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Some Remarks: Essays and Other Writing
by Neal Stephenson
May 20, 2017 - May 20, 2017 (read/david-foster-wallace/essay-collections)

Stephenson, N. (2012). Some Remarks: Essays and Other Writing. William Morrow.


William Morrow, 2012. 336 pages. Hardcover. 9780062024435

21 9
19

p.320
ineluctable »
unable to be resisted or avoided; inescapable
p.267
eschatology »
the part of theology concerned with death, judgme…
p.241
vituperation »
(noun) sustained and bitter railing and condemnat…
p.195
gofer »
(noun) an employee whose duties include running e…
p.195
lee »
the sheltered side; the side away from the wind
p.285
allergic reactions to DFW
[...] DFW's writing reflects an attitude that is …
p.284
on DFW's use of the vernacular
[...] DFW could write high-powered prose better t…
p.261
emotion as a heuristic
Damasio is arguing that one of the innate faculti…
p.254
Stephenson defining science fiction
Fiction that's not considered good unless it has …
p.186
the first Library of Alexandria
[...] In any event, this library was burned out b…

1

Introduction

a random collection of essays and other works

1 / 0
1

Introduction

a random collection of essays and other works

1 / 0
4

Arsebestos
2012

why exercise is good for you and sitting on your ass all day is not (solution: treadmill desks)

1 / 0
4

Arsebestos
2012

why exercise is good for you and sitting on your ass all day is not (solution: treadmill desks)

1 / 0
16

Slashdot Interview
2004

taking questions from slashdot readers. the most interesting one is if he resents the lack of respect scifi authors get: no, because he makes money (though he thinks it's unfair that lots of good literary novelists make so little)

0 / 0
16

Slashdot Interview
2004

taking questions from slashdot readers. the most interesting one is if he resents the lack of respect scifi authors get: no, because he makes money (though he thinks it's unfair that lots of good literary novelists make so little)

0 / 0
38

Metaphysics in the Royal Society 1715-2010
2010

about the history of the royal society, with a focus on Leibniz-Newton relations (summarizing The Baroque Cycle really)

7 / 0
38

Metaphysics in the Royal Society 1715-2010
2010

about the history of the royal society, with a focus on Leibniz-Newton relations (summarizing The Baroque Cycle really)

7 / 0
58

It's All Geek to Me
2007

ostensibly about the movie 300 and how it's apparently sci-fi and thus attracts lots of geeks. not really sure of the point of this one

2 / 0
58

It's All Geek to Me
2007

ostensibly about the movie 300 and how it's apparently sci-fi and thus attracts lots of geeks. not really sure of the point of this one

2 / 0
62

Turn On, Tune in, Veg Out
2006

about star wars, and how much we (as a culture) rely on "geeks" to keep things working

0 / 0
62

Turn On, Tune in, Veg Out
2006

about star wars, and how much we (as a culture) rely on "geeks" to keep things working

0 / 0
67

Gresham College Lecture
2008

about the popularity of speculative fiction, and why part of its appeal is the fact that people do intelligent things and that it has cool ideas ("SF thrives because it is idea porn (83)"). also takes some time to throw shade on the New School of literary criticism. i don't agree with all of his points but it's interesting at least

0 / 1
67

Gresham College Lecture
2008

about the popularity of speculative fiction, and why part of its appeal is the fact that people do intelligent things and that it has cool ideas ("SF thrives because it is idea porn (83)"). also takes some time to throw shade on the New School of literary criticism. i don't agree with all of his points but it's interesting at least

0 / 1
84

Spew
1994

the weird story about some english major guy who gets a job monitoring the Internet (basically) then follows a girl who turns out to be a cypherpunk of some sort

1 / 0
84

Spew
1994

the weird story about some english major guy who gets a job monitoring the Internet (basically) then follows a girl who turns out to be a cypherpunk of some sort

1 / 0
103

In the Kingdom of Mao Bell (selected excerpts)
1994

about internet connectivity in China. not bad, but really dated, and no real takeaways

3 / 2
103

In the Kingdom of Mao Bell (selected excerpts)
1994

about internet connectivity in China. not bad, but really dated, and no real takeaways

3 / 2
119

Under-Constable Proudfoot
2012

a one-sentence gimmick (serial killer in LOTR)

0 / 0
119

Under-Constable Proudfoot
2012

a one-sentence gimmick (serial killer in LOTR)

