We've wined, we've waited, now it's time to celebrate 2016

[Cat_Robutt]

@sjoh197 Delicious!!! I still remember when I discovered prunes were just dried plums 

@hippyscientist I can introduce you to Steven Universe if you'd like! It's an animated kids' show that's quite sweet without being twee. Also, if you like fantasy and crime/thrillers, I highly encourage American Elsewhere by Robert Jackson Bennett. It's a long read, but it's amazing. His newest two books, City of Stairs and City of Blades, are also fantastic, especially if you like women of color kicking ass, gods, monsters, and lots of intrigue. 

@Neist Do you have any favorite biographies/ biographers? And any least fave?

[hippyscientist]

@Cat_RobuttPrunes are dried plums?!?!?! How have I gone this long without knowing that?!

 Thanks for the book recommendations I will have to check them out. I can't wait to have these conversations in person in a few months!! I might have found a drone view video of the campus earlier and it got me all excited again.

[Cat_Robutt]

@hippyscientist  You learn something new every day!!! Oh, btw, for you and @rhombusbombus––grad assistants can now register for the AETNA dental plan! Yay? 

 

[Neist]

46 minutes ago, hippyscientist said:

@Cat_RobuttPrunes are dried plums?!?!?! How have I gone this long without knowing that?!

It's okay.  We still love ya.

59 minutes ago, Cat_Robutt said:

@Neist Do you have any favorite biographies/ biographers? And any least fave?

Hm. This is a difficult question. I'm not sure if I have any favorite authors (because so few authors produce repeat titles concerning my interests, besides maybe Walter Isaacson), but I really enjoyed The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Cataloging the World, Hedy's Folly, and The Professor and the Madman. I've also recently completed and like Neanderthal Man: In Search of Lost Genomes; I liked it a lot. I also like quite a few titles that aren't strict narratives but narrate history (if that makes any sense). They tend to be quasi-biographical. Examples include The Ghost Hunters by Blum and The Ghost Map by Johnson.

I'm not sure about least favorites, but I'm still up in the air about Walter Isaacson. I know he's immensely popular, but I'm not sure if it's really my thing. I need to get through his latest book and see how it rubs me.

[Cat_Robutt]

@Neist Wait.....how have I never heard about Hedy's Folly?! Hedy Lamarr was AMAZING. She's one of the most famous women in modern communication history (or she isn't and only I'm excited about her)! I will definitely get this book. I don't think I've read anything by Walter Isaacson; for me, my least favorite would have to be the Orchid Thief by Susan Orlean. It just.....no, hun, no.

Do you like documentaries?

[Danger_Zone]

7 hours ago, hippyscientist said:

Now that my book history is aired to the world, anyone else want to contribute theirs? 

At the moment I've been reading a lot of Japanese fiction (Haruki Murakami is my favourite, as well as Kobo Abe) and graphic novels (Junji Ito). I generally enjoy memoirs, books told in the first person, dystopian novels and some philosophical/existentialist-type books (Kafka, Camus). I think my favourite novels would have to be Lolita, The Stranger, The Handmaid's Tale and Kafka on the Shore. 

Unfortunately I haven't really read any fantasy! Though I'd like to get into it eventually. 

 @Neist What kind of video games did you play, if you don't mind me asking?

@sjoh197 I'm pretty sad at this because I can't eat peaches, but I still love when they're in season because they smell really nice!

[Neist]

3 hours ago, Cat_Robutt said:

@Neist Wait.....how have I never heard about Hedy's Folly?! Hedy Lamarr was AMAZING. She's one of the most famous women in modern communication history (or she isn't and only I'm excited about her)! I will definitely get this book. I don't think I've read anything by Walter Isaacson; for me, my least favorite would have to be the Orchid Thief by Susan Orlean. It just.....no, hun, no.

Do you like documentaries?

Hedy's Folly is also written by Richard Rhodes, an author and historian I really adore. I've loved all of his books, even if they are generally pretty huge. And I do love documentaries. Their my favorite genre of film, actually.  I don't watch as many now that I don't have Netflix, but I still love'em. I've considered getting that Sundance documentary Netflix-like service.

2 hours ago, Danger_Zone said:

 @Neist What kind of video games did you play, if you don't mind me asking?

I've dabbled in everything, to be honest. I've spent thousands of hours in MMORPGs, and I've spent hundreds of hours perfecting my craft in Call of Duty. I'll play pretty much anything, assuming it's good. However, I've pretty much sold everything off by my immense Nintendo DS collection (I have around 450) and my Steam games. I only really play games on those platforms anymore, or I would if I had time.  

[MarineBluePsy]

13 hours ago, Neist said:

Part of me wonders if they aren't going to take some creative liberties in the series. And I guess they could keep making shows if they simply push beyond the inevitable conclusion that we must expect to happen? They are already getting close to that point.

