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1632, by Eric Flint
1984, by George Orwell
2001: A Space Odyssey, by Arthur C. Clarke
20,000 Leagues Under The Sea, by Jules Verne

The Acts Of Caine Series, by Matthew Woodring Stover
The Algebraist, by Iain M. Banks
Altered Carbon, by Richard K. Morgan
American Gods, by Neil Gaiman
Anansi Boys, by Neil Gaiman
Anathem, by Neal Stephenson
Animal Farm, by George Orwell
The Anubis Gates, by Tim Powers
Armor, by John Steakley

The Baroque Cycle, by Neal Stephenson
Battlefield Earth, by L. Ron Hubbard
Beggars In Spain, by Nancy Kress
The Belgariad, by David Eddings
The Black Company Series, by Glen Cook
The Black Jewels Series, by Anne Bishop
The Book Of The New Sun, by Gene Wolfe
Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley
Bridge Of Birds, by Barry Hughart

The Callahan’s Series, by Spider Robinson
A Canticle For Leibowitz, by Walter M. Miller
The Cat Who Walked Through Walls, by Robert Heinlein
Cat’s Cradle , by Kurt Vonnegut
The Caves Of Steel, by Isaac Asimov
The Change Series, by S.M. Stirling
Childhood’s End, by Arthur C. Clarke
Children Of God, by Mary Doria Russell
The Chronicles Of Amber, by Roger Zelazny
The Chronicles Of Thomas Covenant, The Unbeliever, by Stephen R. Donaldson
The City And The City, by China Mieville
City And The Stars, by Arthur C. Clarke
A Clockwork Orange, by Anthony Burgess
The Codex Alera Series, by Jim Butcher
The Coldfire Trilogy, by C.S. Friedman
The Commonwealth Saga, by Peter F. Hamilton
The Company Wars, by C.J. Cherryh
The Conan The Barbarian Series, by R.E. Howard
Contact, by Carl Sagan
Cryptonomicon, by Neal Stephenson
The Crystal Cave, by Mary Stewart
The Culture Series, by Iain M. Banks

The Dark Tower Series, by Stephen King
The Day of Triffids, by John Wyndham
Deathbird Stories, by Harlan Ellison
The Deed of Paksennarion Trilogy, by Elizabeth Moon
The Demolished Man, by Alfred Bester
The Deverry Cycle, by Katharine Kerr
Dhalgren, by Samuel R. Delany
The Diamond Age, by Neil Stephenson
The Difference Engine, by William Gibson & Bruce Sterling
The Dispossessed, by Ursula K. LeGuin
Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?, by Philip K. Dick
Don’t Bite The Sun, by Tanith Lee
Doomsday Book, by Connie Willis
Dragonflight, by Anne McCaffrey
Dreamsnake, by Vonda McIntyre
The Dune Chronicles, by Frank Herbert

Earth, by David Brin
Earth Abides, by George R. Stewart
The Eisenhorn Omnibus, by Dan Abnett
The Elric Saga, by Michael Moorcock
Ender’s Game, by Orson Scott Card
Eon, by Greg Bear
The Eyes Of The Dragon, by Stephen King
The Eyre Affair, by Jasper Fforde

The Faded Sun Trilogy, by C.J. Cherryh
Fafhrd & The Gray Mouser Series, by Fritz Leiber
Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury
The Farseer Trilogy, by Robin Hobb
The Female Man, by Joanna Russ
The Fionavar Tapestry Trilogy, by Guy Gavriel Kay
A Fire Upon The Deep, by Vernor Vinge
The First Law Trilogy, by Joe Abercrombie
Flowers For Algernon, by Daniel Keys
The Foreigner Series, by C.J. Cherryh
The Forever War, by Joe Haldeman
The Foundation Trilogy, by Isaac Asimov
Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley

