Mini-Reviews of Books Read, January 2013

   Reviews of books read last month: three novels a non-fiction book.

   After reading the books, some interesting connections emerged.  The
   golden age of Venice (15th Century) connects the emergence of the
   publishing industry in "Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore" with the
   birth of book-keeping described in "Double Entry".  Mr Penumbra makes
   this observation: "This city of ours (San Francisco)–it has taken me
   too long to realize it, but we are the Venice of this world".  And
   Murakami's "1Q84" is mentioned as one of the few recent titles sold
   in "Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore".



   1. "1Q84" by Haruki Murakami
     <http://www.amazon.com/1Q84/dp/0307476464>

   It's Tokyo, 1984.  Aomame is in a taxi on her way to an important
   appointment.  The taxi is caught in a traffic jam on a highway, so
   Aomame takes the driver's advice: she gets out of the car, climbs
   down the nearby emergency escape, then takes the train to keep her
   appointment.  We soon find out that she's an assassin.  The hit goes
   according to plan, but afterwards she notices there are subtle
   differences between the Japan she knew and the one she now finds
   herself in.  The most striking is the appearance of a second,
   smaller moon in the sky.  "Aomame decides to call this world 1Q84...
   Q is for question mark. 'Like it or not, I'm here in the year 1Q84.
   The 1984 that I knew no longer exists. It's 1Q84 now. The air has
   changed, the scene has changed. I have to adapt to this world-with-
   a-question-mark as soon as I can.'"

   Meanwhile, Tengo is a would-be writer who pays the bills by working
   as a maths teacher in a "cram" school.  One day, his editor offers
   him an audacious proposal to rewrite a schoolgirl's patchy but
   promising novel, then pretend that the rewritten manuscript was all
   the girl's work.  Tengo reluctantly agrees, and the rewritten "Air
   Chrysalis" becomes a best-seller.  Things start getting messy, though,
   because the book reveals information about "The Little People" and
   other details about the reclusive Sakigake cult.

   As in most of Murakami's earlier novels, there are several other
   complex and intriguing characters.  There's also the mysterious Leader
   of the Sakigake cult, a wealthy old dowager who provides safe housing
   for abuse victims, and Tamaru, her Korean-born butler/bodyguard.
   Another key character is Ushikawa, a tenacious and odd-looking private
   investigator, hired by the cult.

   There are several literary references in the novel.  The quasi-police
   state of Japan in 1Q84 obviously recalls Orwell's "1984".  Tengo
   ponders: "Could I have somehow left the real world and entered the
   world of 'Air Chrysalis' like Alice falling down the rabbit hole? Or
   could the real world have been made over so as to match exactly the
   story of 'Air Chrysalis'?"  The characters themselves read books or
   novels, both real, such as "In Search of Lost Time" by Proust, and
   fictional.  Aomame even thinks "... if that story is mine as well as
   Tengo's, then I should be able to write the story line too. I should
   be able to comment on what's there, maybe even rewrite part of it."
   Music is another recurring feature of the author's work, and in this
   novel Janáček's 'Sinfonietta' is a recurring work.

   Originally written in three parts, this combined novel is a compelling
   read.  At over 900 pages, I wouldn't recommend it as a reader's first
   taste of Murakami.  Perhaps try "The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle" or "A
   Wild Sheep Chase" before tackling "1Q84".


   2. "Ender's Game" by Orson Scott Card
     <http://www.amazon.com/Enders-Game/dp/0812550706>

   This sci-fi novel is set in the future.  Andrew, nicknamed Ender, is
   a "Third" (the third child under a two-child policy), and consequently
   is bullied at school.  But the all-seeing powers-that-be sense he has
   a unique combination of empathy and ruthlessness, so at the tender age
   of six he is drafted into military school.  He's not the only kid there
   - the orbiting Battle School is full of similarly-aged recruits,
   pitting them in a zero-gravity war simulation in preparation for war
   against the insect-like aliens (Formics, also called "buggers").

   Ender quickly progresses through the ranks, and is soon sent to Command
   School.  All the while, Commander Hyrum Graff is pulling the strings,
   believing that Ender is destined to take up the crucial role of
   Commander of Earth's fleet.  Given the high stakes, Graff is not afraid
   to put Ender in extremely dangerous situations.  Ender knows that Graff
   is both fast-tracking him as well as bending the rules to see if he can
   cope: "They both laughed, and Ender had to remind himself that Graff
   was only acting like a friend, that everything he did was a lie or a
   cheat calculated to turn Ender into an efficient fighting machine".

   Ender's older brother (Peter) and sister (Valentine) are also precocious
   kids, and have their own parts to play in the story.  At one point,
   where the two are discussing how to influence world politics, Valentine
   says: "Peter, you're twelve".  Peter responds: "Not on the nets I'm not.
   On the nets I can name myself anything I want, and so can you."

   This award-winning novel does get violent at times.  Peter is clearly a
   psychopath, and Ender has his own violent moments when he's backed into
   a corner.  This is the first of a series of books, and it has been
   adapted as a movie to be released this year.  While I enjoyed parts of
   the book, such as the out-of-the-box battle tactics and strategies, I
   don't like it enough to delve into the rest of the series.  Perhaps in
   my high school and university days I would have been more keen.


   3. "Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore" by Robin Sloan
     <http://www.amazon.com/Mr-Penumbras-24-Hour-Bookstore/dp/0374214913>

   Clay Jannon is a graphic designer who has recently lost his job at a
   failed startup.  He decides to apply as a clerk in a strange book
   store run by a man called Mr Penumbra.  Not many current or popular
   books are actually stocked and sold in this in San Francisco store.
   In fact, most of the regular customers appear to come in to exchange
   books in the special one-off collection, called the Waybacklist.  Clay
   notices there's a distinct, repeated sequence to the books exchanged.
   He suspects these customers belong to a secret society of readers, and
   they are trying to decode a secret hidden in the Waybacklist books.

   Clay wants to crack the code himself, and so he writes a program to
   visualise the sequence of Waybacklist books based on their location
   on the shelves.  Plotted in 3D, the sequence renders the bust of 15th
   Century Venetian publishing pioneer Aldus Manutius.  Manutius turns
   out to be the Founder of the secret society, called "Festina lente".
   Identifying the face of the Founder is the first step in becoming a
   "bound" member of the society.  Bound members have their own book,
   called a codex vitae, added to Festina lente's main collection.  Clay
   believes that the codex vitae of Manutius himself holds the key to the
   ultimate secret.  He enlists the help of his artistic flatmate (Mat),
   a wealthy entrepreneur and old school friend (Neel), and a prospective
   girlfriend who happens to works at Google (Kat).  They soon discover
   the location of the headquarters of Festina lente.  The plan is to get
   into Festina lente's central library, make a copy of the Founder's
   codex vitae, and use Google's computational power to crack the code
   in the book.  Clay also discovers a connection between his favourite
   book series, 'The Dragon-Song Chronicles', and Festina lente.

   This was an enjoyable, fast-paced thriller.  It covers the techno-
   logical history of publishing, from the birth of printed books and
   typesetting, through to modern-day e-books and e-readers.  Other
   geeky topics include old computers, databases, scanning, web sites,
   3D modelling, data-processing and programming.  While an IT background
   and knowledge of the history of printing aren't necessary, they do
   help the reader get a better appreciation of what's happening, and
   to better differentiate the real and fictional aspects of the story.


   4. "Double Entry: How the merchants of Venice shaped the modern world
       - and how their invention could make or break the planet"
      by Jane Gleeson-White
     <http://www.amazon.com/Double-Entry/dp/0393088960>

   This book looks at the history of one of the under-appreciated
   foundations of modern business, the double-entry accounting system.
   Luca Pacioli is considered the "father" of the double-entry system.
   He was a monk, mathematician, alchemist, and mentor of Leonardo da
   Vinci.  He is credited with writing the first, definitive treatise on
   the bookkeeping method, originally referred to as "the Venetian method",
   and later as "the Italian method".

   Double-entry bookkeeping, with it's internal checks and balance, still
   underlies modern day bookkeeping.  Each financial transaction has two
   (or more) effects on the fundamentals of a business (the assets,
   liabilities and owner's equity), and these are reflected in the
   accounts by balanced entries in the appropriate ledger accounts.  It
   facilitates the measuring of profit over specific time periods, valuing
   inventory, keeping track of debts and obligations, and calculating the
   net worth of a business.  Originally designed to keep the accounts of
   merchants' businesses from the 1300s, it has evolved as the nature of
   business has expanded.  For example, during the industrial revolution,
   double-entry was flexible enough to incorporate the apportioning the
   costs of manufacturing large numbers of items.

   However, this underlying flexibility and increasing complexity of
   transactions can lead to different interpretations of the underlying
   principles.  Infamously, in recent times, "creative" bookkeeping was
   used to artificially inflate the value of companies such as Enron and
   WorldCom.  Such scandals are not confined to the modern era.  In the
   1800s, for example, dodgy accounting practices lead to various stock
   price bubbles.  The formal profession of accounting emerged in the
   United Kingdom in response to increased criticism of scandalous
   accounting practices.  Governments have also responded by tightening
   up and standardising the underlying accounting rules.  Keeping up with
   the ever-increasing complexity of business transactions still remains
   an issue for the profession and standard-setters.  It is the role of
   independent auditors to check that financial statements have been
   prepared in accordance with the standards.  But it is virtually
   impossible to verify each and every transaction for large companies,
   so typically smaller samples of transactions are actually audited.
   Despite this limitation, there is still a public misconception that
   auditors can "certify" a set of accounts.  Ultimately, auditors can
   only give an opinion as to the truth of the accounts, but the so-
   called "audit expectations gap" persists.

   Even some of the economic assumptions underlying financial transactions
   are open to debate, such as whether to include various intangibles such
   as goodwill and risk, and how to value "externalities" such as drawing
   down natural resources and pollution.  The author argues that these
   challenges need to be addressed to better face future challenges, not
   only to financial stability, but also to ecological sustainability.

Mini-Reviews of Books Read, December 2012

Reviews of books read last month: four non-fiction books and a novel.


