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History books.
Boro_Bandito:
--- Quote from: Be My Head on 28 Oct 2009, 12:42 ---I want to know what history books you've really enjoyed reading. Of particular interest to me is European and Asian history. I'm reading The Judgment of Paris right now and it's fascinating. More books on France covering the first revolution up to the turn of the century would be appreciated (ones that you've read).
--- End quote ---
I saw this thread, and immediately though to myself "Hmm, I'm going to go in there and recommend Judgment of Paris." Awesome read.
Mnementh:
Churchill's The World Crisis is a great read if you're interested in the history of the Great War. So is Von Kluck's The March on Paris and the Battle of the Marne.
It's not exactly history, I'm currently reading (in my very limited free time) John Wansbrough's Quranic Studies, which is a book on Quranic exegesis. I figure it counts since it's an investigation into the historical underpinnings of the Quran, though it's a bit difficult to get through without an understanding of Arabic and Hebrew.
I'm probably going to read Hussain Haqqani's Pakistan: Between Mosque and Military next, because it appears to be an expansion on his The Ideologies of South Asian Jihadi Groups article in the first volume of Current Trends in Islamic Idealogy which is a very quick history of the various Islamic revival groups that have spawned Jihadi movements in Pakistan since 1947, and will be pretty useful in my research and writing.
David_Dovey:
--- Quote from: KvP on 29 Oct 2009, 08:15 ---Yeah there was the same sort of controversy over the Freakonomics dudes, who are incredibly popular yet also in many cases spectacularly wrong. Pop science is sort of a problem, because actual science is boring and when you're out partying you need something to start a conversation with that is interesting and makes you look smarter than you are. All that you need to be a widely-read theorist is an interesting corrolation in a single or handful of studies, which is just as good as thorough proof of causation right? Increased abortion leads to lower crime rates! Drunk driving is 8x safer than walking home from the bar! Yackety Schmackety do!
--- End quote ---
One of those dudes was on The Daily Show a few days ago and he seemed pretty sensible. I'd need to rewatch the interview but I'm pretty sure he made it pretty clear that he was not a climate change skeptic and that he didn't think that C02 wasn't responsible for global warming. The point he made on the show was that to him it seemed irrational to not consider (admittedly, somewhat outlandish) measures that attempted to reverse climate damage and negate future emissions while we attempt to transition to alternative energy sources. Also that most proposed solutions for climate changed relied on people acting pretty contrary to basic human nature i.e; not being lazy and resistant to change.
I haven't read the book so I can't really speak to what's in there, of course. The whole interview could've basically been a big backpedal, for all I know.
StaedlerMars:
Screw books, it's all about podcasts now:
'stuff you missed in history class' by howstuffworks.com is pretty awesome.
Welcome to the modern world.
David_Dovey:
I am very crazy about Mike Duncan's "The History of Rome" podcast. A super quality jaunt through the entire history of Rome, from the founding legends of Aeneas arriving in Italy after the Trojan War, to Romulus founding the city, from The Seven Kings to Republic, to Civil War and Empire, right up to the fall of The Western Empire at the hands of the barbarian hordes. At the moment he is covering the Year of the Four Emperors (70 AD). Perfectly pitched in terms of the amount of detail gone into, reliance on ancient sources compared to modern sources, and weighing up competing historical views. Mike also has a pretty great, dry sense of humour, with one solid chuckle per episode, at least.
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