Bott's Book of the Week: The Future of the Mind...It's about your brain (that thing inside your head)

Michio Kaku is one of my favorite theoretical physicists. The fact that I have a list of favorite theoretical physicists is either a.) sad or b.) awesome. I'll go with the latter. This book discusses the most powerful thing in the known universe: Your brain. 

The book is broken into three sections and I can't tell you how much I appreciate that as a reader. Kaku is known for his research based analysis and most of this book centers on the what the future may hold for brain research. But the first portion lays the foundation in that it presents what is happening now in the field. It also gives a very pedestrian and quite thorough overview of how the brain itself works. 

Then we get weird...... 

Part 2 of the book discusses telepathy, telekinesis, and the coolest part- memories. This is of particular note because of the topic of Alzheimer's. Implanting memories is something that you might read about in a dystopian novel, but Kaku argues (and the research is out there), that uploading memories could be something that is very real in the shockingly near future. I love this idea, especially when applied to information. I was (and still am) terrible at math. If you put a check on the table at a restaurant, it will take me an inordinate amount of time to calculate the tip. I try my best to understand the complicated math whilst reading about physics and quantum theory, but I missed the boat on the numbers game. Now imagine if you're struggling in a subject like I was with math. Wouldn't it be great to simply upload whatever you needed to learn? Ancient Greek philosophy? Biology? Any language?

HOWEVER, the idea that intrigues me is I could upload any information to my brain and have it stick as a memory. This could be applicable to any information in any subject. What does that mean for the future, though? Are we talking about turning the human mind into a computer? In a sense, it already is. The brain has, that we know of, a limitless amount of space and can store massive amounts of memory. 

On the third and final front, Kaku blends the human mind with the universe. How might everything that he spoke to in parts 1 & 2 coalesce to alter our destiny. Could we use our mind to reach across the universe? What does the altered state of consciousness mean to the definition of reality as we see it? This book is a great read, but just a warning- you may have to devote some major time to it. It took me a while because of the subject matter and terminology. 

So many questions....so much information....so many possibilities....so much suave hair

  

Look at that hair....LOOK AT IT!

Bott's Book of the Week: The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History

Ahh humans...We're pretty awesome, right? We make cool stuff, we drive cool cars and, most of all, we kill things. Elizabeth Kolbert's book The Sixth Extinction is an incredible read that sets the stage for our ultimate downfall at our very own hands. 

There have been five mass extinctions throughout the history of life on earth. These extinctions are considered "mass" as they wipe out nearly all life on the planet. The first may have been caused by rapid temperature changes that led to glaciation. Others also had to do with climate change as well, as rising temperature changed the chemistry of ocean waters, thus leading to what we now call "the great dying." The extinction we're most familiar with happened at the end of the Cretaceous period roughly 65 million years ago. This killed three quarters of all life on earth including our friends, the dinosaurs.

Today, we're in a bit of pickle. It's not an asteroid coming at us (yet), but the enemy is within the walls; us. Kolbert's book details the drivers for climate change and the effect of having and sustaining our massive global population. It's scary.

And then there's the ocean. Our wondrous water that covers 70% of the earth...and is turning into ACID! Ok well, not really. But the rate at which it's going downhill for our oceans is alarming. Our oceans are 30% more acidic now than in 1800 and expected to be 150% more by the end of the century. Great news isn't it? Oceans are teeming with life and slight changes in water temperature or variations in chemistry have terrifying consequences for our ocean life. This might not sound significant, but Kolbert's book has a greater underlying thesis: We are all connected.

 That said, we are the masters of our own demise and we kind of don't care- I suppose that's the sad and hilarious part about it and Kolbert handles it with mastery. She's very funny, sarcastic, sardonic, and writes with some wonderful irony. 

She writes that she's not "anti-human," but there's a edge to her writing that makes me feel guilty. Don't get me wrong, I love that. I love that a book, especially a non-fiction book, can elicit such emotion. It makes me want to learn more, read more about ocean acidification, global warming, pollution, disease. Any book that can accomplish that is well worth the read. In a nutshell, be worried- Maybe not today, but your children and grandchildren are going to an uphill battle. Might as well face it with a sense of humor. 

Bott's Book of the Week: Her: A Memoir

Woah....Ok so the last memoir I read was a graphic novel and I really missed some of the more detailed imagery that a well written "book" provides. Not that graphic novels don't take the writing seriously (See Maus), but the images are provided for you and that leaves a little less to the imagination. I can conjure up some incredible images in my own mind from a really well written novel or, in this case, memoir. Her does not disappoint. 

