A quick heads up: Steven Levitt and Stephen DubÂnÂer, authors of the major bestÂseller FreakoÂnomÂics, have moved the relatÂed FreakoÂnomÂics blogs to the New York Times. You can now catch it here, and you’ll need to creÂate a free user account with the Times if you (inexÂplicÂaÂbly) don’t already have one. It looks like the FreakoÂnomÂics guys are off to a good provocaÂtive start. Today’s post asks If You Were a TerÂrorÂist, How Would You Attack?
This doesÂn’t need much in the way of an introÂducÂtion. On July 21, J.K. RowlÂing preÂsentÂed a pubÂlic readÂing of the first chapÂter of the newÂly-pubÂlished HarÂry PotÂter and the DeathÂly HalÂlows. It took place at the NatÂurÂal HisÂtoÂry MuseÂum in LonÂdon. Take it away J.K.
BestÂselling writer Jonathan Lethem — author of one of my favorite novÂels MothÂerÂless BrookÂlyn — has put togethÂer an offer that’s hard to beat. He’ll sell you a stoÂry for a book, play, or screenÂplay for a mere $1. Then you can take the stoÂry idea, make it your own, and move it in new and unexÂpectÂed direcÂtions.
This is obviÂousÂly not a get-rich-quick scheme. It’s actuÂalÂly more about bringÂing LarÂry Lessig’s notion of free culÂture to the litÂerÂary domain. You can get more on Lethem’s ideas here, but the upshot is that Lethem, being a fan of “adapÂtaÂtions, approÂpriÂaÂtions, colÂlage, and samÂpling,” wants artists to “make mateÂrÂiÂal free and availÂable for [creÂative] reuse.” (Some of this thinkÂing informs a recent piece in Harper’s called “The ecstaÂsy of influÂence: A plaÂgiaÂrism.”) The iniÂtiaÂtive, which he calls The PromisÂcuÂous MateÂriÂals Project, offers a step in the right direcÂtion.
RelatÂed ConÂtent: Give a lisÂten to this engagÂing interÂview with Lethem where he talks about this project and more. Also check out Lethem and othÂer authors speakÂing at Google.
Tell us what books have changed your life. Three days left. We have over 30 conÂtriÂbuÂtions so far. Keep them comÂing.
That sounds like a strange propoÂsiÂtion. PodÂcasts are inherÂentÂly mobile, so what can make them more mobile? ApparÂentÂly myPodÂder can. It’s a free, cross-platÂform softÂware packÂage put out by PodÂcast Ready that has two notable advanÂtages. Once you regÂisÂter and install their free softÂware, you’ll no longer need to downÂload podÂcasts first to your comÂputÂer and then to your mp3 playÂer. Instead, you’ll be able to downÂload them directÂly to your MP3 playÂer via the interÂnet and cut out the midÂdle step. Beyond that, myPodÂder lets you update your mp3 playÂer from anyÂwhere you can get an interÂnet conÂnecÂtion. Now, you’re no longer forced to update your podÂcast colÂlecÂtion from one locaÂtion (as is the case with iTunes). It’s all free, so give it a good look.
If you have any othÂer good tips for workÂing with podÂcasts, please send them our way. Drop them in our comÂments below, or send them **@******re.com”>via email.
If you’re genÂerÂalÂly wonÂderÂing how to work with podÂcasts in the first place, please see our PodÂcast Primer.
A couÂple of years ago I met Jason Epstein in passÂing and he excitÂedÂly described his new project: a machine to print On Demand Books. The plan is finalÂly bearÂing fruit: the EspresÂso Book Machine was demonÂstratÂed at the New York PubÂlic Library on WednesÂday. Three of the machines are out in the wild, and I susÂpect many more will appear if the proÂtoÂtypes live up to the hype.
The idea of books on demand is a litÂtle eerie but emiÂnentÂly effiÂcient. PubÂlishÂers and bookÂsellers waste milÂlions of dolÂlars, tons of fuel and forests of paper shipÂping, returnÂing and trashÂing unsold books every year. And if a machine like this isn’t too expenÂsive to run, it could revÂoÂluÂtionÂize eduÂcaÂtion in less accesÂsiÂble or wealthy parts of the world. The real quesÂtion is whether such a machine might do to bookÂstores what NetÂflix has done to video rental stores. The EspresÂso machine can only print paperÂbacks, so for now I think Barnes and Noble is safe. And even if the shelves are replaced with digÂiÂtal browsÂing disÂplays one day, many cusÂtomers will still want to enjoy their purÂchasÂes with an overÂpriced latÂte and pasÂtry. The social spaces of book-readÂing have yet to be destroyed by Amazon.com or the bloÂgosÂphere, so I think they’ll surÂvive a new kind of espresÂso machine.
