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Tuesday, July 10, 2007 And Stuff How much do we read? (originally left as a comment) I'd guess the current media and short attention spans have something to do with it. I mean, just look at the statistic on TV watching. I would also guess that after work, people feel too tired to attempt reading--they'd rather have some passive entertainment instead. Perhaps our workaholic culture has some of the blame--other grad students claim that they don't have time to read which sort of makes me feel bad for ever having my nose buried in a book. (Just chain me to the lab bench, will ya?) Mortal Engines. Must. Find. Copy. I am a total sucker for steampunk. And the premise! If cities really could eat other cities, which would be the predators? New York? Or what if small towns teamed up to take down a big one... The Self-Mummified Monks of Japan. Ultimate act of self-denial? More like self-torture. The 20 Blogging Commandments. (via Modulator) Is it blasphemy if I don't do #9? I mean, I don't delibrately go to other people's blogs and write comments just so they will visit mine. I don't expect people to visit my blog. I comment rarely and do so only when I have something to say. All I want from science fiction. Hm. Obviously, people read sci-fi for different reasons. Me? I read more for the story than the gee-whiz factor. And if it makes other people more interested in science, well, that's a nice side benefit. Transformers: Sexism in Disguise. It's an interesting interpretation considering how a lot of girl geeks are gushing about this online. Except I just want to point out--you're expecting too much from Hollywood. Despite the liberal lip service one hears from celebrities, films are mostly made with tunnel vision. (Of course, another problem pops up--how could one go about eliminating this tunnel vision? Maybe people with wider horizons should go into the film industry. I doubt the current crop of moviemakers could be persuaded--their profits effectively insulate them from criticism.) [posted by S. Y. Affolee on 8:11 AM : ]
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Perhaps our workaholic culture has some of the blame--other grad students claim that they don't have time to read which sort of makes me feel bad for ever having my nose buried in a book.
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I hear that. I get that from a couple of men I work with - it's like they're extra cool for staying up all night, for doing something unnecessary but supadupa technical, for being hyperactive online trivia readers. As if it somehow isn't good to try to get enough rest, read a book, try to be thoughtful and efficient instead of caffeinated. All I want from science fiction Nice link. That's a good train of thought. I agree, I read/watch for more than the mile-a-minute gee whiz. I'm more interested in how current or near-current innovations might change our culture, laws, and interactions. I think that's true of many people. I just found some more stats, specifically on reading genre fiction. One interesting thing--those who aren't interested in science/technology aren't likely to read *most* sci fi, but they *will* watch Star Trek and X-Files. To me, that says that the human dimension or a suspense storyline will get people to cross over into sci fi even if the whiz bang doesn't do it for them. Links to this post: |