The Gaea Trilogy, by John Varley
The Gap Series, by Stephen R. Donaldson
The Gate To Women’s Country, by Sheri S. Tepper
Going Postal, by Terry Pratchett
The Gone-Away World, by Nick Harkaway
The Gormenghast Triology, by Mervyn Peake
Grass, by Sheri S. Tepper
Gravity’s Rainbow, by Thomas Pynchon

The Handmaid’s Tale, by Margaret Atwood
Hard-Boiled Wonderland And The End of The World, by Haruki Murakami
The Heechee Saga, by Frederik Pohl
The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy, by Douglas Adams
The Hollows Series, by Kim Harrison
House Of Leaves, by Mark Danielewski
The Hyperion Cantos, by Dan Simmons

I Am Legend, by Richard Matheson
I, Robot, by Isaac Asimov
The Illuminatus! Trilogy, by Robert Shea & Robert Anton Wilson
The Illustrated Man, by Ray Bradbury
The Incarnations Of Immortality Series, by Piers Anthony
The Inheritance Trilogy, by N.K. Jemisin

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, by Susanna Clarke
A Journey To The Center Of The Earth, by Jules Verne

Kindred, by Octavia Butler
The Kingkiller Chronicles, by Patrick Rothfuss
Kraken, by China Mieville
The Kushiel’s Legacy Series, by Jacqueline Carey

Last Call, by Tim Powers
The Last Coin, by James P. Blaylock
The Last Herald Mage Trilogy, by Mercedes Lackey
The Last Unicorn, by Peter S. Beagle
The Lathe Of Heaven, by Ursula K. LeGuin
The Left Hand Of Darkness, by Ursula K. LeGuin
The Legend Of Drizzt Series, by R.A. Salvatore
The Lensman Series, by E.E. Smith
The Liaden Universe Series, by Sharon Lee & Steve Miller
The Lies Of Locke Lamora, by Scott Lynch
Lilith’s Brood, by Octavia Butler
Little, Big, by John Crowley
The Liveship Traders Trilogy, by Robin Hobb
Lord Of Light, by Roger Zelazny
The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy, by J.R.R. Tolkien
Lord Valentine’s Castle, by Robert Silverberg
Lucifer’s Hammer, by Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle
Lud-in-the-Mist, by Hope Mirrlees

The Magicians, by Lev Grossman
The Malazan Book Of The Fallen Series, by Steven Erikson
The Man In The High Castle, by Philip K. Dick
The Manifold Trilogy, by Stephen Baxter
The Mars Trilogy, by Kim Stanley Robinson
The Martian Chronicles, by Ray Bradbury
Memory And Dream, by Charles de Lint
Memory, Sorrow, And Thorn Trilogy, by Tad Williams
Mindkiller, by Spider Robinson
The Mistborn Series, by Brandon Sanderson
The Mists Of Avalon, by Marion Zimmer Bradley
The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress, by Robert Heinlein
Mordant’s Need, by Stephen Donaldson
More Than Human, by Theodore Sturgeon
The Mote In God’s Eye, by Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle

The Naked Sun, by Isaac Asimov
The Neanderthal Parallax Trilogy, by Robert J. Sawyer
Neuromancer, by William Gibson
Neverwhere, by Neil Gaiman
The Newsflesh Triology, by Mira Grant
The Night’s Dawn Trilogy, by Peter F. Hamilton
Norstrilia, by Cordwainer Smith
Novels Of The Company, by Kage Baker
The Number Of The Beast, by Robert Heinlein

Old Man’s War, by John Scalzi
On Basilisk Station, by David Weber
The Once And Future King, by T.H. White
Oryx And Crake, by Margaret Atwood
The Otherland Tetralogy, by Tad Williams
The Outlander Series, by Diana Gabaldan

Parable Of The Sower, by Octavia Butler
The Passage, by Justin Cronin
Pattern Recognition, by William Gibson
Perdido Street Station, by China Mieville
The Prestige, by Christopher Priest
The Pride Of Chanur, by C.J. Cherryh
The Prince Of Nothing Trilogy, by R. Scott Bakker
The Princess Bride, by William Goldman