   1. "The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can't Stand Positive Thinking"
      by Oliver Burkeman
     <http://www.amazon.com/The-Antidote/dp/0865479410>

   Despite appearances of affluence, many people in the "first" world
   don't seem to be happy enough.  There is no shortage of books and
   seminars from self-help gurus on how to get happier.  The author of
   "The Antidote" argues that the popular "cult of optimism", backed by
   egotism and materialism, don't appear to be that effective.  Burkeman
   thinks he has the answer to why a relentless focus on positive thinking
   doesn't work.  Asking an unhappy person to only think positive thoughts
   and suppress any negative thoughts is bound to fail.  "The Antidote"
   opens with a quote from Fyodor Dostoyevsky: "Try to pose for yourself
   this task: not to think of a polar bear, and you will see that the
   cursed thing will come to mind every minute".  The difficulty of
   thought suppression is backed up by research studies, for example:
     <http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/literally-psyched/2012/01/12/
        what-do-polar-bears-and-social-faux-pas-have-in-common/>

   The author proposes a counterintuitive approach to achieving happiness:
   we need to accept that failure, uncertainty and death are a normal part
   of life.  The book looks at practitioners of so-called "negative paths"
   to happiness.  Recent research seems to support aspects of age-old
   approaches such as ancient Stoicism and Buddhist teaching.  He also
   asks a philosophical question which most self-help masters prefer to
   gloss over: who exactly is the "self" in need of help or improvement?
   This is not an easy question to answer, other than perhaps we
   shouldn't take ourselves too seriously.

   The author admits there is no single answer to achieving happiness.
   Instead he describes "negative" approaches to happiness that seem to
   work.  One such negative approach is the ancient philosophy of
   Stoicism.  In particular, the concept of "negative visualisation" or
   "the premeditation of evils", suggests that when facing something
   difficult, thinking about the worst-case scenario can actually help
   us remain realistic and reduce anxiety about the future.  We should
   be open to failure or uncertainty.  Note that the modern day definition
   of a stoic, "one who is seemingly indifferent to or unaffected by joy,
   grief, pleasure, or pain" (www.thefreedictionary.com/stoic) provides an
   erroneous view of ancient Stoicism.  See the notes after the reviews
   for more about ancient Stoic philosophy.

   The book then discusses Buddhism, which teaches meditation and non-
   attachment.  Allowing negative thoughts and emotions to pass through
   our minds without judgment, we can accept what is happening and move
   on.  "All our distress arises from trying to scramble to solid ground
   that doesn't actually exist... becoming a Buddhist is about becoming
   homeless" (Pema Chödrön, American Buddhist nun).  Other religious
   thinkers echo similar ideas.  "The truth that many people never
   understand is that the more you try to avoid suffering, the more you
   suffer, because smaller and more insignificant things begin to torture
   you, in proportion to your fear of being hurt" (Thomas Merton,
   Catholic monk and writer).  Modern psychology supports the importance
   of acceptance (for example, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy).

   Another "negative" path is memento mori.  Life is impermanent, and
   thinking about death can actually spur us to focus on doing what is
   important to us.  This reminded me of a quote from Steve Jobs' 2005
   Stanford commencement speech: "Remembering that I'll be dead soon is
   the most important thing I've ever encountered to help me make the
   big choices in life, because almost everything--all external
   expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure--these
   things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is
   truly important."

   Overall, a refreshing approach to the ongoing puzzle of human happiness.
   The use of anecdotes, interviews, philosophy and current research makes
   a compelling case for rethinking our approach to happiness.

   For the time-challenged:
   * An overview article by the author:
     <http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/05/opinion/sunday/the-positive-power-
        of-negative-thinking.html?_r=0>
   * A brief intro video:
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOJL7WkaadY>
   * Burkeman's RSA talk:
     <http://www.thersa.org/events/video/vision-videos/the-antidote>


   2. "The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine" by Michael Lewis
     <http://www.amazon.com/Big-Short/dp/0393338827>

   The author was a bonds trader for a brief time in the 1980s.  His 1990
   tell-all book on the excesses and misdeeds of bonds market firms,
   "Liar's Poker" caused a storm.  Since then he's been a financial
   journalist and author of other books.  "The Big Short" is his summary
   of the recent Global Financial Crisis, and what a compelling story it
   is.  It's packed with heroes, villains, anti-heroes and not-so-innocent
   bystanders who let it all happen.

   The book reads a bit like a novel as it describes events as they
   unfolded.  The seeds were sewn during the excesses of the 1980s and
   flamed by the easy credit of the 1990s.  The post-9/11 quantitive
   easing and relaxed regulation by government agencies stoked the fires
   even further, as investment banks looked for more ways to make money
   from other people's money.  After saturating the market with mortgages
   to borrowers having good collateral, mortgage lenders dramatically
   softened lending practices, allowing so-called NINJA loans to people
   with "no income, no jobs, and no assets".  To sweeten the deal, these
   deposit-free mortgages charged very low "teaser" rates in the early
   years.  The assumption was that as long as most people kept up with the
   repayments, all would be well.  "Instead of following rule not to make
   loans to people who couldn't repay them, applied a more complicated
   one: make as many loans as you can, no matter how risky, but just keep
   them off your books" (page 23).

   Using financial alchemy, these risky loans were transformed into solid
   "AAA" securities.  The details of this process are rather complicated,
   and the author does a reasonable job of explaining the various
   instruments created: mortgages were pooled into mortgaged-backed
   securities (MBS), which were repackaged as collateralised debt
   obligations (CDO).  As a hedge or insurance for non-payment, credit
   default swaps (CDS) could be taken out on those CDOs.  Ratings agencies
   were supposed to provide reliable assessments of the riskiness of all
   these instruments, but it's clear that "AAA" ratings were handed out
   too freely.  It wasn't only rating agencies that failed to understand
   the true risk and complexity of the instruments.  Traders and
   management of the lenders, investment banks, hedge funds and insurers
   barely understood the Rube Goldberg-like contraption they were part of,
   and appeared to underestimate the potential impact if it all fell apart.
   Throw in inadequate regulation and supervision of the bond market, and
   the impossible yet inevitable happened in 2008.

   While the book is at times a bit technical, it is always entertaining.

   Related videos:
   * A short interview on the PBS News Hour:
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5WHrvUf016U>
   * A longer interview at UC Berkeley:
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=stnGC9jL8Fk>


   3. "Imagine: How Creativity Works" by Jonah Lehrer
     <http://www.amazon.com/Imagine-Creativity-Works/dp/184767786X>

   Soon after its publication, the author was found to have fabricated
   quotes, and was involved in self-plagiarism.  I still decided to read
   it, since I'm interested in the subject matter, and the core ideas
   should (hopefully) hold up.  The book uses recent findings in
   neuroscience and psychology to support anecdotes into imagination and
   the creative process.  Topics include the evolution of Bob Dylan's
   songwriting, Pixar movies, the development of Post-It Notes, Apple
   design process and William Shakespeare's playwriting.

   Several conditions are required for creativity to flourish.  Talent and
   inspiration are not enough: a fair degree of "grit" or determination is
   more important.  Playfulness and curiosity help, along with an openness
   to new things.  Creative "stealing" can spur creativity: Shakespeare
   borrowed ideas from Italian writers of his time, as well as Roman and
   Greek mythology.  Education can sometimes harm creativity, since some
   schools hamper playfulness and curiosity.

   The individual can only do so much, and working with others can take
   creativity to the next level.  Large population centres, or at least
   high concentrations of creative people in universities and companies,
   foster greater innovation.  Organisations can further encourage cross-
   pollination of ideas by promoting casual interactions.  For example,
   cafeterias and toilets can be placed in the middle of a building
   complex, where workers from different departments converge.  Clubs also
   bring together people from differing backgrounds.  But one poster child
   of collaboration, brainstorming, isn't as effective as it's hyped to
   be.  In fact, empirical research has consistently shown that it induces
   groupthink and actually suppresses potential, making each individual
   less creative.

   The author concludes by saying that as our creative problems keep
   getting more difficult, we need to create a culture that doesn't impede
   creativity.  Overall, an interesting read.  The recent controversy does
   make the reader question the content, but many of the points reinforce
   or corroborate what I've read elsewhere.

   Here's a video of the author's RSA talk for the book:
     <http://www.thersa.org/events/video/vision-videos/jonah-lehrer>


   4. "The Apple Experience: Secrets to Building Insanely Great Customer
       Loyalty" by Carmine Gallo
     <http://www.amazon.com/Apple-Experience/dp/0071793208>

   This book examines how Apple interacts with its customers, mainly
   the service provided by Apple's retail stores.  It compares and
   contrasts Apple's customer practices with those of other companies.
   Apple has deservedly earned high praise for customer service, and the
   incredible success of its Stores vindicates its approach.  Apple only
   started its stores in 2001, and it didn't take long for them to become
   the world's most profitable retail operation.

   A few things stood out while reading the book.  First, Apple Store
   employees don't work on commission.  They're expected to listen to
   needs of customer, and help them walk away happy, even if that means
   _not_ actually selling them anything, or even down-sell as in this
   example:
     <http://thoughtfuldesign.net/blog/2012/6/21/carmine-gallos-the-
        apple-experience-matches-reality.html>

   Secondly, Apple gives its staff discretion to break rules.  This goes
   beyond simply exchanging slightly out-of-warranty items.  In one
   example, a store was opened early to make a young girl's dream come
   true:
     <http://consumerist.com/2011/10/20/apple-manager-makes-exception-
        and-makes-10-year-old-girls-dreams-come-true/>

   Thirdly, the Stores reinforce the usefulness of their products by
   using iPod touches as mobile point-of-sale devices, rather than
   traditional cash registers:
     <http://appleinsider.com/articles/09/11/03/exclusive_look_at_
        apples_new_ipod_touch_based_easypay_checkout.html>

   Many of the practices seem like common sense, making you wonder why
   every retailer doesn't do the same.  Cynics will charge that this is
   a book written by an Apple fanboy, but perhaps if they read this book,
   they'll understand why Apple really does have such a positive standing.

   Here's a slideshow prepared by the author, outlining the main points
   of the book:
     <http://www.slideshare.net/cvgallo/the-apple-experience-secrets-to-
        building-insanely-great-customer-loyalty-carmine-gallo>


   5. "Up a Tree at Night in the Park with a Hedgehog" by P. Robert Smith
     <http://www.amazon.com/Up-Tree-Night-Park-Hedgehog/dp/B005UWF2LA>

   This is a short comical novel by a rookie author.  Benton (Ben) is a
   philosophy graduate, teaching English to foreign students.  He recently
   lost his fiancee to an unfortunate accident on the eve of their wedding.
   It doesn't take long to see that this 36 year old is very immature and
   has questionable morals.  He quickly finding a new girlfriend, and then
   proceeding to cheat on her with one of his young students.

