Since my last post I've also read Neuromancer by William Gibson. It pictures a dark, futuristic world where the protagonist, Case - a computer hacker and drug addict - is persuaded to help an AI to merge with another AI to become a greater 'consiousness'. The book is featuring cybernetic implants, memories and consiousnesses from people caught in ROMs or RAMs and speaking AIs.

I know that I have a long time ago read the 'sequels' to this book - Count Zero and Mona Lisa Overdrive - but I don't remember them at all. This was the first time i read the first book in the series. The book caught lot of attention when it came and made cyberpunk a more accepted branch of science fiction but I cannot say I liked it myself.

Now I'm jumping (at least temporarily) to something completely differently namely 'Life of Pi' by Yann Martel.

I think it's time to update this thread again..

Cugel, I have not seen the drama you mentioned so I cannot comment on that..

I myself have been kind of  busy reading for a while and moved over to Science Fiction for now. I read quite a lot of books in this genre when I was younger but now it had been a while since I read SF books.

I've read
Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
A very interesting book about how a young, genius kid was brought up and teached how to be a commander over a space ship armada. Interesting story and well written. It is not very plausible but which SF book is that? It is going to become a movie that will be released later this year. It will probably be rubbish but I believe I will see it anyway.

Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert A Heinlein
About how a human born and raised on Mars by Marsians comes back to earth and has to learn how humans work. Being raised by Marsians gave him special abilities andin the end it is he that teaches humans.

I am now reading:
Childhood's Game by Arthur C Clarke.
This book tells the story about when superbeings came to earth and took over the world - not by killing like in so many SF movies but just by demonstrating their power.

With the reservation that I have not finished the last book yet I'd like to say that I think all three books are good SF books and well worth a read.

Since my last post here I have read:

Lord of the flies:    Interesting book but not a favorite. I'm glad I've read it at last as it's mentined now and then and it's good to know what it really is. I didn't find the story very realistic though.

The Long Ships by Frans G Bengtsson. A really amazing story about the time of the vikings. Not very realistic this book either but a very fun read in my opinion.

The Grapes of Wrath. I liked this too. It is well written and gives a picture of how life could be during the great depression.

Anna Karenina: Sometimes this book is said to be the best novel ever written. I don't subscribe to that point of view. I found it more or less boring but I can understand that at the time of writing it was an important work with it's view of women's liberation and worker's liberation in a time of traditional family values and slavery. But I would recommend an abridged version if possible.

The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Not unexpectedly it is a 'little' bit different from the Disney version.

Now I'm reading 'Memoir's of a geisha' by Arthur Golden'. I find it very interesting and it gives a fascinating (albeit criticized) view of life in early 20th century Japan.

Stay tuned for next episode of 'literary stories' by yours truly New Dawn

Every US newssite that I had looked at were discussing whether Beyonce where singing live at Obama's inauguration or if it was playback...

(Now she has admitted that it WAS playback but she has promised that she will sing live at the Super Bowl. (I wonder what media will jump at then? A controversial commercial? A bad judgment by the referee? There must be something outside of the game that they could discuss)

I am happy to hear that you knew nothing about the above and I urge you to forget about all of it as soon as you have read it...

Please sign this petition and share it by your comrades:
https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/make-metric-system-standard-united-states-instead-imperial-system/FndsKXLh

Then it might be decent folks out of you too... :-)

And, Yes, I saw it this Christmas too. The young ones (15 and 17 years old) insisted that we should see it. At the correct time (3pm and not record it). We had 2 foreign visitors that enjoyed seing us all mesmerized by the old mvies with Donald Duck, Mickey Mouse et al.

... how it is being a swede over Christmas? Well, maybe you have the answer here:

http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2009/12/nordic_quack.html