MashÂable has postÂed a list of over 20 sites from where you can downÂload lots of e‑books, and it’s all apparÂentÂly legal. Here’s the list.
Want free audioÂbooks? Check out this colÂlecÂtion.
Not Your Father’s Scientific American
The popÂuÂlar sciÂence magÂaÂzine, SciÂenÂtifÂic AmerÂiÂcan, has been around a long time, since 1845 in fact. That makes it the oldÂest periÂodÂiÂcal in conÂtinÂuÂous pubÂliÂcaÂtion in the UnitÂed States. Now, the magÂaÂzine that your great-great-great grandÂfaÂther read has launched a new webÂsite called 60 SecÂond SciÂence. Based on SciÂenÂtifÂic AmerÂiÂcan’s daiÂly podÂcast that’s also called 60 SecÂond SciÂence (iTunes — Feed — Web Site), the new site gets updatÂed 12 times a day, and it feaÂtures its own audio/video podÂcasts, links to key SciÂAm artiÂcles and othÂer good stuff. Have a look, and don’t forÂget to check out our broadÂer colÂlecÂtion of SciÂence PodÂcasts.
Bob Dylan — Like A Rolling Stone 1966
It’s the numÂber one song on Rolling Stone MagÂaÂzine’s list of The 500 GreatÂest Songs of All Time. But could a magÂaÂzine with its name say othÂerÂwise?
As a quick PS, check out the new Bob Dylan PodÂcast (iTunes — Web Site). HostÂed by PatÂti Smith, this podÂcast looks at Dylan’s friends and earÂly influÂences, and also colÂlabÂoÂraÂtors disÂcuss their close relaÂtionÂships with Dylan, the stoÂries behind his greatÂest songs and othÂer memÂoÂrable moments of his career.
201 Stories by Anton Chekhov
Among RusÂsiÂa’s greatÂest writÂers, Anton Chekhov revÂoÂluÂtionÂized RussÂian draÂma and short-stoÂry writÂing. In this colÂlecÂtion, you’ll find 201 transÂlatÂed stoÂries preÂsentÂed in the order of their pubÂliÂcaÂtion. If you’re new to Chekhov, it’s recÂomÂmendÂed by the web site that you begin (and I’m quotÂing verÂbaÂtim) “with a few humorÂous stoÂries, such as Oh! the PubÂlic!, The OraÂtor, and A TransÂgresÂsion. Next try one of Chekhov’s most movÂing stoÂries, MisÂery. Among the longer stoÂries, I sugÂgest beginÂning with Ward No. 6, The Duel, and The Steppe, which conÂtains the most famous thunÂderÂstorm in litÂerÂaÂture. FinalÂly, be sure to read the famous trilÂoÂgy made of The Man in a Case, GooseÂberÂries, and About Love.” (Source: MetafilÂter)
Get free audioÂbook of ficÂtion and non-ficÂtion clasÂsics. VisÂit our AudioÂBook PodÂcast ColÂlecÂtion.
Norman Mailer Dies at 84 in NYC
Read The New York Times obit and see a slideshow.
Below you can catch a home-brewed video of MailÂer readÂing from his last novÂel, The CasÂtle in the ForÂest, which came out earÂly this year.
Landmark Moments in Film: Apocalypse Now
What do you get here? We’ve postÂed below a 7+ minute clip from FranÂcis Ford CopÂpoÂla’s AcadÂeÂmy Award-winÂning film on the VietÂnam War from 1979. It feaÂtures the famous “Ride of the Valkyries” scene. It’s worth a look, but I would actuÂalÂly recÂomÂmend watchÂing this longer, 18 minute clip here, which includes the Valkyries scene and takes you to “I love the smell of napalm in the mornÂing.” (We unforÂtuÂnateÂly couldÂn’t embed the longer clip on our site.)
To see ApocÂaÂlypse Now in full, you can buy the film here or rent the movie from NetÂflix.
100 Photographs that Changed the World
DigÂiÂtal JourÂnalÂist, a web site affilÂiÂatÂed with the UniÂverÂsiÂty of Texas, has postÂed 100 world-changÂing phoÂtographs by the iconÂic LIFE magÂaÂzine. You can read the introÂducÂtion to the colÂlecÂtion here, or start with the first powÂerÂful image and then advance through a samÂpling of the othÂer impact-filled images that topped their list.
Feed readÂers, check out our PodÂcast Library here.
The Psychology of Evil: The Stanford Prison Experiment to Abu Ghraib
Back in 1971, Philip ZimÂbarÂdo, a StanÂford psyÂcholÂoÂgy proÂfesÂsor, set up an experÂiÂment that quickÂly and now famousÂly went awry. Here, ZimÂbarÂdo had underÂgradÂuÂates play the role of prisÂonÂers and prison guards in a mock prison enviÂronÂment. Meant to last two weeks, the experÂiÂment was cut short after only six days when, as The StanÂford Prison ExperÂiÂment web site puts it, the guards “became sadisÂtic and [the] prisÂonÂers became depressed and showed signs of extreme stress.” For ZimÂbarÂdo, the way things played out says a lot about what hapÂpens when good, averÂage peoÂple are put in bad sitÂuÂaÂtions. And it speaks to how torÂture sceÂnarÂios, like those at Abu Ghraib, become posÂsiÂble. (For more on the parÂalÂlels between the prison experÂiÂment and the torÂture in Iraq, you may want to check out ZimÂbarÂdo’s recent video-capÂtured talk at GoogleÂplex.
Below, we’ve postÂed a video that offers a quick verÂsion, with origÂiÂnal footage, of how the prison experÂiÂment went down. If you’re interÂestÂed in underÂstandÂing what he calls the “Lucifer Effect,” the title of his new book (which, by the way, was just reviewed by Martha NussÂbaum in the Times Online), then it’s worth your time.