   The supporting characters are sometimes amusing, but aren't fleshed-out
   enough for my liking.  The author tries (too hard?) to shock the reader,
   breaking as many taboos as possible within the first few chapters.  The
   story is told as a series of related vignettes, with quick and humorous
   segues between them, leading eventually to the scene described in the
   title.  The ending is a bit ambiguous and unsatisfying.

   I was hooked by the title, expecting a fun, quirky story.  It didn't
   quite work for me, but at least it was brief.

   ~~~~

   Some more notes about Stoicism.
   * Started by the Ancient Greeks and refined by the Romans.
   * Early Stoics taught that "destructive emotions resulted from errors
     in judgment".
   * Later Stoics, such as Seneca and Epictetus, emphasised that "virtue
     is sufficient for happiness".
   * Epictetus: "Freedom is secured not by the fulfilling of men's desires,
     but by the removal of desire".
   * Marcus Aurelius: "Get rid of the judgment, get rid of the 'I am hurt,'
     you are rid of the hurt itself".
   * Seneca: "Let Nature deal with matter, which is her own, as she
     pleases; let us be cheerful and brave in the face of everything,
     reflecting that it is nothing of our own that perishes".

   See: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stoicism>

Mini-Reviews of Books Read, November 2012

Reviews of books read last month: two novels, and two popular science
   books, and a business book about Apple.

   Sorry if the reviews are a bit long - I didn't have time to make them
   shorter.


   1. "The Age of Miracles" by Karen Thompson Walker
     <http://www.amazon.com/The-Age-Miracles/dp/0812992970>

   This novel is set in suburban California in the near future.  Julia,
   the narrator, reflects on when she was an 11 year old girl.  Without
   warning, the earth's rotation has begun slowing down, meaning the days
   are gradually getting longer.  It's not only the clocks that are getting
   out of kilter.  The earth's gravitation and magnetic fields are also
   changing, with birds having problems flying and other animals struggling.

   After the initial shock of the unexplained changes, people adopt two
   conflicting strategies to deal with "the Slowing".  "Real timers"
   decide to accept the lengthening days and nights, synchronising
   themselves to the new cycle.  But the majority follow the government's
   decision to persist with "clock time".  Businesses and schools continue
   to run on the old 24 hour clock, and people sleep whenever their clocks
   say it's "nighttime".  The minority real timers are soon regarded with
   suspicion.  Shunned by the clock timers, they voluntarily relocate to
   desert communities where they can live as they please.

   It's against this backdrop that Julia tells us her story.  She continues
   to go to school, play soccer, and take piano lessons.  Her best friend,
   Hanna, moves to Utah with her Mormon parents when news of the slowing
   breaks.  They return a few months later, but Hanna decides to hang out
   with other, cooler, kids.  Julia's mother, develops strange symptoms:
   nausea, dizziness and sometimes blackouts.  She, along with many other
   people, has developed "the syndrome".  Her father is a doctor, and has
   been having an affair with her piano teacher.  As Julia tries to cope
   with all this, her twelfth birthday comes and goes, and she develops a
   crush on a boy.

   Overall, this is an interesting and well-written story.  At the risk of
   spoiling the ending, I want to point out there is no climactic crisis
   conveniently resolved by the intervention of the main character.  This
   isn't a Hollywood-style blockbuster sci-fi epic.  On the big-picture
   level, it's speculative fiction about how society must adapt to global
   changes.  But at its heart it's a personal story, about a girl who must
   adapt to the changes that will inevitably lead her to adulthood.


   2. "Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking"
      by Susan Cain
     <http://www.amazon.com/Quiet-Power-Introverts/dp/0307352145>

   Between a third and a half of all people are generally introverts.
   The author of this book argues it's important that introverts are
   accepted for who they are, and not be expected to make themselves
   more "normal" (i.e. extroverted).  In fact, she argues that the are
   many benefits to society from having introverts.  A lot of art,
   music and other creative works are produced by introverts, along
   with many scientific and technological breakthroughs.

   The purpose of book is to redress the mainstream prejudice of focusing
   on the positive aspects of extroversion and the negative traits of
   introverts.  The author uses research into psychology, neuroscience,
   philosophy, genetics and biology to look at what makes many people
   behave in a quiet, introspective way.  There are some less than
   desirable aspect of extroverts, such as impulsiveness and big-talking.
   She critiques the emphasis on creating environments geared towards
   extroverted behaviour.  Schools, workplaces and other places have
   become tailored to meet the stimulation needs of extroverts: group
   work, open plans, constant noise and busy-ness help satisfy the
   extroverts' craving for constant stimulation, but are stifling for
   introverts.  Introverts are usually hypersensitive.  They prefer
   listening to speaking, thinking to acting, caution to knee-jerk
   reactions.  In some cases, working in groups can lead to bad outcomes,
   for example committees and groupthink.

   The author argues that it hasn't always been an extrovert-centric world.
   Before the modern era, there used to be a "culture of character".  In
   the early 20th Century, a new "culture of personality" emerged.  People
   who could sell themselves (as well as products) became the new role
   models.  This shift hasn't happened in all cultures: for example, until
   recently, children of Asian backgrounds are still lauded for having
   quiet and studious natures.

   It should be noted that nobody is purely introverted or purely
   extroverted.  Most people are actually ambiverts, exhibiting behaviour
   on a broad spectrum of introversion/extroversion.  The behaviour often
   changes depending on circumstances.  The author provides advice for
   introverts on coping in a world geared towards extroverts and
   extroversion.  She argues that we should accept that solitude is
   important, and that people deserve to receive the optimal level of
   stimulation for their personality type.

   If you're time-poor, check out these video/audio links:
   * RSA: Quiet: the power of introverts in a world that can’t stop talking
     <http://www.thersa.org/events/audio-and-past-events/2012/quiet-
        the-power-of-introverts-in-a-world-that-cant-stop-talking>
   * RSA Shorts - The Power of Quiet
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rUaj7rj6MI8>
   * Little Atoms Podcast (April 6, 2012)
     <http://www.littleatoms.com/susancain.htm>


   3. "The (Honest) Truth About Dishonesty" by Dan Ariely
     <http://www.amazon.com/Honest-Truth-About-Dishonesty/dp/0062183591>

   The author is a professor of psychology and behavioural economics.  In
   this book he explains the findings of research into dishonesty.
   Conventional economic theory, where people are expected to always act
   rationally, would suggest that we would try to maximise what we can
   get away with after weighing up the cost of getting caught.
   Fortunately, this "simple model of rational crime" does not appear
   to hold up: people don't take every available opportunity to act
   dishonestly, so another explanation for dishonest behaviour is required.

   The author argues that most of the time we want to do the right thing,
   or at least be seen to do the right thing, even if we could get away
   with it.  But the available research paints a very intriguing picture.
   It appears the dishonesty equation is rather complex.  Given the chance
   of getting away with something, scot-free, people do often act
   dishonestly.  But just a little bit.  By cheating just a bit, we can
   still regard ourselves as being nice.  This "fudge factor" is an
   example of cognitive dissonance, which allows us to rationalise away
   behaviour we know is wrong.

   These findings are based on repeated research experiments, asking
   people to solve problems for financial gain.  The researchers compare
   controls with results obtained by varying levels of self-reporting and
   opportunities to cheat.  They examined many factors which encourage or
   discourage cheating.  It turns out that moral codes, pledges of honesty,
   reasonable supervision, and minimisation of temptation can reduce the
   likelihood of cheating.  But if the environment encourages dishonesty,
   almost anyone will misbehave (for example Enron and Wall Street banks).
   There are several risk factors to watch for: conflicts of interest, the
   apparent distance between action and consequence, and depleted will-
   power.  Even knowingly wearing fake designer clothing or sunglasses can
   increase the likelihood of dishonest behaviour.  This explains the
   "slippery slope", or the "what the hell" effect.  Paradoxically, two
   things that don't appear to affect honesty are the amount of money to
   be gained and the probability of being caught.  All these factors
   affecting honesty, are neatly summarised in a diagram in the last
   chapter (page 245, figure 6 - reproduced at:
     http://www.ishn.com/articles/print/93791--what-the-hell---).

   The experiments have been conducted world-wide, with no appreciable
   evidence that people from different cultures are more dishonest.
   Environment is a bigger factor.  As mentioned before, the "distance"
   affects ability to rationalise cheating: it's harder to accept stealing
   cash, but easier to fiddle with complex securities far removed from
   investors.  There's an interesting link between creativity and
   dishonesty.  And it seems some religions practices, such as Catholic
   confession and Jewish atonement, are quite effective is reducing
   dishonesty.  This is because they allow the opportunity to ask for
   forgiveness, and permit sinners to turn over a new leaf.

   Other interesting books by the author: "Predictably Irrational" and
   "The Upside of Irrationality".

   If you don't have the time to read, check out the video and audio from
   Ariely's appearance at the RSA:
     <http://www.thersa.org/events/audio-and-past-events/2012/free-beer-
        the-truth-about-dishonesty>
     <http://danariely.com/2012/10/20/the-honest-truth-about-dishonesty-
        rsa-animate-version/>


   4. "Inside Apple: How America's Most Admired - and Secretive - Company
       Really Works" by Adam Lashinsky
     <http://www.amazon.com/Inside-Apple/dp/1455516074>

   Written by a Fortune magazine editor, this book aims to lift the lid
   on the inner workings of Apple.  It collects and expands on several
   articles written by Lashinsky for the magazine over the years.  The
   author argues that Apple ignores a lot of the conventional wisdom
   about running large corporations.  It prefers to be closed and
   secretive rather than open and transparent.  It prefers tight focus
   (being vertical) over diversification (being horizontal), and
   micromanagement over empowerment of workers. And despite its size,
   in many ways the company is still run as if it was a lean startup.

   Throughout the book, the author makes comparisons with how other tech
   companies make decisions.  For example, Google once reportedly set up
   experiments to test which 41 shades of blue should be used:
     <http://www.fastcodesign.com/1662273/google-equates-design-
        with-endless-testing-theyre-wrong>
   Apple famously frowns on such "decisions by committee".  Instead, an
   Apple employee might ask Steve (Jobs) or Jony (Ive, head of design).

   A lot of the information presented in not new, such as the obsession
   with simplicity, attention to detail, and efficient supply chain.  But
   some aspects are not as widely known.  For example, the periodic Top 100
   get-togethers, where the most important employees of the company meet
   off-site to discuss products in the pipeline.  The book also describes
   the "Apple University", which comprises courseware prepared by leading
   business educators, exclusively for internal use, with the aim of
   teaching the "Apple way" of developing and marketing technology products.
   This is one mechanism the company has developed to cope with the loss of
   key staff, including its founder and iconic CEO, Steve Jobs.

   A lot of the information in the book was gathered from interviews with
   former employees (many of them unnamed), business partners, and other
   Apple-watchers.  The lack of interviews with current Apple executives
   makes one wonder about the accuracy of some of the more speculative
   conclusions.  But, overall, an interesting look at what makes Apple
   tick, and what its future may hold without Jobs at the helm.


   5. "Generazione mille euro" ("1000 Euro Generation")
      by Antonio Incorvaia and Alessandro Rimassa
     <http://www.amazon.com/Generazione/dp/8817031631>

   This is a short novel about a group of 20-ish and 30-ish singles living
   and working in Milan.  Claudio, the main character, is an intern at a
   high-pressure, hyper-competitive marketing firm.  At the start of the
   novel, he's given the opportunity to go to Barcelona to present his
   work on an important campaign.  The presentation is well received, and
   his boss is happy, but not happy enough to give him a raise or a better
   contract.  Claudio is dissatisfied with the cold/hot/cold relationship
   with his girlfriend, Eleonora.  He shares a flat with a couple of guys
   and a girl.  Matteo lectures part-time at a university, but his real
   job seems to be working out obsessively at the gym.  He sponges off
   his wealthy parents.  Alessio has a steady job at the post office, but