What Book Changed Your Life? ParÂticÂiÂpate in a Group Project. Tell Us and Become EliÂgiÂble for a Prize .
Check out our colÂlecÂtion of free audioÂbooks.
We’re tryÂing out someÂthing a litÂtle difÂferÂent today, and we hope that you’ll parÂticÂiÂpate because by givÂing more, you’ll get more in return. (So far we have 18 peoÂple parÂticÂiÂpatÂing, now it is your turn.)
We want to draw on the colÂlecÂtive wisÂdom of our readÂers and find out what great books you’ve read, and which parÂticÂuÂlar one made a difÂferÂence in your life. That is, what book has led you to look difÂferÂentÂly at litÂerÂaÂture, thinkÂing, career, love, friendÂship, death, or whatÂevÂer you conÂsidÂer imporÂtant?
At some point latÂer next week, we’ll bunÂdle the subÂmisÂsions and post them for you. We’re hopÂing that this will give everyÂone a list of great and imporÂtant books to read.
If you’d like to parÂticÂiÂpate, please make a subÂmisÂsion in the comÂments below, or **@******re.com”>via email. In whatÂevÂer you write, please list the name of the book and the author, and then menÂtion why the book matÂtered to you. (Your explaÂnaÂtion can be as brief or as long as you like.) When we post the replies, we won’t use your names unless you othÂerÂwise conÂsent. And we’ll othÂerÂwise proÂtect the priÂvaÂcy of your email addressÂes.
FinalÂly, we’ll ranÂdomÂly select one name from all of the subÂmisÂsions, and send that conÂtribÂuÂtor a nice $50 gift cerÂtifiÂcate from Amazon.com.
We look forÂward to hearÂing from you, and thanks for takÂing part.
Today, by popÂuÂlar demand, we’re runÂning an updatÂed verÂsion of one of our more popÂuÂlar posts to date. Enjoy…
At hasÂtened speeds durÂing the past year, we have seen book lovers recordÂing homeÂgrown audioÂbooks and postÂing them on sites like LibÂrivox (see our colÂlecÂtion of free audioÂbooks here). For obviÂous copyÂright reaÂsons, these audio texts largeÂly come from the pubÂlic domain, and, yes, they’re someÂtimes of uneven qualÂiÂty. Some good, some okay. Among the recent releasÂes, you’d expect to find great clasÂsiÂcal works — the major plays by ShakeÂspeare, the essenÂtial treaÂtisÂes by PlaÂto and othÂer philosoÂphers, etc. — and you do get some of those. HowÂevÂer, far more often you get texts by more modÂern writÂers who wrote withÂin the thriller, sci fi and advenÂture genÂres. Here, I’m talkÂing about WashÂingÂton IrvÂing, Robert Louis StevenÂson, Edgar Allen Poe, Arthur Conan Doyle, and H.G. Wells. (Find these podÂcasts here.)
It seems rather fitÂting that Wells, the father of sciÂence ficÂtion, would be among the first to have his writÂings digÂiÂtalÂly recordÂed and disÂtribÂuted. NowaÂdays, you can downÂload, sync and lisÂten to his major works – The New AccelÂerÂaÂtor (mp3), The InvisÂiÂble Man (iTunes — feed), The Time Machine (iTunes — feed), and The War of the Worlds (iTunes). But what’s betÂter than all of this, at least in our minds, is this vinÂtage gem …
Here you can downÂload the verÂsion of The War of the Worlds that Orson Welles famousÂly adaptÂed and aired on nationÂal radio in OctoÂber 1938. PreÂsentÂed so that it soundÂed like an actuÂal news broadÂcast, the Orson Welles verÂsion was misÂtakÂen for truth by many lisÂtenÂers who caught the proÂgram midÂstream (more info here), and, soon enough, they found themÂselves fleeÂing an unfoldÂing MarÂtÂian invaÂsion, runÂning down into their baseÂments with guns cocked and ready to fire. You can catch the mp3 verÂsion of the famous Welles recordÂing here (and also alterÂnaÂtiveÂly here). Have fun with this broadÂcast. It’s a clasÂsic.
RelatÂed conÂtent: For more old time, sci-fi radio broadÂcasts, check out this nice colÂlecÂtion on iTunes.
Also see: VinÂtage Radio Archive: The Lone Ranger, Abbott & CostelÂlo, and Bob Hope
In 2003, the HarÂvard biolÂoÂgist E.O. WilÂson wrote a wideÂly read essay that called for an “EncyÂcloÂpeÂdia of Life.” Summed up simÂply, WilÂson had in mind “an online refÂerÂence source and dataÂbase” that catÂaÂlogued “every one of the 1.8 milÂlion species that are named and known on this planÂet,” not to menÂtion the many organÂisms that aren’t yet known. When fulÂly comÂpiled, the web-based dataÂbase would offer a “macroÂscope” of sorts, a way to do comÂparÂaÂtive biolÂoÂgy and ecolÂoÂgy on an unpreceÂdentÂed scale, allowÂing sciÂenÂtists to gain new insights into the immense bioÂdiÂverÂsiÂty of our planÂet.
