for some type of God.

Like most of the fiction I read, this is multi-layered, complex and full of secondary meanings. And like most of my reviews, I can't really figure any of them out. I really enjoyed the physics references, the existence of multiple worlds - similar, yet different and even more, characters learning about the new worlds they explore. I loved the armored bear, the angels, and of course the heroes Lyra and Will. The first book got off to a very slow start, but books two and three were completely captivating - one of those "keep you up late at night" type books.

One character did bug me a little bit - and that was Lyra's mother (Mrs. Coulter). Perhaps this was intentional, but it was very difficult to figure out if she was good or evil. Since anything she said could be a lie, it was hard to tell when (if ever) you could trust her. Kind of like a spy, who might actually be a double spy, or in reality a triple spy, or actually.... But by the end it was finally clear - so perhaps it was all intentional.

I loved it (even if I don't believe in the multiworld hypothesis) - and I was even able to suspend my disbelief at the equivalence of dark matter and "particles of consciousness".

Recommended for all - except overly religious people who might get angry and offended.

Posted by Richard Berger at 08:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

First the brain, then the cervical section of the spine. Doing these separately means two trips into SF, but reduces my time in the MRI machine to a more manageable 30-45 minutes, rather than one 60-90 minute session.

I should have another update by Thursday, January 17th - until then, all is fine.

Posted by Richard Berger at 10:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Golden Compass
Author: Philip Pullman
Amazon info

A very promising start to a trilogy. Mysterious, foreboding, and fascinating. The book begins slowly, taking place in a universe that is similar to ours, but different. This creates some confusion for the reader and patience is required. But about 1/3 of the way in, things get a little clearer and captivating. The story features Lyra and her daemon, her estranged parents (Lord Asriel, Mrs. Coulter), and a cast of many others - including armored bears and witches. Everyone appears to be caught up in the search for Dust - which the Church believes to be an echo of the original sin, but also appears related to the Aurora Borealis. I especially like the alethiometer, a device that when properly used can answer any question put to it.

On the positive side, this is a fairly unique novel, which brings in some interesting physics (in particular the multiwold view of quantum theory). I love the characters and the similarity of her universe to ours. For better or worse, it is not clear to me who is good or bad. Lyra is definitely good. Her father, not clear. Her mother seemed clearly evil, but at the end of the book things became less clear. Representatives of the Church seem generally bad, but I can't really make judgments yet. Lord Asriel is out to challenge God ("The Authority") does that make him good or evil? I have my opinions of course. I look forward to the rest of the series.

Recommendations: None yet, too early in the series.

PS - I have NOT yet seen the movie, I heard there was major controversy over the role of religion, but I don't know if the (seemingly) anti-religious sentiment of the book was toned down for the movie (I would expect it was, but perhaps I am being cynical).

Posted by Richard Berger at 11:55 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I realized that there are folks who are interested in what is happening with my mystery disease and I realized I needed a way to keep everyone updated and that it would be also good to keep a written history. And then, duh, I remembered I have a blog! (They had better do a brain MRI just to make sure I still have a brain!). So I will start with the most recent entry and then work backwards to fill in the past.

Today I went to see Dr. Ari Green at the UCSF MS clinic as my primary neurologist (Dr. Ann Poncelet) believes that my neuropathy is actually due to "central" causes rather than "peripheral" causes. The session with Dr. Green was the standard initial consultation, pin pricks, family history, etc.

Key items:
* He dilated my pupils to determine the state of my optic nerve - it was in fine shape.
* He did an eye test, at which I did surprisingly well as I thought my vision was in worse shape
* We discussed vitamin deficiency, specifically vitamin B-12. There was a good write up on this topic here. However, my Vitamin B12 was tested in March and I was at the high end of normal. However, we are running some additional blood tests to look at homocysteine levels - which go up as B-12 goes down. If homocysteine is elevated there may be a very very simple "cure" - but I don't think this is likely.
* Two new terms were introduced into my medical lexicon -
a) posterior column disease - If Dr. Green had to guess what I had, his hunch would be posterior column disease. The clearest description I could get of this was "The posterior columns in the spinal cord can be damaged due to B12 deficiency (which can take years to show up). Inflammation and degeneration of the dorsal roots cause secondary descrution of the posterior columns of the spinal cord, which results in impaired vibration and position sense and decreased tactile localization. "
b) myelopathy - This is a more general term indicating problems with the spinal cord itself as the root cause of the neuropathy.
So, as a completely speculative guess, based on intuition rather than data, would be that I have a myelopathy (e.g. problem with the spinal cord) and in particular, problem with the posterior column. But there could be several causes for that - but most of them have been ruled out, well, actually all of them seem to have been ruled out - but we are re-doing the Vitamin B-12 test.

Tests taken:
* Blood tests - Vitamin B-12 and related tests, but I don't have a copy of the workup and results are not yet available.

Next steps:
* Dr. Green would prefer getting a Brain and C-spine MRI as I think I had a Lumbar and Thoracic spine MRI the last time. If those are clean, he would go for the LP.
* But it is Dr. Poncelet's call as to whether we do the LP first. I am leaning toward the MRI - although it would be 90 minutes long!!

And for those of you who are concerned about MS, it is still a possibility, but that explanation does not appear to fit the data as it currently stands, so I would be surprised if it were MS (Dr. Green agreed with that assessment - he also completely supported my approach to MRIs - which is to stay up late the night before and then try to sleep through the MRI).

Posted by Richard Berger at 05:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Author: Nadine Gordimer
Amazon info

I really should get someone else to ghostwrite my fiction reviews and I have so little to say. Pick Up is the story of a white woman in South Africa who meets a black mechanic and pursues a relationship with him. However, he is in South Africa illegally and is deported. She follows him back to his country (unnamed) where he lives in a very small settlement on the outskirts of the desert and where Islam is the way of life. While he focuses on getting a visa to America (among other places), she learns the language and the culture. In the end (spoiler alert), he gets his visa, but she stays behind with his family.

This book was very reminiscent of "The White Masai" and I found both to have memorable and engaging characters. As for the subtexts, Julie (the heroine) is a daughter of privilege, but she has rejected that - although she has an uncle who helps her out when needed. As an aside, the uncle (a doctor) is unjustly accused of sexual harassment (and is cleared) - and I am sure that has something to do with the deeper meanings of the book (that are, alas, impenetrable to me). What I can see is how Julie matures through the book and finds a deeper purpose in the simple village life (even if I believe that life has no purpose, I guess people still seek for one).

Recommended: To all.

Posted by Richard Berger at 10:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)