   yearns to be a journalist.  Rossella is a part-time promotional model
   who babysits to make ends meet.

   The 1000 euro of the title refers to the average net monthly salary
   that many young Italians have to live on.  It's barely enough top cover
   rent and other basics - no wonder many of their peers prefer living at
   home and commute long distances to work.  But it's not just the meagre
   pay that causes financial insecurity: these "co.co.pros" are hired
   under recently-introduced labour laws which permit employers to hire
   workers for long probation periods with little or no pay, and relaxed
   termination clauses.

   Late in the novel Claudio has an interesting encounter with a homeless
   woman, Anna.  She went to live the streets after her husband died and
   she could no longer afford the mortgage.  Claudio feels compassionate
   and offers her money, but she tells him to keep it, because he needs
   it more than she does. This episode makes Claudio see his situation in
   a new light.

   I found the novel frustratingly short.  More fleshing out of characters
   and situations could have made more impact.  My hopes rose when Claudio
   briefly talked about the writing of George Orwell and Ray Bradbury in
   the context of censorship.  I also had hopes that the meeting between
   Claudio met Anna would develop into something more.  The increasing
   influence of the English language in everyday Italian life was
   interesting, as was the emerging politicisation of the plight of the
   "stagisti".  But, ultimately, this novel doesn't quite match Douglas
   Coupland in defining a statement for a generation (for example, in
   Generation X).

   The novel was recently made into a film, but from the description, it
   appears some of characters have been combined and the plot has been
   changed considerably.

Mini-Reviews of Books Read, October 2012

   Reviews of books read last month.  Two satirical novels, and two popular
   science books: one on neurology, and the other on psychology.


   1. "Cold Comfort Farm" by Stella Gibbons
     <http://www.amazon.com/Cold-Comfort-Farm/dp/B002RI9S06>

   This story is mostly set in rural England during the 1930s. Flora Poste,
   a twenty year-old young lady from London, has just lost her parents.
   Rather than try making do with her annual allowance of £100, she decides
   to go live with her country relatives, the Starkadders, on their "Cold
   Comfort" farm in Sussex.  She considers her aunt and cousins as backward
   and in need of "tidying up".  She begins imposing herself on the lives
   of her relatives, loosening Aunt Ada Doom's grip on the family.  Among
   other things, she aims to find a suitable husband for her cousin, and
   encourage another cousin to take his religious fervour on a cross-
   country preaching trip.  This latter project is more a case of getting
   him out of the way so that her match-making can succeed.

   Apparently this book parodies popular fiction of the era, with some
   winks to great Victorian novels.  Having only a basic familiarity with
   those novels, a lot of the parody aspects are a bit lost on me.
   Nevertheless, it was still a reasonably enjoyable novel.  Flora is
   clearly a busybody, who means well most of the time.  The other
   characters are depicted as rather grotesque stereotypes, but that's
   in keeping with the satirical nature of the story.


   2. "Gulliver's Travels" by Jonathan Swift
     <http://www.amazon.com/Gullivers-Travels/dp/009951205X>

   This classic satire was written in the 1720s, and is a collection of
   tales of the narrator's journeys to strange lands.  Perpetually
   shipwrecked or otherwise abandoned, the hapless protagonist recounts
   his adventures, starting with Lilliput where he is a giant among its
   tiny inhabitants.  On his next voyage, the tables are turned, and he
   is dwarfed by the big people of Brobdingnag.  Wherever he goes, he
   engages the locals in philosophical discussions.  These are really
   opportunities for the author to savagely critique and satirise the
   people and social institutions of his own time and place.  For example,
   in Brobdingnag, the king is convinced by the narrator's argument
   regarding legislators: "[L]aws are best explained, interpreted, and
   applied by those whose interest and abilities lie in perverting,
   confounding, and eluding them" (p139).

   Ideas from this relatively brief novel have been influential ever since
   its publication, and not just in literary and political circles.  The
   words big-endian and little-endian have been co-opted by computer
   architecture to describe ways of encoding information.  To the
   Lilliputians, they refer to the two sides in the strident and seemingly
   petty disagreement about which end of a boiled egg should be cracked.
   In the final adventure, we meet the Yahoos, who are coarse and
   uncultured beings, lacking the refinement of the horse-like Houyhnhnms.
   The Yahoos really represent everyday humans.

   Arguably, this could be considered a piece of proto-Science Fiction.
   While describing travels to far-off and imaginary places, the tales are
   actually a reflection on the author's (and our) own society.  I enjoyed
   reading this novel, which, despite some archaic spelling and wording,
   wasn't hard to read at all.


   3. "The Mind's Eye" by Oliver Sacks
     <http://www.amazon.com/Minds-Eye/dp/0307473023>

   This book, by renowned English-born neurologist Oliver Sacks, examines
   various vision-related disorders.  Sacks moved to the US in the 1960s,
   and has spent much of his early career working as resident neurologist
   in an aged and chronic care facility in New York.  Conditions covered
   include prosopagnosia (face blindness), alexia (word blindness),
   aphasia and stereo-blindness.  The connection between all these is not
   just the mechanics of our eyes, but also how much our brains actually
   construct what we see.  Hence the title, the "mind's eye".

   Perhaps the most poignant section of the book is the second-last (and
   longest) chapter, "Persistence of Vision". It's basically a journal of
   the author's own experiences with distorted vision and hallucinations.
   In late 2005, Sacks was diagnosed with an ocular melanoma in his right
   eye.  While undergoing treatment and surgery, he kept notes describing
   how his sight changed.  To help overcome his fear, he also conducted
   little experiments on himself to better understand what was happening
   with his vision.

   While this book discusses the cases of several patients, it is Sacks's
   most personal to date.  In addition to the hallucinations and loss of
   stereoscopic vision caused by the melanoma, the author has also long
   suffered from face blindness.  This is a brave and inspiring work, in
   addition to being informative and entertaining.

   Sacks has appeared several times on the Radiolab podcast. For example,
   he discusses face blindness in "Strangers in the Mirror":
     <http://www.radiolab.org/blogs/radiolab-blog/2010/jun/15/strangers-in-the-mirror/>
   Also, two of the patients discussed in "The Mind's Eye" were featured
   in "Seeing in the Dark":
     <http://www.radiolab.org/blogs/radiolab-blog/2012/oct/22/seeing-dark/>


   4. "The Happiness Trap: Stop Struggling and Start Living" by Russ Harris
     <http://www.amazon.com/Happiness-Trap/dp/1590305841>

   Everyone wants to be happy, but is happiness overrated?  The author, an
   Australian medico argues that many people are trying so hard to be happy
   that they're actually making themselves feel anxious or depressed.  He's
   had to overcome his own bouts of depression and self-doubt, and suggests
   it's ok to be sad sometimes.  Life wasn't meant to be a bed of roses.
   Instead of pursuing absolute happiness (for ourselves and loved ones),
   we should be working towards meaningfulness.

   The book is a practical guide to acceptance and commitment therapy, ACT,
   pioneered by Steven Hayes.  The same acronym can sum up three steps to
   dealing with setbacks: Accept your thoughts and feelings, and be
   present; Choose a valued direction; Take action.  Of course, the book
   goes into more detail than just list cute acronyms.  Pain and negative
   thoughts are unavoidable, but these are only thoughts and they cannot
   hurt us.  We can defuse them and get beyond them.  We can allow them to
   come and go without judgement or struggle.  We should focus on the here
   and now, and let negative thoughts and feelings pass.  Goals, especially
   if they are other people's, can be sources of pain and suffering.  We
   should instead work out what our core values are, and do whatever helps
   us live those values.  This is how to achieve meaningful lives,
   without getting hung up on fleeting happiness.

   I read this book as part of my ongoing process of coping with tinnitus.
   ACT is a useful and natural progression from my studies of cognitive
   behaviour therapy (CBT).  Something that I found particularly
   interesting is the subtle distinction between "accepting" and
   "acceptance".  The former suggests that it's a process.  We don't have
   to like what happens to us.  Also, we shouldn't feel pressure to just
   "accept it".  Acceptance takes time, but it helps if we stop struggling
   with our problems.  Letting go is also important: we need to accept that
   some things are beyond our control, and dwelling on them doesn't help.
   While ACT shares things in common with spirituality and religion (for
   example, meditation and mindfulness), it does not mandate a religious
   conversion.  It turns out that these concepts are consistent with
   scientific research, and they can help us deal with everyday problems.

Mini-Reviews of Books Read, September 2012

   Reviews of three books read last month: two novels, and a political
   essay.


   1. "Railsea" by China Miéville
     <http://www.amazon.com/Railsea/dp/0230765122>

   This is a "weird" fiction novel set in a future where railway tracks
   cover the known world.  The world of Railsea comprises two layers of
   sky and four terrestrial layers.  Most of the action takes place on
   the rail tracks and the inhabited islands.  This sprawling network of
   rail tracks is a legacy of an earlier civilisation.  An undisclosed
   catastrophe brought an end to that civilisation, and the survivors
   are forced to live a more primitive existence, making do with what
   they have.  They have managed to salvage remnants of earlier
   technology, and rebuilt cities on "islands" of suitable land amongst
   the sea of railway tracks.

   Adventurers and scavengers board trains, searching for new land or
   valuable pieces of material that can be salvaged.  But venturing into
   the Railsea is risky business.  Pirates roam the tracks to plunder
   any "treasure" salvaged by others.  Corrupt navies try to impose the
   appearance of order, often demanding protection money.  Most ominously
   of all, there are giant "moles" that live underground.  When trains
   approach, these subterranean monsters can break through the surface
   and attack.  Molers are engaged to track down and capture these moles.
   There is no explanation of the origins of these beasts: are they
   genetic mutations?  Maybe it's not even the planet Earth?

   At the start of the novel we are introduced to Sham (don't call him
   Ishmael).  He's about to join the crew of the moler train "Medes",
   captained by Abacat Naphi (an anagram of "Captain Ahab").  She, like
   Ahab, is obsessed by a nemesis, in this case a mole called Mocker-Jack.
   Obviously, this novel is paying homage to "Moby-Dick".  After these
   initial similarities, the plot of "Railsea" takes a very different
   turn when the crew of the Medes stumble upon an abandoned adventurers'
   train.  Inside, they find photos (actually "flatographs") and various
   instruments.  The story quickly becomes a race to find the "Promised
   Land" pictured in those flatographs.

   Apparently, this book is classified as "Young Adult", but it should
   appeal to the wider reading audience.  I've read and enjoyed two of
   the author's earlier books ("The City & the City" and "Embassytown").
   Knowing that "Railsea" was inspired by "Moby-Dick", I finally caved
   and decided to read that classic.  As it happens, you only need to
   have a general idea of "Moby-Dick" to fully appreciate "Railsea".
   Overall, I must admit I enjoyed this novel more than "Moby-Dick".
   It was much easier to read, and I found the world of Railsea more
   intriguing than the history of whaling in the 19th Century.
   Stylistically, the only jarring thing was the heavy use of the
   ampersand, "&", in place of the word "and".  An enjoyable adventure
   story.


   2. "The Woman Who Died a Lot" by Jasper Fforde
     <http://www.amazon.com/The-Woman-Who-Died-Lot/dp/0340963115>

   This is the seventh instalment in the Thursday Next, literary detective,
   series.  With such long-running series, there is always the possibility
   that the main characters and the underlying concepts may begin to lose
   their appeal.  But, fortunately, the author still manages to keep things
   fresh.  The previous book was a more radical departure, with the action
   taking place mostly in a BookWorld that was literally "rebooted".  This
   time, the focus is back on the real Thursday Next, and is set
   exclusively in the "physical" world.

   Thursday is semi-retired after getting injured in the line of duty, and
   SpecOps has been disbanded for twelve years.  She's still happily
   married to her husband, Landen.  Their genius teenage daughter,
   Tuesday, is working on an anti-smiting defence shield to protect
   Swindon from the Global Standard Deity.  And their son, Friday, is
   wrestling with his drastically revised future: he was destined to be
   a brilliant leader of ChronoGuard, the time travel policing agency,
   but somehow the future was rewritten and time travel would not be
   discovered after all.

   The Goliath Corporation is back to its old tricks.  It has developed