WilÂson is still pushÂing this vision, and he laid it out most recentÂly at the TED Talks conÂferÂence in MonÂterey, CalÂiÂforÂnia. (Watch the video below.) The enviÂsioned encyÂcloÂpeÂdia will be a colÂlabÂoÂraÂtive enterÂprise, modÂeled someÂwhat along the lines of Wikipedia (see some demonÂstraÂtion pages here). And it’ll be accesÂsiÂble anyÂwhere, anyÂtime, to whoÂevÂer could benÂeÂfit from it. It’s expectÂed to take close to a decade to comÂplete the project, although some key comÂpoÂnents of the dataÂbase will be availÂable in 2008. (See this FAQ for more details.)
For more inforÂmaÂtion on E.O. WilÂson, I would encourÂage you to lisÂten to Bill MoyÂers’ proÂfile of WilÂson (iTunes — Feed — MP3) which recentÂly aired on PBS. You may also want to give some attenÂtion to Wilson’s latÂest book, The CreÂation: An Appeal to Save Life on Earth.
Every year the folks at the BulÂwÂer-LytÂton FicÂtion ConÂtest celÂeÂbrate their love for bad prose by runÂning “a whimÂsiÂcal litÂerÂary comÂpeÂtiÂtion that chalÂlenges entrants to comÂpose the openÂing senÂtence to the worst of all posÂsiÂble novÂels.” They’ve just announced this year’s chamÂpiÂon senÂtences and they’re well worth a read. The conÂtest accepts entries year-round, so if you think you’ve got what it takes to write the worst senÂtence of 2008, feel free to take your shot.
When you think of The New YorkÂer, you don’t genÂerÂalÂly think of a magÂaÂzine with a subÂstanÂtial digÂiÂtal footÂprint. But, ever so gradÂuÂalÂly, under David RemÂnickÂ’s ediÂtoÂrÂiÂal direcÂtion, this instiÂtuÂtion in AmerÂiÂcan jourÂnalÂism and culÂturÂal comÂmenÂtary has launched a series of digÂiÂtal iniÂtiaÂtives that comÂpleÂment the traÂdiÂtionÂal print jourÂnal. And when you add them all up, you realÂize the magÂaÂzine is pretÂty far along the digÂiÂtal curve. How else can you look at it when The New YorkÂer now offers a fairÂly robust webÂsite, which comÂbines full pieces from the curÂrent print ediÂtion with speÂcialÂized online feaÂtures (take for examÂple the new blog by George PackÂer)? And then conÂsidÂer the fact that you can now buy on DVD the comÂplete hisÂtorÂiÂcal archive of the magÂaÂzine, going back to 1925, and then search and read through it on your comÂputÂer — all for a fairÂly scant $63. (Get your own copy here.)
More minor, but nonetheÂless interÂestÂing, forÂays into the digÂiÂtal world include some recent experÂiÂments on the podÂcast front. Not long ago, we menÂtioned that The New YorkÂer’s tradeÂmark carÂtoons have been aniÂmatÂed and can be watched as video podÂcasts (iTunes — Feed). Then there’s The New YorkÂer FicÂtion (iTunes — Feed), anothÂer relÂaÂtiveÂly new podÂcast that feaÂtures famous ficÂtion writÂers readÂing out loud selectÂed short stoÂries from the magazine’s ficÂtion archives. (It’s issued only monthÂly.) FinalÂly, to round things out, anothÂer podÂcast has recentÂly emerged, and it’s simÂply called ComÂment (iTunes — Feed) and that’s because it lets you lisÂten to a weekÂly readÂing of the magÂaÂzine’s “ComÂment” essay, often writÂten by HenÂdrik Hertzberg, Nicholas Lemann, or David RemÂnick himÂself. For a comÂplete list of New YorkÂer RSS feeds, click here.
You can find the podÂcasts menÂtioned above, and othÂers like them, in our Arts & CulÂture PodÂcast ColÂlecÂtion.
IngÂmar Bergman, one of the great filmÂmakÂers of the last cenÂtuÂry, has died at 89. You can read the full obit in the NY Times here, and catch a piece of his masÂterÂwork PerÂsona below (or buy the film in full here). Film buffs may also want to check out Bergman’s autoÂbiÂogÂraÂphy, The MagÂic Lantern.
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