I've wondered this too.  Norman is still  young so they have a little time, but I don't get how he's going to become the Norman we know he becomes in this small town with its cast of weirdos.  If he moves ok that makes sense, but then will none of these small town nuts show up there?  And is Dylan really going to stay away?  I don't like this new trend of writers writing shows they intend to end.  I miss when everyone pretended shows would never end and they just seemed to go on forever.

[hippyscientist]

On the subject of books, if anyone wants a feel-good kids book that revolves around friendship, swimming and dolphins my favourite book of all time is Dolphin Boy Blue by Felice Arena. I still go back and read it at least once a year. When swimming competitively I used to wish I had a Dana dolphin cheering me on. It's not going to win any literary awards but it will make you feel warm and fuzzy and loved inside. Plus you'll read it in about an hour. 

@Danger_Zone gaming is great - I'm just getting into it by using my friend's PS4 but so far I am enjoying the Assassin's Creed games. I think when I get my own I'll enjoy things like Skyrim too. Not a huge fan of the "shooty shooty" games like COD.

[sjoh197]

7 hours ago, hippyscientist said:

On the subject of books, if anyone wants a feel-good kids book that revolves around friendship, swimming and dolphins my favourite book of all time is Dolphin Boy Blue by Felice Arena. I still go back and read it at least once a year. When swimming competitively I used to wish I had a Dana dolphin cheering me on. It's not going to win any literary awards but it will make you feel warm and fuzzy and loved inside. Plus you'll read it in about an hour. 

@Danger_Zone gaming is great - I'm just getting into it by using my friend's PS4 but so far I am enjoying the Assassin's Creed games. I think when I get my own I'll enjoy things like Skyrim too. Not a huge fan of the "shooty shooty" games like COD.

Noooo.... don't play skyrim on a console. Use steam. For the love of god use steam.

Also... if you like AC and Skyrim... but are new to gaming, try dragon age inquisition and the witcher 2 and 3. 

Edited May 20, 2016 by sjoh197

[Pink Fuzzy Bunny]

@hippyscientist If you get a chance, I highly recommend "Genius" by James Gleick - it's a biography of Feynman himself and probably darn near my favorite book of all time. And in regards to physics-y books, Gleick's other books are simply phenomenal, especially "Chaos". Gleick is one of my all-time favorite writers and the fact that he writes about physics is definitely a plus!

[Neist]

13 minutes ago, Pink Fuzzy Bunny said:

@hippyscientist If you get a chance, I highly recommend "Genius" by James Gleick - it's a biography of Feynman himself and probably darn near my favorite book of all time. And in regards to physics-y books, Gleick's other books are simply phenomenal, especially "Chaos". Gleick is one of my all-time favorite writers and the fact that he writes about physics is definitely a plus!

I'll second anything by Gleick. He's very readable and engaging. The Information, his last book, was a little bit dry in parts, but I still loved it.  He also wrote a decent biography of Newton. If you know nothing about Newton, you should read a biography of him sometime. He was a character!

[Pink Fuzzy Bunny]

7 minutes ago, Neist said:

I'll second anything by Gleick. He's very readable and engaging. The Information, his last book, was a little bit dry in parts, but I still loved it.  He also wrote a decent biography of Newton. If you know nothing about Newton, you should read a biography of him sometime. He was a character!

I actually did read that one as well! I believe it was called "Newton"? @hippyscientist add that to your list as well

[Cat_Robutt]

These recommendations are awesome! I second @sjoh197's rec of Dragon Age, and would add Mass Effect there as well. Also, if you do have Steam, Undertale is a fantastic, relatively short game that is well worth it. It's both really sweet and dark at the same time; I've played it three or four times now.

Any Nintendo nerds here? I'm replaying Zelda: Skyward Sword and had forgotten how great the music is.  It's a great soundtrack to have in the background when studying!

[jlt646]

1 hour ago, Cat_Robutt said:

Any Nintendo nerds here? I'm replaying Zelda: Skyward Sword and had forgotten how great the music is.  It's a great soundtrack to have in the background when studying!

I am pretty much only into Nintendo games- specifically Zelda! I never really got so into playing that I called myself a gamer, but Zelda is the exception. So many hours of my life spent in Hyrule. 

[Danger_Zone]

12 hours ago, hippyscientist said:

 

@Danger_Zone gaming is great - I'm just getting into it by using my friend's PS4 but so far I am enjoying the Assassin's Creed games. I think when I get my own I'll enjoy things like Skyrim too. Not a huge fan of the "shooty shooty" games like COD.

Those games are great! I don't play a lot of console games (don't have access to consoles much so I play steam games) but Skyrim is really fun. I'm in the middle of Assassin's Creed Black Flag right now. Based on those games, I would recommend the Fallout games (especially New Vegas) and Far Cry 3/4 if you haven't already played them.

I only play a few first person shooters with some friends, but I absolutely love Team Fortress 2 and Overwatch. 

2 hours ago, Cat_Robutt said:

These recommendations are awesome! I second @sjoh197's rec of Dragon Age, and would add Mass Effect there as well. Also, if you do have Steam, Undertale is a fantastic, relatively short game that is well worth it. It's both really sweet and dark at the same time; I've played it three or four times now.