   doppelgangers ("day players"), which can temporarily be inhabited by
   the consciousnesses of Goliath agents, while their actual (albeit
   incapacitated) bodies are elsewhere with convenient alibis.  Perfect
   for carrying out assassinations and other misdeeds.  Two of Thursday's
   long-standing nemeses return to also make things difficult for
   Thursday.  Jack Schitt is back, and when not trying to kill Thursday,
   he's working on Goliath's latest plan to exploit BookWorld.
   Apparently, palimpsests (old manuscripts erased and written over)
   hold the key to the mystery of "Dark Reading Matter".  Meanwhile,
   Aornis Hades continues to torment Thursday and her family.
   Previously, Aornis had implanted a Mindworm in Thursday's head -
   i.e. that idea that she had another, non-existent, daughter.  Aornis
   raises the stakes, and takes turn implanting the Mindworm in the other
   members of Thursday's family.

   Any reservations about the series becoming stale quickly evaporated,
   and I'm looking forward to the next novel in the Thursday Next series.


   3. "Doctrines and Visions" by Noam Chomsky
     <http://www.amazon.com/Doctrines-Visions/dp/0141023058>

   This book in the Penguin 70s series comprises two essays by MIT
   linguistics professor, Noam Chomsky.  But what Chomksy is more
   widely known for is his poilitcal activism, in particular,
   critiquing bad behaviour by the world's governments.  The two
   chapters are companions to his full-length book, "Hegemony or
   Survival: America's Quest for Global Dominance".

   Chomsky applies a blowtorch to the foreign policy objectives of
   various United States administrations and those of their allies.
   In particular, the essays in this book he focus on the buildup and
   early execution of the Iraq War.  The US and allies fabricated
   evidence, overstated the threat and manipulated public opinion to
   prosecute the war.  Chomsky argues that modern Western democracy
   has evolved to be largely about giving its citizens the illusion
   of having a voice, while actually using fear and the threat of
   terrorism to distract and manipulate public opinion.

   The book's cover has Orwellian overtones: the top photo shows former
   US Defense Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, shaking hands with former BFF
   Saddam Hussein.  The bottom photo shows a soldier and an American
   flag covering the face of a statue of the newly-deposed Iraq leader.

   What you get out of this book depends on where your political
   viewpoint.  It would be easy to characterise Chomsky as a radical,
   anti-US propagandist.  But, in the aftermath of the "weapons of mass
   destruction" deception perpetrated by the then, neo-conservative led,
   US government, Chomsky has something valuable to contribute.

Recent Feeds + Reads (a new blog)

   Despite appearances, the B-List used to be more than just a place to
   post my book reviews. Originally, it was a medium for sending links
   to interesting things that I found on the web. For the nostalgic,
   the B-List blog (from 2003 to the present) is at:
     <http://b-list.blogspot.com.au/>

   Even earlier posts can be found in the B-List Archive (from 2000 to
   2005):
     <http://users.on.net/~brunoa/B-List/index.html>

   Lately, I've been thinking about reviving the old-style B-List. Over
   the past few months, I've sort of been riffing on the original B-List
   concept, posting a lot to a tumblr blog, called "Recent Feeds + Reads":
     <http://rfar.tumblr.com>

   On rfar I usually highlight (and sometimes comment on) articles that
   have caught my eye. These days, there is a distinct bias towards
   several topics, including: psychology, neuroscience, music, books
   (what a surprise!), economics, philosophy, creativity, coffee, gaming
   and programming.

   I've decided not to repost those items to the B-List, since I often
   post several items per day and I wouldn't want to spam you. If you're
   interested in the type of stuff I post there, I suggest you visit
   rfar.tumblr.com whenever you need a fix. Alternatively, you can
   subscribe to the rss feed:
     <http://rfar.tumblr.com/rss>

   As for the B-List, I still plan to post book reviews here. I also
   have a (long) backlog of musical rough guides I hope to get to one
   day.

   Thanks for reading, and I always appreciate feedback.
   B!?

Mini-Reviews of Books Read, August 2012

   Reviews of books I read last month: all five books were non-fiction.
   This wasn't intentional - I do have a few novels queued up and reserved,
   but none were available in time.

   Topics covered include the global financial crisis, human behaviour,
   soccer (the real football), decision-making and how to lead a fulfilling
   life. I guess a common theme is that each tackles their subject in a
   rather unconventional way. All were pretty good, but my two picks would
   be "Subliminal" and "How Will You Measure Your Life?"


   1. "Boomerang: Travels in the New Third World" by Michael Lewis
     <http://www.amazon.com/Boomerang/dp/0393343448>

   The author is an American financial journalist and former bonds trader.
   Shortly after leaving Salomon Brothers he wrote his first book, "Liar's
   Poker", which is an unflattering portrayal of Wall Street traders, and
   their ethics, beliefs and work practices. That was an enjoyable and
   well- written book, so I looked forward to reading the author's latest.

   "Boomerang" collects a series of magazine articles which focus on the
   ongoing financial crisis facing various European countries. A chapter
   is devoted to each of four countries he visited between 2009 and 2011:
   Iceland, Greece, Ireland and Germany. The final chapter brings the
   global crisis back to where it began, the United States. Each country's
   story is different, with the various national psyches contributing to
   their individual predicaments. In doing so, the author is arguably
   promoting national stereotypes, which I did find a bit off-putting.
   It's too easy to generalise: the Greeks wanted easy credit to live the
   good life; the Icelanders wanted to rocket themselves into the fast lane
   by becoming big shots in the global hedge fund game; the Irish wanted to
   overcome their reputation as being the poor men and women of Europe; and
   the Germans wanted to believe in a united Europe. For me, the real story
   though was how easy it was for anyone, regardless of nationality, to be
   seduced by greed. Therefore I was willing to forgive any gross
   stereotyping. Unbridled greed has a different way of manifesting itself,
   but it brings out the worst in everyone.

   Regarding Greece, while its government did cook the books to ensure
   entry into the Eurozone, this could only have been done with the active
   assistance of Wall Street investment bankers. Here's a quote from page
   62 of the book: "Goldman Sachs ... engaged in a series of apparently
   legal but nonetheless repellent deals designed to hide the Greek
   government’s true level of indebtedness. For these trades Goldman Sachs
   — which, in effect, handed Greece a $1 billion loan — carved out a
   reported $300 million in fees." It gets worse: "The investment bankers
   also taught the Greek-government officials how to securitize future
   receipts from the national lottery, highway tolls, airport landing fees,
   and even funds granted to the country by the European Union. Any future
   stream of income that could be identified was sold for cash up front,
   and spent."

   The original Vanity Fair article is online:
     <http://www.vanityfair.com/business/features/2010/10/
        greeks-bearing-bonds-201010>
   Page 4 has the above quotes.

   Overall, the book is well written, not overly technical, and often reads
   like a good novel as new revelations unfold. I hope to read the highly
   praised "The Big Short" by the same author, which looks in depth at Wall
   Street's role in causing the global financial crisis.

    Here are a couple of interviews with the author discussing "Boomerang":
   * PBS Newshour interview (~ 9 mins)
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjDEjCvaac8>
   * ABC 7:30 Report interview (~ 8 mins)
     <http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2011/s3373569.htm>


   2. "Subliminal: How Your Unconscious Mind Rules Your Behavior"
      by Leonard Mlodinow
     <http://www.amazon.com/Subliminal-Your-Unconscious-Rules-Behavior/dp/0307378217>

   This book is another one in my ongoing quest to try to understand the
   curious workings of the human mind. The book's premise is that much of
   our perception, memory, social judgment and behaviour are largely driven
   by our unconscious (the mind's subliminal processes), and not by the
   conscious processes as we like to believe. It shatters many common
   misconceptions regarding the way our minds work. For example:
   * Our vision does not function like a video camera - we have blind
     spots, we see only parts of a scene and our minds fill in the blanks.
   * Human memory is not like a a set of files on a hard drive - memory is
     incomplete, influenced by many unconscious factors such as our senses,
     emotions and desires.
   * Eyewitness accounts are not always reliable as evidence - this flows
     from the previous finding.
   * We are not the best judges of our ability - in survey after survey,
     regardless of the task, almost everyone rates themselves above average
     or better. They can't all be right, and is called the "above average"
     affect".
   * Similarly, we aren't always good judges of other people.

   Neuroscience is providing new ways of examining how our brains and senses
   function, and what governs our behaviour. The latest research throws new
   light on earlier findings from various scientific fields. Required
   reading for anyone interested in how our "wetware" works.

   The author gave an entertaining "At Google" talk earlier year. It
   provides good coverage of topics in the book (~ 50 mins):
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJ-IfVHJH58>


   3. "Soccernomics" by Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski
     <http://www.amazon.com/Soccernomics/dp/1568587015>

   As the title suggest, the authors apply concepts from economics to
   explain the performance of soccer teams. In reality, it's more like
   applied statistics than economics. The book's lengthy and descriptive
   subtitle is: "Why England Loses, Why Germany and Brazil Win, and Why
   the US, Japan, Australia, Turkey – and Even Iraq – Are Destined to
   Become the Kings of the World's Most Popular Sport".

   Early on the authors describe the current state of the art in soccer
   as follow: "The best soccer is [European] Champions League soccer,
   Western European soccer. It's a rapid passing game played by athletes.
   Rarely does anyone dribble, or keep the ball for a second. You pass
   instantly. It's not the beautiful game -- dribbles are prettier -- but
   it works best. All good teams everywhere in the world play this way.
   Even the Brazilians adopted the Champions League style in the 1990s.
   They still have more skill than the Europeans, but they now try to
   play the European pace" (page 27). The key reason this type of soccer
   has come to dominate is due to the close network of quality clubs,
   players and coaches based in western Europe, which lead to the cross-
   pollination of ideas. The English national team is not part of the
   world elite, largely because of its relative isolation and resistance
   to foreign influence.

   The rest of part one looks at the club-level aspects of soccer:
   discrimination, the player transfer market, remuneration (it turns out
   there's a better correlation between performance and salary than
   performance and transfer price). The chapter on penalty kicks was a
   highlight for me, discussing information systems, game theory and
   psychology. As you might guess, the best penalty takers are those that
   get lots of practice and always mix things up, often changing their
   minds mid run-up.

   Part two looks at the fans, and is mostly Anglo-centric. It turns out
   fans are not as loyal as they make themselves out to be: the legend of
   the Fan is a British national fantasy. Hosting the World Cup finals is
   not very profitable, but it does make the host citizens happy. National
   unity brings people together, thereby reducing isolation, loneliness and
   suicide.

   Part three looks at countries. Unsurprisingly, most successful teams at
   the World Cup finals have large populations and are generally wealthy.
   The idea that poverty helps inspire good players is the exception rather
   than the rule. Diet, training, quality coaching and support mechanisms
   are better predictors. Home teams do have a slight advantage. The
   authors try to assess which countries over- or underachieve relative to
   their wealth and population. Interestingly, by their metrics, Italy
   (winner of four World Cups) underachieves relative to the comparably
   wealthy and populous England and France (each having won only one title
   - both on home soil incidentally). The authors seem to suggest this
   discrepancy is due to luck, but I think their reliance on statistics is
   leading them astray. Perhaps there are some intangible or unmeasurable
   qualities at play, such as organisational ability, mental toughness,
   commitment and passion.

   The final chapter makes some predictions on which countries will be
   future world powers. The diaspora of quality coaches from Western
   Europe could lead to countries on the periphery, such as Turkey,
   Russia and yes, even Australia, may become world powers. Regarding
   Australia, the authors predict that early next century: "Aussie Rules
   might only exist at subsidized folklore festivals". They might be onto
   something.

   Overall, an interesting book. A bit too UK- and US-centric for my taste.
   For example, there's lot of comparisons with baseball and other American
   sports. Also, there weren't enough metrics on actual gameplay to back up