Rainbows End, by Vernor Vinge
Rendezvous With Rama, by Arthur C. Clarke
Replay, by Ken Grimwood
Revelation Space, by Alistair Reynolds
Riddley Walker, by Russell Hoban
The Riftwar Saga, by Raymond E. Feist
Ringworld, by Larry Niven
The Riverworld Series, by Philip Jose Farmer
The Road, by Cormac McCarthy

The Saga Of Pliocene Exile, by Julian May
The Saga Of Recluce, by L.E. Modesitt Jr.
The Sandman Series, by Neil Gaiman
The Sarantine Mosaic Series, by Guy Gavriel Kay
A Scanner Darkly, by Philip K. Dick
The Scar, by China Mieville
The Shannara Trilogy, by Terry Brooks
The Shattered Chain Trilogy, by Marion Zimmer Bradley
The Silmarillion, by J.R.R. Tolkien
The Sirens Of Titan, by Kurt Vonnegut
Slaughterhouse-Five, by Kurt Vonnegut
Small Gods, by Terry Pratchett
Snow Crash, by Neal Stephenson
The Snow Queen, by Joan D. Vinge
Solaris, by Stanislaw Lem
Something Wicked This Way Comes, by Ray Bradbury
Song for the Basilisk, by Patricia McKillip
A Song Of Ice And Fire Series, by George R. R. Martin
The Space Trilogy, by C.S. Lewis
The Sparrow, by Mary Doria Russell
The Stainless Steel Rat Books, by Harry Harrison
Stand On Zanzibar, by John Brunner
The Stand, by Stephen King
Stardust, by Neil Gaiman
The Stars My Destination, by Alfred Bester
Starship Troopers, by Robert Heinlein
Stations Of The Tide, by Michael Swanwick
Steel Beach, by John Varley
Stranger In A Strange Land, by Robert Heinlein
Sunshine, by Robin McKinley
The Sword Of Truth, by Terry Goodkind
The Swordspoint Trilogy, by Ellen Kushner

The Tales of Alvin Maker, by Orson Scott Card
The Temeraire Series, by Naomi Novik
The Thrawn Trilogy, by Timothy Zahn
Tigana , by Guy Gavriel Kay
Time Enough For Love, by Robert Heinlein
The Time Machine, by H.G. Wells
The Time Traveler’s Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger
To Say Nothing Of The Dog, by Connie Willis
The Troy Trilogy, by David Gemmell

Ubik, by Philip K. Dick
The Uplift Saga, by David Brin

The Valdemar Series, by Mercedes Lackey
VALIS, by Philip K. Dick
Venus On The Half-Shell, by Kilgore Trout/Philip Jose Farmer
The Vlad Taltos Series, by Steven Brust
The Vorkosigan Saga, by Lois McMaster Bujold
The Vurt Trilogy, by Jeff Noon

The War Of The Worlds, by H.G. Wells
The Watchmen, by Alan Moore
Watership Down, by Richard Adams
The Way Of Kings, by Brandon Sanderson
Way Station, by Clifford D. Simak
We, by Yevgeny Zamyatin
The Wheel Of Time Series, by Robert Jordan
When Gravity Fails, by George Alec Effinger
Wicked, by Gregory Maguire
Wild Seed, by Octavia Butler
The Windup Girl, by Paolo Bacigalupi
World War Z, by Max Brooks
The Worm Ouroboros, by E.R. Edison

The Xanth Series, by Piers Anthony

The Yiddish Policeman’s Union, by Michael Chabon

His first list is the top forty books he recommends reading. I have bolded those books I’ve read or those series which I have read all published volumes.

