The List
What exactly makes someone culturally literate? What books should you read? What movies should you see? What about those things specific to Nerd or Geek Culture? What things does a person need to know to be able to make relevant quips at a cocktail party or to include appropriate quotes in conversations? What experiences are necessary to grok “grok” and comprehend the clichés of our counter-culture?
This question came up between my self and some other faculty here at SIUE as we tried to devise an evil plan to help a previously far too sheltered student (and a few profs) catch up on modern society. The result of our discussions has been given the humble name of “The List.”
This is a work in three parts: The Books, The Movies, and The TV shows. Please look them over and leave us your comments. Your feedback will add in the education of nerd novices the world (or at least the department) over.
Part 1: The Books
(more to come)
Hi Pamela,
I enjoy your blog and Astronomycast! I noticed that you’ve changed servers, and I was looking for your list of “must read” books. Did it get left behind? I get a very polite error message telling me “Sorry, but you are looking for something that isn’t here.” Story of my life…
Keep up the good work. G.
Hi Georgia,
The list seems to have died in transit. I will try very hard to get it up and online tomorrow. Moving websites always has more foibles than expected.
-P
Pamela,
Just wanted to say I think your amazing at what you do and you and Fraiser make a great due for Asdtronomy Cast. With being said you’ve mentioned before that you “love” donations. I work for a company called CitiGroup and its donation time for my office. We are allowed $1500 and its not a huge amount however im working on getting other offices in my district here in grand rapids,MI to do along with me. $1500 x 5= SWEET!!! I need to know if there is a form that can be submitted and also place were check can be sent. PayPal isnt an option…..
Keep up the good work,
Nathan
Hi Nathan,
I tried emailing you directly about your comment above. If you didn’t get my email last week, please let me know here, or email me at pgay at siue dot edu
Hi Pamela,
i am a fan of the Astronomy Cast. You and Fraiser are doing a great job. I listen to it while working. It helps me keep my mind focus in hours of tedious bugfixing. I know this kind of feedback can’t buy you new microphones, but if you need any kind of C.S. geek-powers just send an email. I think you are doing already very well though.
You two keep it up!
Cheers.
-t
Minor corrections:
Ayn Rand is spelled wrong (you have Any). It looks to my eyes like you have Lucifer’s Hammer as a Larry Niven only book. It was written Niven and Pournelle.
Personally these days I’d add the Harry Potter books. And Eric Flint’s 1632.
Hello! Good Site! Thanks you! fcsqwcdcpxtmh
Hi Dr Pamela,
I love Astronomy Cast, especially the interaction between your and Fraser. If I could make one small suggestion, it would be to try to get Fraser off all the big cataclysm-doomsday topics. There is a wealth of new and fascinating things going on in Astronomy to not be obscessed with how life on Earth will end.
In looking at your book list, Michael Moorcock’s “Elric of Meinibone” is mispelled, I think. Shouldn’t it be “Melnibone”?
I have read many of the big name Science Fiction authors. Robert Heinlein, Arthur C Clarke, Frank Herbert, Isaac Asimov, and David Niven have left the most lasting impressions with me. One book that I think should be added to the list is David Niven’s “Integral Trees”. Thinking of the possibility of life as we know it, existing in a free spacial anomally where a breathable O2 atmosphere exists, where life evolves in zero gravity, is just mind boggling.
By the way, my oldest sister and I are Michigan State grads too.
Hello Pamela:
I’ve been an Astronomy Cast listener for many months now, and thank you for the time and effort that you put into this valuable service. With regard to books on The List, I think the junction between science and fiction is most elegantly explored by the “Hard SF” authors. Arthur C Clarke is an obvious example, and IMO some others deserve mention. Hal Clement’s Mission of Gravity ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mission_of_Gravity ) was a landmark examination of the conditons on high gravity planets, and a great read.
WRT the site in general, you might have someone proofread the text for you. I noticed typos like “calculas” and “definately” on my first quick look around. Cheers.
Hello, Dr. Gay. You are wonderfully engaging on your Astronomy Cast casts (is that redundant?) with Fraser. You make the material nicely accessible for those of us who cannot sort difficult physics and math out for ourselves but are nonetheless facinated by the wonders of the universe.