Any Nintendo nerds here? I'm replaying Zelda: Skyward Sword and had forgotten how great the music is.  It's a great soundtrack to have in the background when studying!

Undertale is great! For Halloween I made my boyfriend a Sans mask, he's a big fan of it too. 

Nintendo is probably my favourite console. I'm kind of just getting into Zelda now as I hadn't really played it much as a kid, but they're great games.

 

[sjoh197]

9 minutes ago, Danger_Zone said:

Those games are great! I don't play a lot of console games (don't have access to consoles much so I play steam games) but Skyrim is really fun. I'm in the middle of Assassin's Creed Black Flag right now. Based on those games, I would recommend the Fallout games (especially New Vegas) and Far Cry 3/4 if you haven't already played them.

 

Oh see... no. I don't play video games. In fact... the only game I do play is Starcraft as a homage to my mid 90's rearing under the guidance of my techie dad. We had an entire LAN cafe going on upstairs. Multi-station. I was only 7. However, my partner is an avid videogamer... and I could basically write reviews from the hours upon hours of mindless games I've watched. I cringe thinking of how many high-value skyrim potions I've been asked to concoct from recipes on the internet... 

One of the more pressing arguments my partner and I have had recently in life was over the geth vs quarian battle in mass effect 3, since he didn't import his ME2 to save them both. It took like a week for him to not be butt-hurt over it.... to the point that he re-bought ME2 just to import a truce. 

And Fallout 4 was lame. 

[Neist]

8 minutes ago, sjoh197 said:

One of the more pressing arguments my partner and I have had recently in life was over the geth vs quarian battle in mass effect 3, since he didn't import his ME2 to save them both. It took like a week for him to not be butt-hurt over it.... to the point that he re-bought ME2 just to import a truce. 

I thought I'd chime in that Mass Effect is my favorite game of all time. I casually picked up the original and didn't stop playing for nine hours. I've marathoned each game immediately upon release.

Such a great game.

[Danger_Zone]

I need to check out Mass Effect, I've heard it's a great series. I have so many games I want to play, though. I'm planning on building a new computer this summer since mine can't handle newer games, so I've been unable to play some.  Too bad I will soon have less time to enjoy them, though.  

Edited May 20, 2016 by Danger_Zone

[sjoh197]

9 minutes ago, Danger_Zone said:

I need to check out Mass Effect, I've heard it's a great series. I have so many games I want to play, though. I'm planning on building a new computer this summer since mine can't handle newer games, so I've been unable to play some.  Too bad I will soon have less time to enjoy them, though.  

Basically quoting my boyfriend last summer "My computer can't play new games.... waaahhhh.... waaaaahhh.... While you're gone for the summer I'm going a buy a new $4000 laptop to play games on instead of buying you an engagement ring... waaaahh." 

Lol. 

Edited May 20, 2016 by sjoh197

[sjoh197]

@Danger_Zone Also don't play ME as a renegade. They misinterpreted the word renegade to mean asshole. 

[Neist]

7 minutes ago, sjoh197 said:

@Danger_Zone Also don't play ME as a renegade. They misinterpreted the word renegade to mean asshole. 

Haha. This is so true. 

@Danger_Zone, you could always pick up a cheap Xbox 360 and play it that way.  The game plays better with a controller, I think.

[Danger_Zone]

15 minutes ago, sjoh197 said:

Basically quoting my boyfriend last summer "My computer can't play new games.... waaahhhh.... waaaaahhh.... While you're gone for the summer I'm going a buy a new $4000 laptop to play games on instead of buying you an engagement ring... waaaahh." 

Lol. 

It sucks how often you need to upgrade your computer in order to keep up with new games. Did he really pay that much though? Seems a bit excessive but laptops tend to be more expensive. If you can get a desktop instead that's probably much cheaper and easier to replace parts for if needed. 

[Neist]

7 minutes ago, Danger_Zone said:

It sucks how often you need to upgrade your computer in order to keep up with new games. Did he really pay that much though? Seems a bit excessive but laptops tend to be more expensive. If you can get a desktop instead that's probably much cheaper and easier to replace parts for if needed. 

It's only expensive if you want to play games at absurdly large resolutions or with dual monitors. 

My thoughtfully-built $1200 machine from 3 years ago can still play anything I throw at it, or at least it can at 1680x1050, which is my monitor's native resolution anyway.

[sjoh197]

14 minutes ago, Danger_Zone said:

It sucks how often you need to upgrade your computer in order to keep up with new games. Did he really pay that much though? Seems a bit excessive but laptops tend to be more expensive. If you can get a desktop instead that's probably much cheaper and easier to replace parts for if needed. 

Yeah.... he's actually a really hardcore gamer. It's his hobby. He had his last laptop for almost 6 years. Sooooo.... I can't really fault him. 

And that was with an extended warranty. And a new headset and mouse.