0 / 0
120

Mother Earth, Mother Board
1996

wayyy too long. article for WIRED about undersea cable-laying. clearly inspiration for cryptonomicon. it's kind of uncomfortable to read about his hard-on for guys like himself tho (very specialised, intelligent, hacker types who are white and probably have asian girlfriends)

3 / 2
120

Mother Earth, Mother Board
1996

wayyy too long. article for WIRED about undersea cable-laying. clearly inspiration for cryptonomicon. it's kind of uncomfortable to read about his hard-on for guys like himself tho (very specialised, intelligent, hacker types who are white and probably have asian girlfriends)

3 / 2
238

The Salon Interview
2004

with Laura Miller. some questions about the Baroque Cycle (the characters, the period; he really admires the Puritans). some questions about how he started writing: he was a physics major, but dropped out before he got his degree, and then started writing while also taking on other jobs (office, construction). also, he writes longhand now (after crypto).

1 / 2
238

The Salon Interview
2004

with Laura Miller. some questions about the Baroque Cycle (the characters, the period; he really admires the Puritans). some questions about how he started writing: he was a physics major, but dropped out before he got his degree, and then started writing while also taking on other jobs (office, construction). also, he writes longhand now (after crypto).

1 / 2
264

Blind Secularism
1993

a weird one about Waco, Texas (that incident that I vaguely know of but, because it happened when I was less than a year old, means nothing to me) and how it would be useful to see from the point of view of a religious person? i agree with the sentiment to some degree but i don't really see how it connects to Waco. i also believe in a more nuanced understanding of religion but i think his personal balancing point is a bit off

1 / 0
264

Blind Secularism
1993

a weird one about Waco, Texas (that incident that I vaguely know of but, because it happened when I was less than a year old, means nothing to me) and how it would be useful to see from the point of view of a religious person? i agree with the sentiment to some degree but i don't really see how it connects to Waco. i also believe in a more nuanced understanding of religion but i think his personal balancing point is a bit off

1 / 0
268

Time Magazine Article about Anathem
2012

about how average people don't read books anything and the ones who still do are a bit like medieval monks (sorta the premise of Anathem). starts off by describing some scenarios that are supposed to sound like the recent invasion of Iraq but are really ancient historical events.

0 / 0
268

Time Magazine Article about Anathem
2012

about how average people don't read books anything and the ones who still do are a bit like medieval monks (sorta the premise of Anathem). starts off by describing some scenarios that are supposed to sound like the recent invasion of Iraq but are really ancient historical events.

0 / 0
271

Everything and More Foreword
2003

about how he also grew up in the Midwest, contemporaneous with DFW, and had a lot of respect for him as a writer. makes some weird claims about midwestern values that I find suspect. also goes into the difficulties of writing a book about math for the average reader, but DFW does a good job anyway. the only thing really worth reading in this whole book

0 / 2
271

Everything and More Foreword
2003

about how he also grew up in the Midwest, contemporaneous with DFW, and had a lot of respect for him as a writer. makes some weird claims about midwestern values that I find suspect. also goes into the difficulties of writing a book about math for the average reader, but DFW does a good job anyway. the only thing really worth reading in this whole book

0 / 2
287

The Great Simoleon Caper
1995

the one about the cryptocurrency giveaway. didn't really like this one

0 / 0
287

The Great Simoleon Caper
1995

the one about the cryptocurrency giveaway. didn't really like this one

0 / 0
304

Locked In
2011

about rocket launches and the military, and how we need more innovation in space travel. not entirely sure of his point here but it's ok i guess

0 / 0
304

Locked In
2011

about rocket launches and the military, and how we need more innovation in space travel. not entirely sure of his point here but it's ok i guess

0 / 0
313

Innovation Starvation
2011

how trying to eliminate uncertainty (and drive short-term shareholder value) from corporate research prevents innovation (no shit). obviously i agree with the sentiment but this is so weak as an essay. could have been so much more interesting if it were even a bit more radical

1 / 0
313

Innovation Starvation
2011

how trying to eliminate uncertainty (and drive short-term shareholder value) from corporate research prevents innovation (no shit). obviously i agree with the sentiment but this is so weak as an essay. could have been so much more interesting if it were even a bit more radical

1 / 0
321

Why I Am a Bad Correspondent
1998

otherwise he'll never get anything done (makes sense)

0 / 0
321

Why I Am a Bad Correspondent
1998

otherwise he'll never get anything done (makes sense)

0 / 0