   some of their assertions. The only in-game stats discussed were penalty
   kicks.

   Here's an interview featuring one of authors, during the 2010 World Cup
   in South Africa (~ 22 mins):
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_ZBUlVhSRI>


   4. "Tempo" by Venkatesh Rao
     <http://www.amazon.com/Tempo/dp/0982703007>

   This brief book by a popular blogger, Venkatesh Rao, an independent
   researcher and consultant. He's worked for various organisations, such
   as defence companies and startups. The book is about decision-making,
   examining principles from information systems, military theory,
   cognitive psychology, philosophy and narrative theories. Timing is a
   big theme, as you'd expect from the title.

   The author's approach is a bit unconventional, and perhaps outside the
   interests of the average reader. But if you're work requires a lot of
   decision-making, it's a quick and interesting read that might provide
   new insights.

   The book's website:
     <http://www.tempobook.com/>

   The author's main blog:
     <http://www.ribbonfarm.com/>

   Perhaps his most famous series of blog posts take a deep look at the
   TV series "The Office", in which he develops a new theory of the
   organisation to rival established management theories.


   5. "How Will You Measure Your Life?"
      by Clayton M. Christensen, James Allworth and Karen Dillon
     <http://www.amazon.com/How-Will-Measure-Your-Life/dp/0062102419>

   Clayton Christensen is a Harvard Business School professor. He's
   renowned for his theories about innovation and disruption in business.
   In his latest book, he and the other authors apply techniques and
   lessons learned in analysing companies and industries to the field of
   individual human happiness. At first blush this may seem a stretch,
   but it turns out being a useful approach.

   From the book's inner jacket: "Christensen puts forth a series of
   questions: How can I be sure that I'll find satisfaction in my career?
   How can I be sure that my personal relationships become enduring
   sources of happiness? How can I avoid compromising my integrity — and
   stay out of jail? Using lessons from some of the world's greatest
   businesses, he provides incredible insights into these challenging
   questions."

   The book was in part motivated by Christensen's recent illness, but as
   he explains, he's always concluded his courses with an open discussion
   where the techniques taught during the course are applied to individuals
   rather than companies. Each chapter looks at a particular technique or
   concept. There's a brief explanation of the concept as it usually
   applies to business, then the rest of the chapter shows how it can be
   applied to our own lives. For example, the dangers of outsourcing by
   business can provide useful lessons for parents. The "job to be done"
   approach to customer satisfaction shoes us how to be good spouses/
   parents/friends. The "marginal cost" theory can be applied to our lives
   to keep us out of trouble.

   Overall, I found the book's novel approach to measuring satisfaction
   very convincing. But, even if you're not swayed by the application of
   these ideas to individuals, you will at least learn some things about
   companies and industries.

   Here's a TEDx talk given by Christensen. It's a brief, "big picture"
   view of the book with a few examples (~ 20 mins):
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvos4nORf_Y>

   Here's a longer, slightly more technical presentation for LinkedIn's
   inDay (~ 73 mins):
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DwYcNr0Nuw>

Mini-Reviews of Books Read, July 2012

   Mini-reviews of books I read last month: one Pulitzer Prize-winning
   novel, and three books on quantum electrodynamics.  Just kidding, the
   other books were non-fiction.


   1. "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole
     <http://www.amazon.com/Confederacy-Dunces/dp/0802130208>

   This is the first and only novel written by John Kennedy Toole, who
   sadly died before it was published.  Eleven years after his death, his
   mother managed to find a publisher.  Toole was posthumously awarded the
   Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1981.  Here's the description on Amazon:
   "A Confederacy of Dunces is an American comic masterpiece. John Kennedy
   Toole's hero is one Ignatius J. Reilly, 'huge, obese, fractious,
   fastidious, and a latter-day Gargantua, a Don Quixote of the French
   Quarter. His story bursts with wholly original character, denizens of
   New Orleans' lower depths, incredibly true-to-life dialogue, and the
   zaniest series of high and low comic adventures' (Henry Kisor, Chicago
   Sun Times)".

   Set mostly in the French Quarter of New Orleans during the late 1960s,
   it follows the (mis-)adventures of Ignatius J. Reilly and those
   (unfortunates) within his orbit.  The out-of-work Ignatius lives with
   his widowed mother.  When she causes a car accident, she demands that
   Ignatius get a job to help pay the compensation.  Despite having
   graduated from college, Ignatius is virtually unemployable.  It doesn't
   help that he spends his days eating, sleeping and writing the rather
   ironically-titled "Journal of the Working Boy".  His forays into paid
   employment provide much amusement throughout the novel, especially when
   he tries to "improve" the enterprises he works for.  He also has
   ambitions of reforming the entire American political landscape.  This
   is his unflattering assessment of New Orleans: "This city is famous for
   its gamblers, prostitutes, exhibitionists, anti-Christs, alcoholics,
   sodomites, drug addicts, fetishists, onanists, pornographers, frauds,
   jades, litterbugs, and lesbians, all of whom are only too well protected
   by graft".  Many of the rather dysfunctional, self-absorbed characters 
   in the novel seem to back him up, at least in his eyes.

   While this is not strictly an autobiography, there are several parallels
   with the author's real life experiences.  The novel's structure is based
   on that of Ignatius's favourite book, Anicius Manlius Severinus
   Boethius' "Consolation of Philosophy".  A copy of the book even features
   in the plot.  Ignatius is convinced he does not belong in this world,
   and all striving is meaningless.  He blames his circumstances on the
   fickle goddess Fortuna and her wheel of fortune.

   Overall, I enjoyed this off-beat and quite farcical story.  But I
   appreciate that it won't appeal to everyone.  The author's Southern
   (USA) sensibility influences the portrayal of women and minorities, for
   example.  While most readers seem to enjoy the novel, some do seem to
   loathe it.  The characters speak in the various local patois.  Ignatius
   himself tends to be verbose.  Initially, the dialogue can be hard to
   follow, but eventually I got to appreciate each character's unique
   "voice".  Recommended for anyone with a sense of humour.


   2. "Being Wrong: Adventures in the Margin of Error" by Kathryn Schulz
     <http://www.amazon.com/Being-Wrong/dp/0061176052>

   It's often said that the only way we truly learn is by making mistakes.
   Unfortunately, in our ever more competitive times, admitting failure or
   being wrong is taken as a sign of weakness.  This book attempts to
   remind us that it's ok to be wrong sometimes.

   The book looks at human error according to various disciplines,
   including philosophy, psychology, neuroscience, politics, art, logic
   and evolution.  There are many reasons we make mistakes: biases develop
   without us knowing, senses deceive us, reason is often preempted by
   emotions, and we allow ourselves to be swayed by others.  The book
   describes our aversion to mistakes is driven by feelings of
   embarrassment, anger, heartbreak, betrayal, disgrace and foolishness.
   So we become defensive and unwilling to admit even the slightest
   mistake.  But the author explains why error should be seen not as
   something to be avoided, but rather as something that should be
   accepted as a healthy and necessary part of the human condition.  Far
   from just a bad thing, making mistakes is part of the learning process.
   In fact, many scientific advances are the direct result of accidents or
   mistakes.

   I recommend this book to anyone, especially those are obsessed with
   perfection, or those who think they're infallible.


   3. "Meatball Sundae" by Seth Godin
     <http://www.amazon.com/Meatball-Sundae/dp/1591841747>

   This light, breezy book looks at marketing in the "Web 2.0" age.  Godin
   is a veteran of internet-era startups, and he was a former VP of Direct
   Marketing at Yahoo!  These days he 's regarded as a guru for "new"
   marketers.  Being a self-employed consulting developer, this book might
   give me some useful marketing advice.

   According to Godin, many established businesses market themselves as if
   they're still in the 1960s.  The "Mad Men" era kicked off the broadcast
   advertising model on our TV screens.  This is a "meatball" approach,
   the author argues, and it no longer works effectively.  Nowadays,
   businesses are coming to terms with information-hungry and always-
   connected customers.  The pervasiveness of social networks requires a
   new approach of marketing.  Some firms have tried to incorporate new
   techniques, but their efforts come across much like putting whipped
   cream and a cherry on top of the same old meatballs (or lipstick on a
   pig).  To avoid this "Meatball Sundae", the author suggests firms need
   to acknowledge fourteen trends that are remaking the way business is
   done.  To thrive in the 21st Century, many firms will need to revamp
   their marketing approach from the ground up.

   The book starts off by giving a brief history of marketing: pre-mass
   advertising was extremely local, relying on reputation and word of
   mouth.  Mass-media allowed centralisation and a more global focus:
   firms could get away with one thing for all people.  The internet age
   allows a more personalised approach, sort of "globally local" strategy:
   firms often need to cater for each individual's tastes.  The core of
   the book describes the fourteen trends that are disrupting the way
   business is done.  For example: direct communication, short attention
   spans, outsourcing and explosion of choice.  The book concludes with
   some case studies to back up the arguments made.  Conveniently, the
   book has a four page executive summary of the book's main argument.

   There are many interesting observations and ideas here, in particular
   the shift in the balance of power from producers to consumers.  While
   I don't fully accept all the arguments, they're presented in an
   entertaining and easily digestible way.  This book is probably useful
   for anyone thinking of running their own business.  It is possible to
   compete with the big guys, if you know how to attract and keep
   customers.  Also, more broadly, this book provides insights into how
   companies will be trying to reach you, their customers.

   Seth Godin is a regular TED presenter.  Check out some of his talks at:
     http://www.ted.com/speakers/seth_godin.html


   4. "A Life of Being, Having, and Doing Enough" by Wayne Muller
     <http://www.amazon.com/Life-Being-Having-Doing-Enough/dp/0307591395>

   This book aims to address a modern malady.  Many people feel they're
   on an endless treadmill.  To keep up with the Joneses, they have become
   obsessed with the pursuit of money, success and self-improvement,
   without making much progress in the things that really matter to them.

   As per the title, Muller argues that we should recognise that we already
   are, have, and do enough just as we are.  We just have to know what
   'enough' looks and feels like.  He summarises the basic research into
   happiness, for example:
   * "What makes us happy? For several decades, researchers have probed
     this question, and their findings are intriguing. First, once people
     (whether individuals, communities, or nations) have attained a certain
     level of security and comfort -- enough food, clothing, shelter,
     education, community -- any increase, however large. in wealth or
     possessions, appears to have no significant impact whatsoever on
     people's happiness."  [Deaton and Kahneman]
     ~ see <http://www.kiplinger.com/columns/yourmindyourmoney/archives/can-money-make-you-happy.html>
   * "Studies that compare changes in the happiness of recent lottery
     winners with recent amputees find that, after a short time of
     adjustment, lottery winners soon return to whatever state of
     happiness they felt before winning their millions. And amputees,
     their bodies and hearts tender and grieving, find that their
     spirits rise and return to nearly the same level of happiness they
     felt before their amputation."  [Dan Gilbert]
     ~ see <http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/22/science/22conv.html?pagewanted=all>

   The last chapter, "Happiness from the inside out" starts with this quote
   from Abraham Lincoln: "Most folks are about as happy as they make their
   minds up to be."  The chapter neatly summarises the basic premise of the
   book: "Happiness is an inside job. Sufficiency, contentment, are grown
   in the soil of moments, choice points, and listening at each juncture
   for the simplest, most deeply true, next right thing."

   The author often takes a spiritual approach - he is a pastor after all
   - but don't let that put you off.  It's not a sermon, rather an easy-to-
   read collection of personal anecdotes and research findings, to help
   find a balance between competing demands on our time.  When everyone
   seems to be so "busy" doing "stuff", sometimes it's reassuring to know
   that it's ok to feel that we have "enough" (money, possessions, status).
   Once we accept this, we can concentrate on the things that actually
   makes us feel happy and fulfilled.

   ~~~~

