unable to be resisted or avoided; inescapable
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.
p.320
ineluctable »
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
[...] DFW's writing reflects an attitude that is …
p.284
[...] DFW could write high-powered prose better t…
p.261
Damasio is arguing that one of the innate faculti…
p.254
Fiction that's not considered good unless it has …
p.186
[...] In any event, this library was burned out b…
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 / 2119
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 / 0321
Why I Am a Bad Correspondent
1998
otherwise he'll never get anything done (makes sense)
0 / 0