I stumbled upon this story while listening to the radio on a drive to Pennsylvania and immediately grabbed a copy when I returned. The interview was with the author Christa Parravani, a Guilderland High alum if I'm correct, and it was heart wrenching. The book evokes every emotion imaginable. It tells a tragic story of identical twins who, despite obstacles and borderline poverty growing up, emerge as budding writers and artists until the unthinkable happens. Cara, Christa's twin is raped. As you can understand, there isn't a ton of good things that follow. Cara cannot come back from this traumatic event and ultimately turns to drugs. When Cara dies, Christa is sitting in traffic in NYC and learns from their estranged mother over the phone. Despite the fact that since the rape they've grown apart, Parravani paints the picture that twins, no matter how distant, are never really that far apart. 

Christa becomes increasingly depressed. She starves herself and becomes addicted to pills. She writes that she's nearly schizophrenic, seeing her sister when she looks in the mirror instead of herself. Before pushing herself to the brink (through a divorce as well), Christa re-emerges as a confident writer and pushes herself through words to tell this powerful story. I love memoirs, especially about people...real people and I am a sucker for tragedy. I'm not sure what that says about me as a person, but books like this make me think I'm onto something nonetheless. Read this book.

  

Bott's Book of the Week - Lying by Sam Harris

I'm reviewing a non-fiction book this week...WAIT, don't hit the little red X in the corner yet...It's about a very person topic. Lying. We all do it. Some do it everyday. But is it all that bad? I mean, what if you tell your significant other they look great with that new haircut when they really look hideous/terrifying? Sam Harris argues that even these little white lies have an affect and erode our moral fiber.

Harris is a brilliant writer. The book is only 108 pages which make it a quick and thought provoking read. My favorite part is that  I went into this book feeling like a semi-honest person and came out feeling a little betrayed by my own sense of morality. That alone made it a great book for me. Harris kindly offers "advice" as to how to become a more honest person as well. He helps to define the fuzzy area of what constitutes a lie or just simply avoiding the truth (a type of lie he argues). 

I'm trying really hard to think of a lie I told that wouldn't be too embarrassing, but for some reason my mind is only going to places would compromise what most of you think of me. Anyway, I strongly suggest going to YouTube and watching a Sam Harris debate as he is a phenomenal off-the-cuff speaker and one of my idols when it comes to debates. He makes a great case in this book for never lying again and although I can't say that's going to happen, I'm certainly going to think twice before I say, "You look great in that dress." or "I love your hair, get it cut like that forever!" After all, when you lie, you have to remember that lie which makes a false memory within the framework of your own mind...Who has time for that?

Bott's Book of the Week: Winger by Andrew Smith

I must be asked 30 times a day, "Do you have anything like John Green?" This is the closest I've come in a while. I love realistic fiction and, moreover, I really enjoy Andrew Smith's writing in his novel Winger. I picked up this booked just I saw the cover and thought, "Who punched Neil Patrick Harris in the face?" It's not NPH but it is a great read.

Winger tells the story of Ryan Dean West. He's 14 years old and already a junior at a boarding school for rich kids. Intellectually, he's way ahead of his peers. Physically, he's still trying to catch up. He's good enough to make the rugby team at the wing position and this earns him the nickname Winger. What he endures because of this is a beat down day after day from his teammates and roommate, but I loved his perseverance. He's small but refuses to give up. The book has drawings that tell a more graphic version of what Ryan goes through on a daily basis. 

What I found surprising about this book was its humor. There were parts (like the aftermath of a crazy party) that had me laughing for quite a few pages. Then there is the emotional perspective. Ryan is falling for his bully roommate's girlfriend which, if you've never known that type of torture, provides the vehicle for some serious emotion and hilarious dialog. Despite being twice his age, I almost looked up to Ryan. The kid has moxie, a real sense of fight. He could have backed down a thousand times in this novel, but didn't and I love that about him. 

So if Looking for Alaska or Absolute True Diary of a Part Time Indian is your jam, check this out for a surprisingly in depth and humorous read. Parties. The girl you want but can't have. Sports. This book has it all.