1. The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher
2. The Last Unicorn By Peter S. Beagle
3. Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
4. Stranger In a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein
5. Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien
6. The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis
7. Dragonriders Of Pern by Anne McCaffrey
8. Dune by Frank Herbert
9. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick
10. The Discworld series by Terry Pratchett
11. The Chronicles of Amber by Roger Zelazny
12. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
13. Wizard of Earthsea By Le Guin
14. Sandman by Neil Gaiman
15. The Fisher King Trilogy by Tim Powers
16. Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy trilogy by Douglas Adams
17. The Riddlemaster of Hed series by Patricia McKillip
18. Dream Quest of Unknown Kadath by H.P Lovecraft
19. Neuromancer by William Gibson
20. Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
21. 1984 by George Orwell
22. Callahan’s Crosstime Saloon by Spider Robinson
23. Midsummer Night’s Dream by Shakespeare
24. The Chronicles of Master Li and Number Ten Ox by Barry Hughart
25. The Princess Bride by William Goldman
26. The Bloody Chamber by Angela Carter
27. Gun, with Occasional Music by Jonathan Lethem
28. The Odyssey by Homer
29. The Last Herald-Mage trilogy by Mercedes Lackey
30. Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
31. River World Series by Phillip Jose Farmer
32. One Thousand and One Nights (although he doesn’t mention which version)
33. Riftwar Saga by Feist
34. The Dark Tower series by Stephen King
35. Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn by Tad Williams
36. Belgariad series by David Eddings
37. Snow Crash by Neil Stephenson
38. The Neverending Story by Michael Ende
39. The Dragonlance Chronicles by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman
40. The Shannara Trilogy by Terry Brooks (I assume he means the original trilogy)

Mr Rothfuss’ second list is of twenty more books that would have been in his top 40 if only 60 books could fit in the top 40:

1. The Farseer Trilogy by Robin Hobb
2. Gargantua and Pantagruel by Francois Rabelais
3. Only Forward by Michael Marshal Smith
4. A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M Miller
5. Pretty much Anything by Christopher Moore
6. Time Enough for Love by Robert Heinlein
7. Stardust by Neil Gaiman
8. His Dark Materials by Phillip Pullman
9. Black Company Series by Glen Cook
10. Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde
11. Lud in Mist by Hope Mirrlees
12. The Red Magician by Lisa Goldstein
13. Old Man’s War by John Scalzi
14. A Wrinke In Time by Madeleine L’Engle
15. Death is a Lonely Business by Ray Bradbury
16. Declare by Tim Powers
17. Legend by David Gemmel
18. Icewind Dale Trilogy by R.A. Salvatore
19. Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling (Mostly the first four)
20. Beowulf

His final list is of those books which he hasn’t yet read but intends to:

1. The Doomsday Book by Connie Willis
2. Fafhrd & Gray Mouser books by Fritz Leiber
3. Watership Down by Richard Adams
   
4. The Gormenghast series by Mervyn Peake
5. Day of the Triffids by John Wyndham
6. The Glass Book of the Dream Eaters by Gordon Dahlquist
7. A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin
8. The Forever War by Joe Haldeman
9. House of Leaves Mark Z Danielewski
10. The Mote in God’s Eye by Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle
11. Nova by Samuel R. Delaney
12. Dhalgren by Samuel R. Delany
13. The Uplift Trilogy by David Brin
14. The Hollows series by Kim Harrison
15. The Fionavar Tapestry by Guy Gavriel Kay
16. The Vorkosigan Saga by Lois McMaster Bujold
17. The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
18. Conan stories by Robert E. Howard
19. Little, Big – John Crowley
20. Lensman Series by E.E. “Doc” Smith
21. Malazan Books of the Fallen by Steven Erikson
22. Wheel of Time series by Jordan and Sanderson
23. Tripod Trilogy by Samuel Youd
24. Flatland by Edwin A. Abbott
25. Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

Looks like I have many hours of enjoyment ahead of me!

Nice going Alec! Next up: the rank of Tenderfoot.

