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Expand Your Mind - a list by gordon
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About this list:
I read many books, listen to lots of music, surf the Net, and watch lots of TV/documentaries/movies concurrently. Mostly I am into science, econ/finance, psychology/sociology, current events/history, and strategy/business. Occasionally, I come across a great epic novel or really quality sci-fi or some book or film that really blows my mind. I love to share when I find mind-expanding media.
Qualifications:
Media junkie. I don't watch much TV except for HBO and SHO.
An Inconvenient Truth
9 people recommended this item
Description
An Inconvenient Truth is a must-see for all citizens across the entire political spectrum. It documents our increasing impact on the planet and speculates about what that could mean in the very near future for our world. While an Inconvenient Truth has been criticized as a political stunt by Gore, anyone who has paid any attention to the science Gore documents will find many of his conclusions difficult to ignore.
I was an Environmental Science major and helped raise nearly $80K in $1k increments for Gore's ill-fated 2000 run, so I admit to be partial to his message. Still, if you have kids or plan to be on the planet for a while, I STRONGLY recommend you see this movie, absorb its message, and do what you can to help avoid a climate crisis.
Billed as "the scariest movie you will ever see," an Inconvenient Truth certainly rattled my cage, but it also left me hopeful that we can do something if we get off our asses. I am delighted that An Inconvenient Truth has been such a box office success so that its wake-up call has been widely heard.
Run for President, Al, run!!!
Updated Nov 30, 2006
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Bono: In Conversation with Michka Assayas
First to recommend
2 people recommended this item
Description
This book is a series of conversations w/Bono, lead singer of U2 and one of the few celebrities who use their fame to improve the world. I love U2 but I read this book more as a case study in leadership, commitment, and contribution, not as a fan.
If you want to get a sense for how a highly charismatic leader built a global brand and is changing the world, I recommend you read this. Great for entrepreneurs, activists, and people who want to effectively engage the world. Good for fans too ;-)
Updated Mar 30, 2009
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A Soldier of the Great War by Mark Helprin
First to recommend
Description
I am not usually a fiction fan, but this is one of my all-time favorite books, ever. It is a huge, beautifully written, and rousing meditation on life, love, strife, aesthetics, adventure, and living authentically.
HIGHLY recommended. The protagonist is also a climber which is a big plus for me.
Updated Jan 10, 2006
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The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason by Sam Harris
2 people recommended this item
Description
I recently finished Sam Harris' incredibly polemical book that takes on faith-based religion head-on. Harris' basic premise is that irrational belief systems lead to destructive behavior and that we must develop a new secular/rational form of ethics and morality for the good of all society. Harris is a neurobiologist studying the neural basis for belief, disbelief, decision-making, and uncertainty so the book is peppered w/lots of references to current science of mind/consciousness studies and philosophy.
Love it or hate it, Harris makes a well-reasoned and well-documented case in breezy prose. I am not a believer in faith-based religion myself but do find tremendous value in "spiritual" consciousness disciplines, such as meditation and yoga, as well as athletics. I thought his attempts to articulate the foundation of a "science of ethics" to be fascinating. This book is sure to have a big impact on those who read it. For the faithful, it will be a real test and for non-believers, it offers an opportunity to perhaps see some of the larger picture the faithful claim to see.
Personally, I am also amazed that Harris has not been killed. He says some pretty harsh, but well-documented, things about Christianity and reserves particular venom for Islam, even titling one chapter "The problem with Islam." I would imagine he has set several people's blood boiling.
Updated Jan 20, 2007
The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell
First to recommend
2 people recommended this item
Description
The Hero with a Thousand Faces is a brilliant meditation of the role mythology plays in human psychology and common mythic elements across cultures. If you ever wondered why some stories seem to so deeply resonate or speak to broad swaths of humanity, it is worth thinking about the mythological roots of these tales.
Campbell takes the reader on a grand tour of the world's great mythic traditions w/fascinating excursions into Jungian analysis on archetypes. It can be a bit dense to get thru at times but the reward is huge: a more unified sense of the need for human narrative and the tools to understand better why certain stories appeal to us.
As a side note, a lot has been written about how closely Star Wars conforms to Campbell's "hero's journey". If you love Star Wars and have an interest beyond the special effects as to why Star Wars has captivated so many, read Campbell's books
Updated Nov 25, 2006
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DNA11 - Art
32 people recommended this item
Description
DNA11 offers some cool and truly unique high quality prints for your wall made from your own DNA sequences. Basic idea: collect some of your DNA, pick the display format/style you like, send it to DNA11, get back a cool print.
I think the DNA11 prints make very cool gifts- I gave one to my nephew for him to make a print from his own DNA.
I suppose in some ways, the DNA11 prints are for the ultimate narcissist, but I rather think they show a healthy interest in and engagement w/the rest of the world.
Updated Feb 20, 2007
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Sector 7 by David Wiesner
First to recommend
2 people recommended this item
Description
OK- admit, you are really sick of reading the same insipid story to your kids every night. Never fear, David Weisner has created a number of books that appeal to both toddlers and adults.
Sector 7 is a surreal tale of a boy who befriends the clouds and persuades them to shapeshift into giant cloudfish floating along in the sky.
The book has no little text but huge, beautiful images that encourage both the parent and the child to make up and personalize the storyline in ways that can enrich the experience for all.
Updated Feb 10, 2006
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The Atlantic
First to recommend
2 people recommended this item
Description
The Atlantic is one of the few print magazines to which I still subscribe. Having been around for 150 years, The Atlantic has a developed a keen sense of America's history and translates that sense into cogent and readable analysis of today's events. The Atlantic covers politics, culture, media, the arts, technology, and a bit of business. They tend to take a fairly progressive point of view but have certainly been known to be hawkish and/or somewhat conservative in some of their writings. Overall, I highly recommend The Atlantic as a magazine for active, pragmatic thinkers who want to engage in the world today.
Updated Dec 4, 2006
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Let My People Go Surfing: The Education of a Reluctant Businessman by Yvon Chouinard
First to recommend
2 people recommended this item
Description
A fantastic business book and autobiography for any entrepreneur written by climbing pioneer, environmental hero, and outdoor technical clothing category-creator, Yvon Chouinard, founder of Patagonia.
Updated Jun 11, 2006
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How to Know God: The Yoga Aphorisms of Patanjali
First to recommend
Description
The best, most accessible book explicating Patanjali's famous Yoga sutras. Author Christopher Isherwood does an excellent job of explaining the multi-thousand year old sutras in language and metaphors that make sense to a modern Western reader. Also, the Sanskrit and arcana of ancient Indian/Vedic culture are kept to a minimum so you get the important concepts w/out the mass of historical details that tend to be of more interest to scholars than lay readers.
If you do yoga and want to understand your practice better or have a general interest in what might be the oldest technology/techniques of consciousness, I highly recommend you acquaint yourself w/Patanjali and recommend Isherwood's book as a highly readable and approachable introduction.
Updated Jan 20, 2007
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gordon
I am the CEO and co-founder of ThisNext. I am a serial net entrepreneur and have all the baggage that goes along...
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