Profil

Sean Sales

Sean_Sales@bookwyrm.isambard.social

A rejoint ce serveur il y a 4 mois, 3 semaines

Amateur storm chaser, cosmic humanist, armchair scientist and cat enthusiast.

scientificroute66.com

sean_sales@snaps.isambard.social

Ce lien ouvre une nouvelle fenêtre

Défi lecture pour 2026

16% terminé ! Sean Sales a lu 2 sur 12 livres.

Paul Kingsnorth: Against the Machine (2025, Penguin Publishing Group)

Interesting- But flawed

I genuinely enjoyed the book, its well written and hits upon something most of us feel in 2026, that something is not right with the world and in the West at least we are missing a shared sense of meaning beyond money.

While I found myself agreeing with the problem Paul identified, I disagreed with most of the conclusions, and the chapter that hand waves away the existence of Trans people really lost me. It felt unnecessary, and could have been omitted altogether without impacting the books central argument in any way.

What the book does well is its articulation of the value and need for Western society to find a sense of culture, shared purpose and meaning that goes beyond the accumulation of wealth in service of "the Machine". What that could and should be is not convincingly answered by the book, but I am convinced that …

Chris Impey: Worlds Without End (2023, MIT Press, The MIT Press)

Worlds without end is an inspiring look at the vast array of potentially habitable worlds out in the cosmos. The book provides a detailed account of how we identify exo planets, how we might detect life and techno signatures, and the potential implications of those discoveries. What was a pleasant surprise in the later chapters of the book is an optimistic overview of the current state of space exploration and where we might be heading as a space faring species.

Jonathan Rauch: Kindly Inquisitors (Paperback, 1995, University Of Chicago Press)

You could be mistaken for thinking this book was written today and not in 1993. It explores attacks on the values of liberal science and its status as the best means to uncover truth we have. It considers challenges from all sides of the political spectrum and makes a compelling case that makes for uncomfortable reading at times. Enlightening throughout and just as relevant 30 years after it was published.

a publié une critique de Homo Deus par Yuval Noah Harari

Yuval Noah Harari: Homo Deus (2015, Harvill Secker)

Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow (Hebrew: ההיסטוריה של המחר (Romanised: hahistoria shel hamachar), …

Everyone should read this book! While not claiming to be prophetic the trends Harari identified in 2016 resonate more than ever in 2021. (The act of writing this review alone supporting the thoughts he outlines so well in the final chapter!) He deliberately avoids drawing firm conclusions while encouraging the reader to examine the "why" behind so much of how we operate as a species.

a publié une critique de Extraterrestrial par Avi Loeb

Avi Loeb: Extraterrestrial (Hardcover, 2021, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company)

A fascinating read that encourages the reader to consider more than anything else the implications of discovering evidence of first contact. Avi Loeb makes it clear that while we can't be certain Oumuamua is evidence of extraterrestrial intelligence, the hypothesis is no less outlandish than the natural explanations offered so far. Above all else he makes the case that seriously considering the possibility of alien origins is not only reasonable but preferable when considering the long term impact of the science it could create.

I'm still skeptical that Oumuamua is evidence for ET, but completely convinced we should invest in the means to know for sure next time we have an interstellar visitor.