Thus far, only Senator Brown has replied to me.  He happens to be on the Homeland Security committee, so you’d think he’d be aware of the issues, and he is.  Unfortunately, he and I appear to disagree about whether the TSA’s newest policies and procedures violate the fourth amendment.  The TSA’s website cites a case from the 9th Circuit Court from 1973 stating:

Such a warrantless search, also known as an administrative search, is valid under the Fourth Amendment if it is “no more intrusive or intensive than necessary, in light of current technology, to detect weapons or explosives, ” confined in good faith to that purpose,” and passengers may avoid the search by electing not to fly.

As you know, on June 24, 2010, Senator Bob Bennett (R-UT) introduced the SAFER AIR Act, which would implement new forms of airport screening technology. S. 3536 would authorize the use of full-body scan machinery to search for weapons, explosives, or other hazardous materials that are otherwise undetectable.

Many of the concerns recently voiced about these procedures have surrounded the health implications of millimeter wave technology utilized by these full-body scan machines. The TSA has assured travelers that the non-ionizing radio frequency energy emitted by the machines is safe, and gives off about 100,000 times less energy than that of talking on a cell phone.

For those concerned about their privacy as a result of images taken by the full-body scanning machines, please know that the TSA worked closely with the manufacturers of these machines to make sure that the capabilities to store and send the images were removed prior to installation.

In addition to the full-body imaging machines, the TSA has also implemented new pat-down procedures for those air travelers who opt out of using the full-body imaging machines. According to the TSA, these new pat-down procedures are designed to prevent another “Christmas Day” style attack, where Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab attempted to detonate a bomb concealed in his underwear.

I know this is all “tl;dr”, but the bottom line is that our intelligence agencies should be the ones on the front line of security.  If they do their jobs, then there should be no reason for body imaging or body groping.  Senator Brown says in his letter, “Our nation’s number one goal when it comes to airport security must be the deterrence of terrorist attacks.”  I’d of course extend that to airplanes instead of limiting it to airports but, assuming that was just awkward phrasing on his intern’s part, I have to agree with that.  However, I’d go further – deterrence isn’t enough.  We also want to predict and prevent.

I certainly understand the concerns of some regarding the new screening procedures, and I agree these procedures must be as non-intrusive as possible and respectful of Americans’ privacy concerns. But when it comes to our families’ safety, I come down on the side of caution.

Anyway coming down “on the side of caution” sounds nice but is hardly a reason for intrusive searches, not to mention the unconstitutional seizure of liquids that we’re currently undergoing.

I went to Senator Brown’s website, where he has a contact form with a nice, tiny textbox for writing.  Here’s a copy-n-paste of what I wrote to him.  I fully expect to receive an identical form letter back, but I had to try.

Recently you replied to me outlining your position on the TSA body scanners and physical searches.  You stated that you come down on the side of caution.  This is commendable, however there is a line that our Constitution drew in the metaphorical sand, a line that represents unwarranted searches by our government.

The fourth amendment states:

“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”

The TSA, and therefore the government, is engaged in a program of searches and seizures that directly violate this amendment.  You took an oath to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States”.  You must not violate that oath just because the TSA says its procedures are acceptable.  I vote in every Massachusetts election, and if you do not take action to defend this violation of the Constitution, you will not have my vote in 2012.

The right way to protect the lives of the travelling public is not to merely react blindly to prior threats, but to equip our intelligence agencies with the best tools possible to prevent the NEXT attack from occurring.  The TSA has only been engaged in procedures that give the appearance of preventing attacks that have happened before.

They do nothing to prevent new forms of attacks from occurring.  I actually feel LESS safe with the TSA’s assurances that they’re doing everything they think is right to stop an attack.  I have cut back on my air travel, limiting it to what is necessary to support my family.  I do not want to wake up one morning to discover that we’re now living in a police state, but that is the direction we are heading.

I urge you to reconsider what your position is regarding the TSA, body scanners, and unreasonably intimate “pat-downs”.

