JUNE 2017
AUDIO BOOK REVIEWS
by Jonathan Lowe
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The Earth is mostly covered by water,
and while driving the weather the ocean is the staging
area for geopolitical disputes over borders, climate
change, fishing, pollution, and nuclear weapons. As
former Supreme Allied Commander at NATO, Admiral
James Stavridis looks at the history of the
oceans from the point of view of the military, yet
not neglecting the science. In SEA POWER,
he shows how the geography of the oceans
have shaped the destiny of nations, including our
own (with a vast coastline that many nations do not
possess.) From the battles of Salamis and Lepanto
through to Trafalgar, the Battle of the Atlantic,
and the submarine conflicts of the Cold War, he examines
piracy and why the Arctic is the next hot spot for
dominance, with melting ice giving access to new opportunities
for exploitation of natural resources by the Russians.
A fascinating overview of history that makes for educational
listening. Narrator Marc Cashman
is a veteran voice actor whose experience extends
from radio, T V, and video games to coaching others
on technique. Stavridis has commanded destroyers and
a carrier strike group in combat. Currently he is
dean of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at
Tufts University. |
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Most communication is nonverbal. We
want to look at the faces of those testifying in Congress
and detect lies or deceit. They try to keep their
faces blank in order not to telegraph this, but subtle
clues or reactions are there in their voices and tone,
too. Their pauses, gestures. IF I UNDERSTOOD
YOU WOULD I HAVE THIS LOOK ON MY FACE? by
Alan Alda talks about how the face is judged,
not for just beauty or ugliness, but for believability.
Why paying attention to people’s reactions or
expressions when they talk is most important in understanding
what they mean. Mostly we misunderstand what people
say or mean, but by truly listening and observing
we have a better chance of connecting (and resolving
conflicts too.) Instead of waiting for people to stop
speaking so we can make another point, Alda’s
point is to LISTEN with all our senses with the objective
to UNDERSTAND. Not to “win” an argument
by demeaning or defeating anyone (or everyone) seen
as an opponent. As James Garner once put it: “I
don’t act. I react. Give me a reactor over an
actor any time. It puts you there in the moment, and
you’re less likely to flub the way you read
your lines, too.” Alda was in the movies Bridge
of Spies, The Aviator, Everyone Says I Love You, Manhattan
Murder Mystery, and Crimes & Misdemeanors. On
TV’s MASH, and Scientific American Frontiers.
He has won 7 Emmys, and is a big fan of science. “At
first I think they just wanted a famous face do the
introduction, and then narrate off camera, but I wanted
to be there and interview the scientists.” He’s
read Scientific American magazine since a kid.
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Garry Kasparov has
written another book. Titled DEEP THINKING,
it is mainly about the history (including his own
history) with computers playing chess. Detailed accounts
of his matches are augmented by ruminations on the
nature of machine intelligence. The subtitle is “Where
Machine Intelligence Ends and Human Creativity Begins.”
Kasparov has a genius IQ, and due to his association
with Deep Blue and other computer programs has an
interest in the subject (which has become popular
due to movies and books about robots taking over.)
He discusses various scientific views, including those
related by Ray Kurzweil (How to Create a Mind) and
Nick Bostrom. He doesn’t believe that hard A.I.
(the singularity of self-aware, conscious computers)
will happen anytime soon, but agrees that the days
of humans beating computers at chess is over. Having
heard those other books on the subject (including
writing a novella about hard A.I. “Transcendence
2”) I do agree, although no one knows for sure
what may happen. Predicting the future will always
be a flawed enterprise, since we don’t know
what we don’t know. Einstein imagined a new
way to look at time (that it wasn’t absolute),
and until that moment everyone accepted long held
beliefs about the nature of reality…which were
proved to be wrong. Not only did he win a Nobel Prize
for a different paper, but also became Time magazine’s
only Person of the Century. The next such Person may
be the one who creates a hard A.I., (if we survive
the process.) There is no valid reason to believe
that a hard A.I. would have the same (or any) values
which we possess (including a desire to conquer or
kill opponents) unless there is a way to instill them.
So the “singularity” is unlikely to happen
(except by accident) until we understand human consciousness
(also a mystery.) The path to it is unknown, and only
by traveling the correct path can it be achieved.
Kasparov reads the introduction on the audiobook,
which is then taken up by voice actor Bob Brown. A
chess fan’s “must listen.” |
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Recommended
new fiction on audio this month includes BANG
by Barry Lyga, narrated by Charlie Thurston; WOMAN
17 by Edan Lepucki, read by Cassandra Campbell
and Phoebe Strole; HOLD BACK THE STARS by
Katie Khan, read by Gemma Whelan; and SHADOW
MAN by Alan Drew, read by Will Damron. |
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