Deadhead Hunter and Dirty Hairy
Catch the full colÂlecÂtion of aniÂmatÂed New YorkÂer carÂtoons here on YouTube and our perÂsonÂal favorite here.
How Radiohead’s Experiment Turned Out
In mid-OctoÂber, RadioÂhead released its latÂest album, In RainÂbows, and began a fairÂly novÂel experÂiÂment. They cut the record labels out of the equaÂtion and let fans downÂload the album directÂly from the RadioÂhead web site, for whatÂevÂer price they saw fit. A few weeks latÂer, some finanÂcial figÂures are comÂing out, givÂing us a sense of how well the experÂiÂment went.
AccordÂing to a study by comÂScore Inc., 62% of the estiÂmatÂed 1.2 milÂlion visÂiÂtors (in OctoÂber) to the RadioÂhead site downÂloaded the album and paid nothÂing whatÂsoÂevÂer. The remainÂing 38% paid an averÂage of $6. OverÂall, the band averÂaged $2.26 per downÂload and netÂted about $2.7 milÂlion dolÂlars in total, a numÂber that’s well below the earÂliÂer estiÂmates of $6-$10 milÂlion. In the end, it’s imporÂtant to rememÂber that the band gets to keep all the revÂenue (instead of sharÂing it with the record comÂpaÂnies), and apparÂentÂly the trafÂfic to RadioÂheadÂ’s web site genÂerÂatÂed handÂsome increÂmenÂtal sales of high-priced disÂcboxÂes. It’s estiÂmatÂed that for every $1 spent on digÂiÂtal downÂloads, anothÂer $2 was spent on hard copies, which makes RadioÂheadÂ’s overÂall take even highÂer. What conÂcluÂsions to draw? One is that RadioÂhead fans didÂn’t exactÂly delivÂer the goods and demonÂstrate the powÂer of this new direct disÂtriÂbÂuÂtion modÂel. It may have worked modÂerÂateÂly well for RadioÂhead. But will a lessÂer band take the risk? Not so likeÂly. At least not now.
A quick PS: It looks like RadioÂhead is planÂning to do its first webÂcast in five years. Watch for more inforÂmaÂtion here.
Source: comÂScore press release and blog
America’s Endless Capacity to Reward Failure
Please God give me the luck to enter the upper echelons of the American elite — the upper, upper crust where normal rules don’t apply, where illogic reigns, where failure doesn’t have consequences, only out-sized rewards. Please give me the luck to fail splendidly one day (even to bring a major company or a nation itself to near ruin) and yet get nothing less than the platinum parachute that a lucky few deserve:
- Stan O’Neal, CEO of MerÂill Lynch, recentÂly led the bank to take a $7.9 bilÂlion write-down because of bad deals in the sub-prime marÂket, resultÂing in a $2.3 bilÂlion loss, the worst loss in 93 years for MerÂrill. As he began to feel the heat, O’Neal secretÂly startÂed lookÂing to sell the bank to Wachovia, a deal that could have perÂsonÂalÂly netÂted him an estiÂmatÂed $250 milÂlion. Instead, the board of direcÂtors oustÂed him last week and he got to walk with $161.5 milÂlion in secuÂriÂties and retireÂment benÂeÂfits, the fifth-largest exit-pay packÂage for a U.S. execÂuÂtive. It’s good to be the king.
- As the subÂprime mortÂgage marÂket meltÂed down this sumÂmer, James Cayne, the chief execÂuÂtive of Bear Stearns, was nowhere to be found. In this midst of the criÂsis, two of the bank’s hedge funds colÂlapsed. But, accordÂing to The Wall Street JourÂnal, Cayne was out of town for ten days and incomÂmuÂniÂcaÂdo. No cellÂphone. No BlackÂberÂry. NothÂing. Where was he? PlayÂing in a bridge tourÂnaÂment in Nashville (and it’s alleged by the JourÂnal that he has a penÂchant for smokÂing pot at such tourÂnaÂments). ForÂtuÂnateÂly, his team placed in the top third of the comÂpeÂtiÂtion, and he gets to keep his highÂly lucraÂtive job. In the meanÂtime, Cayne let WarÂren SpecÂtor, the comÂpaÂny’s PresÂiÂdent, take the fall. And Bear just announced that it’s layÂing off 2% of its workÂforce. It’s good to be the king.
- Don RumsÂfeld, the forÂmer SecÂreÂtary of Defense, used the Iraq War as a provÂing ground for his theÂoÂries about how the US army should fight the modÂern war and defend itself against the unknown and the unexÂpectÂed. RumsÂfeld’s mantra was to keep the armies small, mobile and high-tech. And that’s what we did for four years in Iraq, despite mountÂing eviÂdence that we had too few troops on the ground. RumsÂfeld, who could nevÂer adjust his theÂoÂries to the realÂiÂties in Iraq (see this piece in the Armed Forces JourÂnal), evenÂtuÂalÂly got forced out, leavÂing behind a mess that will conÂsume the US for a decade or more. What’s the fallÂout? Months latÂer, RumsÂfeld gets StanÂford’s seal of approval. In SepÂtemÂber, StanÂford’s Hoover InstiÂtuÂtion announced that he will join as a “disÂtinÂguished visÂitÂing felÂlow” where he will parÂticÂiÂpate on a task force of scholÂars and experts focusÂing on “issues perÂtainÂing to ideÂolÂoÂgy and terÂror” in a post 9–11 enviÂronÂment. It’s preÂciseÂly the same flawed vision that landÂed the US in a deep hole that the StanÂford-affilÂiÂatÂed think tank is choosÂing to honÂor. Once again, it’s good to be the king.
Amen.
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