OK, so it’s not the best letter in the world, but I wanted to capture it here on my blog anyway.

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

It is true that doesn’t actually say “separation of church and state”.  However, I have always understood that phrase to be a summary of the establishment clause.  So, yeah, I guess Christine O’Donnell was following the letter if not the spirit of the law.  Ironic, for someone who professes to be spiritual.

There is a Supreme Court case, Rosenberger v. University of Virginia, in which the Court decided that the University could not withhold funds from a student newspaper just because that newspaper was printing religious propaganda.  Despite Justice Souter’s dissent, I’m in agreement with the case.  For a government entity to restrict funds to a student newspaper based on the religious content of that newspaper goes against the establishment clause.  If any restrictions are to be made, it should be based on the quality of the publication, not the qualities of it.

Another Supreme Court case which deals with religion is Cantwell v. Connecticut.  In this one, a Jehovah’s Witness and his sons were going around attempting to convert people in a largely Roman Catholic community.  The question was whether Connecticut could make a law requiring people who wished to spread a religious message to get a permit to do so.  Does this violate the prohibition against the free exercise of religion?  The Supreme Court agreed with the Cantwells: Connecticut’s law violated the establishment clause’s purpose: that of separating the practice of religion from the laws of the state.

So, yeah, Ms O’Donnell, you want to be technical about it?  The clause literally says nothing about separating church and state.  The words ‘church’ and ‘state’  and ‘separation’ do not exist in the First Amendment.  In fact, going further, technically this just prohibits Congress from making laws about religion and, just looking at this clause, it says nothing about what individual states can do.  So, being ultra-pedantic about it, let’s get those nasty little Supreme Court cases overturned, shall we?  After all, the entire basis for the opinions was the obviously non-existent separation of church and state as allegedly required by the First Amendment.

The other thing I wanted to mention was that I am now registered for PAX East 2011, a gaming convention that will be taking place in Boston in March. I had a great time at it last year, not just because of the games, but because of all the awesome interactive fiction folks that were there. And I got to meet Don Woods of all people. I’m very much looking forward to it.

[*] broblem – /bra bləm/ v.t. – to determine both the cause of a conundrum and the appropriate resolution for it.

The fact that they’re still called e-books or digital books or whatever, instead of just “books”, means we haven’t yet made the leap in our collective consciousness to the digital medium.

I’m looking forward to the point where a book can be published and it’s understood that that means electronically and not physically.

Back then, of course, the video portion of the television was implemented using something called a “cathode ray tube”, which is big and bulky. And they had this weird 4:3 aspect ratio. Strange, right? Anyway, what sticks most in my mind is a short portion of this film: the homemaker wife in the kitchen being able to see the television show even when she’s putting a food tray in the oven to bake because the baking tray had a small CRT built into it.

I remember thinking how ridiculous this was and how much it made it sink home to a know-it-all teenager how bad a television addiction can be. Especially when it becomes culturally accepted. That’ll never happen, I thought to myself. Nobody could become that addicted to TV that they need to see it wherever they turn. I wish I could see it again, but it’s kind of hard to just use Google to find it, you know? I bet I’d be able to find it on YouTube if I knew what it was called or what the film was trying to promote.

What made me remember was this commercial I saw recently on TV: 2010 FIFA World Cup: Fan’s Point of View. And, what do you know, it’s now apparently culturally acceptable to watch TV everywhere you go.

Just don’t throw your iPhone in the oven by accident.

I’m typing this on my iPhone into the official wordpress app, just to see how painful it is. Answer: not too. I may try it again some time.

Anyway, the thing I wanted to tweet was that Julie and I just finished watching the first season of Veronica Mars tonight. It was loads of fun. They did a great job of revealing who the season’s bad guy was, and a casual viewer like myself was (mostly) satisfied with how the various plot threads were addressed. High School is not really my ideal setting, but detective fiction is right up my alley, so I was totally into the stories. Looking forward to season 2!