   PS: Cheap parting shot. The cover of the current edition of "A
   Confederacy of Dunces" makes me think of a typical Crows football fan:
     <http://www.penguin.com.au/products/9780241951590/confederacy-dunces>

Mini-Reviews of Books Read, June 2012

Mini-reviews of books I read last month: two classic novels, plus a
   pioneering book on positive psychology.

   I'd put off reading "Moby-Dick" for a while, but finally decided to give
   it a go when I found out that the similarly-surnamed China Miéville has
   just published a novel, "Railsea", that "reimagines" Herman Melville's
   classic.

   "Learned Optimism" reinforces some things I've been learning about
   cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT), which has been proven to be helpful
   in dealing with my tinnitus.


   1. "Moby-Dick; or, The Whale" by Herman Melville
     <http://www.amazon.com/Moby-Dick/dp/0099511185>

   Set in the early 19th century, the adventure-seeking Ishmael tells the
   tragic story of his maiden whaling expedition.  The Pequod is captained
   by the mysterious Ahab, who is obsessed with tracking down one whale in
   particular, Moby-Dick.  Ahab harpooned this enormous white sperm whale
   in an earlier expedition, but the whale got away.  In the process, Ahab
   lost a leg.

   Starbuck, the cautious first mate, acts as a foil to the captain's
   single-mindedness, often leading to clashes between the two during the
   fateful voyage.  Starbuck reminds Ahab that they have work to do, and
   the safety of the boat and her crew shouldn't be put at risk for the
   sake of one man's vendetta.  Along with Ahab's obsession for revenge,
   I found the battle of wills between the two men the most interesting
   aspects of the book.  The rest of the ship's motley crew also have
   differing views on the quest for Moby-Dick.

   The crew of the Pequod have a long and perilous voyage before they even
   encounter Moby-Dick.  The first hundred or so pages describe events on
   shore in Nantucket, Massachusetts, before the ship sets sail.  In search
   for whales to hunt for oil, the ship heads first to the south Atlantic,
   rounds South Africa, sails through the Indian Ocean, until it finally
   reaches the Pacific.  Throughout the middle of the book there are many
   short chapters of exposition about whales, whaling and whale ships.
   These chapters read like excerpts from a 19th century encyclopaedia.
   Being a seaman in those days was tough enough: whaling made it even more
   dangerous.  When they finally find Moby-Dick, the captain and crew spend
   three epic days battling the white whale.

   I found this book a bit of an ordeal.  The prose was a bit too archaic
   for my taste, and the subject matter a bit off-putting.  But most of all
   I found it too long.  Perhaps I might have enjoyed it more if all the
   dated filler was left out?  While it's an interesting novel, I can only
   recommend this novel for dedicated readers.  Others should instead watch
   the 1956 movie.  Obviously a lot of the book is left out, and the three
   day climax is cut to a single day, but it's a decent adaptation.

   For an argument that this is the greatest American novel, visit:
     <http://www.salon.com/2012/06/14/call_me_the_greatest_american_novel/singleton/>


   2. "The Power and the Glory" by Graham Greene
     <http://www.amazon.com/Power-Glory/dp/0142437301>

   This novel is set in the 1920s and 1930s in an unnamed Mexican state.
   Following a revolution, the new regime has outlawed religion.  The
   police have been ordered to round up any priests who don't defrock and
   get married.  We follow the fate of one particular priest.  While not
   exactly the most upstanding member of the clergy (for example, he'd
   taken to drinking before the revolution), he cannot bring himself to
   turn his back on his faith.