Book of the Week Podcast: The Program by Suzanne Young

CLICK HERE to hear Mr. Bott's review of The Program by Suzanne Young

Bott Jams Volume 2

**NOTE** My book of the week will now be on a podcast starting this week. I'll throw the link on this blog by Friday.

I've been given some feedback on my music selections from last week's posts. Most of it was shock that I, a librarian, would ever entertain the thought of listening to "that type of music." I laugh most of the time I hear that because, in my opinion, growing up in the early to mid 90's during the height of metalcore and indie rock was the best time for music...Forget the Beatles, I had Botch. You can have Pink Floyd, I had Pavement. It wasn't the most popular music, but if you had a good group of people who knew had access to a decent record shop, you struck gold.

My parents never listened to music around the house. My dad played some Frank Zappa on occasion, but other than that I was on my own. My cousins were older and in high school already by the time I hit 12 years old and were hanging out with guys in bands that were playing a mix of metal (think old thrash metal) and punk rock. They used to practice on the other side of town and I hung out with them once or twice and got to browse through their catalogs of old records and tapes (yes tapes). Before I knew it, I was hooked. One thing I need to clarify, just because people play loud, screamy music doesn't mean they're evil.

From metalcore I graduated to some indie rock bands that played catchy and above all interesting music. Music that I couldn't find on the radio (aside from say, Nirvana). So that's a really brief summary of why I dig the music I do. Work for your music. Go on the Internet and search for good bands. Go to shows (more on that next week). I found good bands in 1993 and there was no Internet.

Now for the music:

Instrumental Music:
Explosions In The Sky- My favorite instrumental band. Beautiful music that at times can be crushing and they always illicit emotion. Probably the loudest live show I've ever been to.
Godspeed You Black Emperor - Weird and always dark, Godspeed makes for a really interesting show and each one of their albums ebbs and flows through a range of dissonance and melody.
Russian Circles - Chicago based band that is heavier than the previous two I mentioned with a much more drive background of rock influenced instrumentals.
Pelican - Heavy, downtuned, and sometimes confusing. Their first EP was disgustingly heavy and blew out a speaker in my old car. Since then, they've been a little more structured in the music and that works to both their advantage and disadvantage at times.
Mogwai - By far the eclectic band on this list. They do have some vocals in certain songs but for the most part they are instrumental; heavy when they want to be and melodic most of the time.

Explosions in the Sky


Noise Rock/Just Noise
Lightning Bolt: I love this band. I saw them once in Manhattan and before the opening act played their last song, LB (who were set up in the middle of the floor amidst the crowd) just started playing...LOUD. Looking up their song Dracula Mountain on YouTube.
The Melt Banana - I honestly don't know what to make of this band. It sounds a little like throwing instruments down a flight of stairs. Some noise, some grindcore, some synth, lots of confusion.
Daughters - They're from Canada. They're done now, but their first album featured all screaming. Their next two, none. So I don't know if they're metal or noise, but they are strange fo sho. Hit up The Locust while you're at it

Lightning Bolt


Rap/Hip Hop
Aesop Rock - NOT ASAP ROCKY - Aesop Rock is a dude who can throw rhymes like crazy and raps stories with feverish fluidity.
Blackalicious - I know, hilarious name. But seriously, they rap the alphabet...How can you beat that? Two dudes who throw rhymes in multisyllabic format. It's a win.

Aesop Rock

For the Indie Crowd:
The Shins: Wonderful musicians with a knack for hooks that will have you singing along ALL THE TIME.
Pavement: First heard this band in the 90's. A little quirky, grooving guitars, and influenced bands from Weezer to Bright Eyes.
Bright Eyes: Speaking of which, Conor Oberst writes a lot of music. That's one of the things that irks me about Bright Eyes; the shear volume of songs he puts out. I can't keep up, but their catalog is wonderfully eclectic. Sometimes quiet, sometimes loud, always interesting.
Balance and Composure: So they're not really "indie" - in fact, I might classify them as a little grunge- but I love this band. It's easily the most interesting, fluid rock band I've heard in years.
The Appleseed Cast: Solid band, sometimes instrumental and always influential. They are a bit harder than Explosions in the Sky and when you throw in the haunting vocals it makes for a phenomenal and since unmatched combination.

The Shins

HONORABLE MENTION:
3 bands here: The Deadly (Philadelphia), Burning Love, The Bronx. All 3 of these guys are punk rock machines. Their stuff will make you tap your feet and want to see them live. The Deadly is since defunked, but their album "The Wolves Are Here Again" is from Pluto Records and you can buy it for like 2$.





Disclaimer: These recommendations are personal views and not associated with any entity other than Mr. Bott himself.