Also, on the off chance that you actually read these yourself, I thought I would relay the fact that your voice is intoxicating. Just a simple compliment to the ‘woman’ part of you.
hi pamela
you and fraser have saved my life, my wife bought me an ipod for my birthday and i said what will i do with this, i dont listen to much music,
scince then i have found podcasts, especialy astronomy cast and i can now listen to so mutch good stuff, at home, in bed, at the gym, at work, its the greatest, thanks
ps dont worry about being to technical in your descriptions and calculations etc, the people who listen to you love that stuff
best wishes wayne from australia
Hi Pamela,
I really enjoy AstronomyCast. Thanks for doing that. May it continue.
Two things:
1. The Island of Dr Moreau is a novel by H.G.Wells, not Jules Verne.
2. I found your page on your faith unsatisfying. I don’t understand how you can use such strong rationality and reason in your scientific thinking and then defend the existence of something for which there is no evidence whatsoever. Indeed, all evidence points to an evolutionary origin of life, an incomprehensible loneliness of our planet’s life on an astronomical scale, and the non-existence of a soul. My question to you is: apart from the comforting factor of religious belief, of which I accept there is some, how can you make religious claims with your scientific mind?
Thank you,
Mark M
I think Any Rand is a third rate writer and a fourth rate thinker.
Some writers to add, since you seem to have left off poets here is a start:
W.C. Williams
E. Dickinson
A. Ginsburg
W. Stevens
Bashō
Musicians:
Monk
Coltrane
Ellington
David Murray
Hi Pam was reading somecomments and though I would pass this on to you.
For wordpress
http://www.rpath.org/rbuilder/project/wp/
To run it on.
http://fabrice.bellard.free.fr/qemu/
Makes moving very easy.
Cheers.
Keep up the good work. Your my favorite teacher. (but I told frazer the same thing.)
Come on. It’s like asking who’s your favorite child.
Take care. Been busy with this stuff lately. Everyone wants virtualization these days.
micheal says that he thinks “Any Rand is a third rate writer and a fourth rate thinker”. I could not agree more, however, we cannot ignor her influence on the world today. She has a great, great following and I do agree that everyone needs to be exposes to her third rate writer and fourth rate thinking so that you can be prepare when you run into the Rand fans and know what you are facing!
as somebody else has mentioned The Island of Dr Moreau is by HG Wells not Jules Verne?!
as is War of the Worlds and the Time Traveller… All by Mr Wells…
Old Bertie would not be pleased!
If you like the 1984/brave new world dystopian stuff then you should definitely read Yevgeny Zamyatin’s ‘We’ … which is basically what inspired Orwell to write 1984…
as for Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.. it is one of my favourite ever books… not sure how it qualifies as science, unless you are referring to his massive consumption of drugs!
didn’t see On the Origin of Species on your list either…. had a massive influence on people like HG Wells and Aldous Huxley… and is probably the most definitive science text ever written
I came by your Astronomy Cast PodCast by accident. I have to say I am out of the loop with iPod shows(there just appear to be so many!). I reached your site through some Space related reference websites and found it very informative. That said, I was very pleased by some of your book selections on your personal website. Some I have read, many I haven’t. I look forward to digging in.
PS-By the way (although it isn’t fiction) one of the best science books I have ever read was Eric Chaisson’s Relatively Speaking.
PSS- Ayn Rand was a first class thinker and a second class writer. It is always scary to try and act as an individual. Shrug.
Dr Gay:
I’m a real fan of AstonomyCast. I eagerly await each new episode. You and Fraser do an amazing job. How do you find the time?
A book I would add to the list is “A Case of Conscience” by James Blish. I think that you would find it very interesting/entertaining. Especially given your belief system as I have read it. I basically share the same views. You should hear the discussions that I have with my best friend, an evagelical Christian!
Regards,
Leo Wood
Dr. Gay,
I’m glad I discovered your astronomy program. As I get older and had a couple of eye surgeries, I don’t read as much as I used to. So it’s great to get to sit back and listen. Thank you!
Tim
Ayn Rand: Yuck.
Fortunately, her feeble-minded ideas are laughed at by all serious philosophers these days. Her current followers are amateurs, anarcho-capitalists and other corporate apologists. I hope your inclusion of her on the list can be attributed to a “youthful indiscretion”?
Plus, she was an atheist and I thought you were a fundamentalist Christian. Oh well, nobody’s perfect, right? (you and her).
(Love your show!)
are you a astronomer?I’m first see astronomer’s blog,exiciting!