   This "whisky" priest's already shaky faith is further put to the test
   while on the run.  Over the years he encounters various people, seeing
   many sides of human nature.  He constantly questions his duties, his
   choices, and their consequences.  It doesn't help when the police start
   taking hostages unless villagers inform on any priests.  Anyone found
   to have helped priests is also executed.  After some close shaves, the
   priest finally gets to the border.  But when someone comes to him,
   begging him to go back and absolve the sins of a dying man, he is
   faced with a difficult dilemma: cross the border to save his life,
   or risk getting captured by doing his duty as a priest.

   A concise and thought-provoking novel.


   3. "Learned Optimism" by Martin Seligman
     <http://www.amazon.com/Learned-Optimism/dp/1400078393>

   This book is the result of many years of research and experience.
   The author, Martin Seligman, is a noted psychologist and clinical
   researcher.  He is often referred to as the father of positive
   psychology.  Dismissing this another self-help book would not do it
   justice.

   Seligman was instrumental in researching "learned helplessness", which
   went against the dominant theories of the era, Skinner's behaviourism.
   Learned helplessness is a when someone has learned to act or behave
   helplessly in a particular situation, usually after experiencing some
   inability to avoid an adverse situation.  Seligman saw a similarity with
   severely depressed patients, and argued that the perceived lack absence
   of control contributed to depression.  Later this theory was extended
   to include attributional (or explanatory) style, i.e. how one explains
   events can affect their response.  Pessimists tend to blame themselves
   even when there is no evidence, while optimists tend to place the blame
   elsewhere without hesitation.  Pessimists can also see events as
   permanent and pervasive, while optimists interpret the same situations
   as temporary and specific.  Note that these explanatory styles tend to
   make pessimists see the world more realistically.  In some cases this
   is actually desirable, e.g. when faced with a dangerous situation.
   But the author argues that there are also many more everyday situations
   where the pessimist's irrational and unfair explanatory styles can
   ultimately lead to depression.  Rumination on one's problems is another
   risk factor.

   An interesting observation Seligman makes is that the "me" generation
   is likely to suffer even more from depression, since failure could be
   more damaging.  But there is hope.  The author argues that it's possible
   for a pessimist to change their outlook, and so by being more optimistic
   when appropriate they can protect themselves from negative thoughts and
   depression.  Several techniques are described, ranging from simple
   distraction and distancing, to the more long-lasting disputation.  This
   book is consistent with the cognitive therapy approach, which has been
   more successful than endless psychoanalysis at helping deal with
   problems such as depression and anxiety.

   Here's another review of the book, with selected quotes:
     <http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/06/28/learned-optimism-martin-seligman/>

   Several years ago Seligman gave a TED talk on the state of psychology:
     <http://www.ted.com/talks/martin_seligman_on_the_state_of_psychology.html>

Mini-Reviews of Books Read, May 2012

   Mini-reviews of books I read last month: two sci-fi novels and two non-
   fiction books.


   1. "The World Jones Made" by Philip K. Dick
     <http://www.amazon.com/World-Jones-Made/dp/0575098988>

   This novel was written in 1956, and is set in the then-future (2002).
   After a nuclear war between the Cold War superpowers, the new federated
   world government, Fedgov, has been slowly rebuilding things.  Relativism
   is the sanctioned political philosophy: "The law gives anybody the right
   to live as he pleases", as long as they don't make anyone else try to
   follow that doctrine.  Paradoxically, Fedgov enforces this policy with
   security police (Secpol).

   Children of the survivors of the nuclear fallout are at risk of random
   genetic mutation.  Some mutant humans have special abilities, and they
   tend to gravitate to the margins of society.  One such mutant is
   carnival fortune-teller Floyd Jones, who can see one year into the
   future.  Meanwhile, large alien lifeforms have been floating peacefully
   through space, occasionally entering Earth's atmosphere.  Some people
   see these "Drifters" as threats and want to destroy them.  Fedgov
   prohibits this, arguing they are harmless.  But when Jones's predictions
   start coming true, members of the anti-Drifter cult seize on his
   warning that the Drifters do indeed pose a threat to humanity.  Fedgov
   is overthrown by a Jones-led cult.  Former members of Fedgov want to
   depose Jones and his followers, but it won't be easy.  Doug Cussick,
   former Secpol agent, wonders "how he could possibly kill a man who knew
   the topography of the future. A man who could not be taken unawares: a
   man for whom surprise was impossible".

   Written by prolific science fiction author Philip K. Dick (PKD), this
   novel raises questions about ideology, determinism and ethics.  During
   my Uni days I was obsessed with PKD's stories, and read whatever I could
   get my hands on.  This novel is one of the few that I hadn't read yet.
   Overall, there are some interesting ideas here in a compact story, but
   it's not his finest.  I'd recommend "Do Androids Dream of Electric
   Sheep?" or "Man in the High Castle" if you want to get a taste of PKD's
   work.  Many of his stories have been adapted into movies, including
   "Blade Runner", "Total Recall", "Minority Report", and most recently,
   "The Adjustment Bureau".  Apparently, Terry Gilliam is planning to adapt
   "The World Jones Made" into a movie.


   2. "The Windup Girl" by Paolo Bacigalupi
     <http://www.amazon.com/The-Windup-Girl/dp/1597801585>

   This dark, gritty "biopunk" novel is set in a post-peak oil, globally
   warm future.  Multinational "calorie" corporations control the world's
   food supply.  They hoard genetic material and release modified seeds
   that produce sterile plants.  They are also suspected to have released
   crop-killing viruses, which have begun mutating out of control.  This
   novel is arguably a thought experiment of what could happen if current
   trends continue to their logical ends.

   The action takes place in Thailand, nominally still a monarchy with a
   child Queen.  In reality, there's a delicate balance of power between
   the ministries of Trade and Environment.  Both sides are corrupt, and
   are played off against each other by foreign interests.  The fiercely
   independent Thais have their own seed bank, and seem to have access
   to unique and disease-resistant species that are coveted by the
   multinationals.

   Sources of calories, be they food or energy fuels, are scarce.  Rising
   sea levels have forced people to higher ground.  The Thai capital is
   surrounded by dykes and levees due to the constant threat of flooding.
   People rely on basic transport methods to get around: walking, riding
   on bikes or in rickshaws.  Heavy work is done using gene-hacked
   (genetically-engineered) super-elephants called megodonts.  Like their
   ancestors, the megodonts are revered.  Among the white people in
   Thailand, called "farangs", are agents of multinationals who run
   various businesses as fronts.  Refugees from other conflicts (e.g.
   Malaysian Chinese) have fled to Thailand in the hope of restoring
   their fortunes.  Representing their lower status, they are called
   "Yellow Card Men".  Added to this diverse and volatile mix are gene-
   hacked human servants, called "New People".  From Japan, they are
   like futuristic geisha girls, intended as menial assistants, slaves,
   or simply for entertainment.  Thailand supposedly has a ban on "New
   People", but somehow a few have managed to slip into the country.

   There's a lot of food for thought in this enjoyable, award-winning
   page-turner: resource scarcity, sovereignty, tradition, corporate
   power, corruption, international intrigue, even the rights of humans
   and "new" humans.  Readers will also learn a bit about Thai traditions
   and culture.  Highly recommended.


   3. "Adapt" by Tim Harford
     <http://www.amazon.com/Adapt/dp/1250007550>

   The book's subtitle, "Why success always starts with failure", hints at
   the author's main premise.  Humanity faces many complex problems, such
   as climate change, poverty, peace and financial stability.  The chances
   of solving these problems first time is very low.  Mistakes will
   inevitably me made along the way.  Through trial and error, appropriate
   solutions can be found, as long as we learn from our mistakes and those
   of our predecessors.  In other words, by adapting to the outcomes of
   incremental decisions, we can eventually arrive at viable solutions to
   complex issues.  This applies at every level: from individuals in their
   everyday lives, to competitive corporations, governments and other
   organisations.

   In the first chapter, the author summarises the recipe for successful
   adapting.  "The three essential steps are: to try new things, in the
   expectation that some will fail; to make failure survivable, because
   it will be common; and to make sure that you know when you've failed".
   The bulk of the book elaborates on these steps, and draws on many
   diverse examples of failures and successes, such as: industry in the
   former Soviet Union, the Iraq War, foreign aid, oil platform and
   nuclear power plant disasters, and financial crises.  A common cause
   of repeated failure is the lack of flexibility or unwillingness to
   adapt in the light of newly obtained information.

   Written by "The Undercover Economist", Tim Harford, this book covers
   more than just economics and finance: psychology, anthropology,
   evolution and physics also provide relevant evidence for the
   importance of adaptation.


   4. "Balancing Agility and Discipline: A Guide for the Perplexed"
      by Barry Boehm and Richard Turner
     <http://www.amazon.com/Balancing-Agility-Discipline/dp/0321186125>

   Developing software can be a complex undertaking.  An alarmingly large
   proportion of software projects fail to meet the required objectives:
   they under-deliver on functionality, go over time or budget, or are
   scrapped before completion.  Over the years, various approaches or
   methodologies have been proposed to deal with the problems of writing
   quality software.  These include: eXtreme Programming (XP), Capability
   Maturity Model Integration (CMMI), Rational Unified Process (RUP), Lean
   Development (LD), Scrum and Cleanroom.  Proponents of each methodology
   can be so dogmatic that they are blind to alternatives.

   The purpose of this book is to provide a refreshing, ideology-free
   assessment of the various methodologies.  In short, the authors argue
   that methodologies need to be selected or adapted in accordance to five
   key variables or risk factors: project size, type of personnel,
   criticality of deliverables, organisational culture and dynamism
   (changeability in requirements).  The book outlines a framework for
   determining which methodology is most suitable given the circumstances
   of the project.  It surveys the leading methodologies, across the entire
   spectrum from controlled/disciplined to agile/flexible.  Strengths and
   weaknesses are identified, describing both typical days and crisis days
   for each methodology.  Polar charts, called "home ground" plots, display
   each methodology's sweet spot with respect to the five factors.  These
   profiles can be used to help guide selection of the most appropriate
   methodology for a project.

   This book should be required reading for project managers and software
   developers, especially those who believe there is only "one true way"
   to undertake software projects.