damarques

Very entertaining

Revisado: 03-28-18

It's a bit hard to follow some scenes only through the voices and sound effects. But in general the end result is very satisfying. Many people have been complaining about the presence of Ripley, but although a bit contrived, they find a way to make this story fit in between the two first movies. Ripley is a great character and I'm glad she's here.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

Do we really know what we think we know?

Revisado: 03-20-18

Excellent resource for having a glimpse of what the great minds have already discussed and concluded about some of the biggest questions of philosophy. Intriguing and entertaining, sometimes even shocking, this audiobook is very enjoyable!

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

esto le resultó útil a 1 persona

Great content, not so great narration

Revisado: 11-29-16

Very good lecture, but I had to crank the audio speed up to 150% to make it bearable. Professor Weiner speaks very slowly and in bursts, with too many unnecessary pauses, very annoying. Even so, I totally recommend this audiobook.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

Lessons from the past

Revisado: 07-29-15

Great book for understanding how changeable our planet has always been and how small changes can build up to create global scale events. Considering that the amount of CO2 we've been dumping in the atmosphere in a short period of time is unprecedented in Earth's history as far as science knows, we should be really worried about our future!

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

esto le resultó útil a 1 persona

Easy to follow and extremely cool!

Revisado: 03-27-15

This is a very interesting book for those who love science. Tyson's narration is very inspiring. You can feel his passion for knowledge throughout the book. The only bad thing is that the book is too short!

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

esto le resultó útil a 2 personas

Great book, but a bit confusing in audio

Revisado: 08-17-14

Any additional comments?

This audiobook stresses the importance of knowing the difference between religion knowledge and endoctrination. Atheists, agnostics, deists and even the less strict theists will find good advices on how to bring up a child without religion prejudices, that is, without seeing anything special about any religion, but at the same time respecting the believers as human beings. But as the author points out, respecting other people doesn't mean inconditional respect for their ideas, because ideas must earn one's respect.

It was a good listen, but I found it confusing sometimes. Since the book has many quotations and comments of other people's thoughts and works, it is difficult to follow who is being cited. The narrator's voice is great, but she might have explored more intonation changes to stress more clearly who is speaking at any given moment.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

esto le resultó útil a 1 persona

Good introduction to Big Data

Revisado: 03-30-14

What made the experience of listening to Big Data the most enjoyable?

The real examples of Big Data application are very interesting. More and more data is being collected on all levels of our daily lives, and the computational power to process it increases consistently. The possibilities in the future are beyond our imagination today.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Big Data?

The example of Google managing to foretell epidemics in almost real time based on search terms is awesome!

Any additional comments?

As computers get more and more powerful, we will be able to use Big Data techniques to do amazing things, even at personal level. Imagine a personal assistant (like a smartphone) that "knows" what you're doing and anticipates your next moves based on data about your life it collects, privately, in real time. For example, you're talking about a possible trip to your wife and it tells you the best dates based on price, possibility of being away from work or school, weather forecast, availability of someone to take care of your dog, estimated availability of money at the time of the trip, etc. All in real time and without explicitly asking. You just need to say "book it!" at the end.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

esto le resultó útil a 1 persona

Uplifting

Revisado: 03-30-14

Would you consider the audio edition of The Better Angels of Our Nature to be better than the print version?

A good thing about the print edition is the pictures and charts. But the audio edition is excellent nonetheless.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Well, there aren't exactly characters in this book. But I think Yahweh (God) with his genocidal spree, and Lancelot with his killing spree, deserve to be mentioned.

What about Arthur Morey’s performance did you like?

His voice is very clear and sober. He sounds like an experienced scholar. It matches the style of the book very well.

What’s the most interesting tidbit you’ve picked up from this book?

I got some: there is no pattern in the temporal distribution of wars; every single form of human killing has systematically decreased (although we can't guarantee that for the future); economic relationships, democracy and information access were fundamental to decrease violence in the past and still are.

Any additional comments?

This book is really long, but it is worth every minute! Pinker explores many interesting topics to approach violence. As a scientist, he not only provides the evidence but also criticises his own conclusions. And, to top it all off, he provides great references for further reading.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

esto le resultó útil a 1 persona

Not exactly science fiction

Revisado: 03-30-14

Would you try another book from Jules Verne and/or Tim Curry?

Probably yes.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

I would have made the explorer's goals more practical, like exploring some miles into the crust. The way the story goes, a "scientist" is convinced that his expedition could descend thousands of miles into the planet and then come back, on foot and carrying only some pounds of dried meat and crackers as provisions. That's better described as fantasy, not science fiction.

Have you listened to any of Tim Curry’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No. The performance was OK. I hope to enjoy it more the next time, with a better story.

Could you see Journey to the Center of the Earth: A Signature Performance by Tim Curry being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

Maybe, but it should be a fantasy story with kids, because the basis is too silly to involve adults, let alone scientists.

Any additional comments?

Those who listen to this audiobook expecting a science fiction story will be disappointed. But it is a good fantasy story, specially if you assume that the professor is delusional.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

esto le resultó útil a 5 personas

Solid book about the nature of language

Revisado: 03-29-14

If you could sum up The Language Instinct in three words, what would they be?

Darwin wins again.

What did you like best about this story?

Steven Pinker explains very clearly the theory of human language as a biological adaptation. And he teaches you a lot of related subjects along the way.

The way Pinker conveys knowledge to the layperson and the specialist at the same time reminds me of Carl Sagan. Pinker's book is very well written and makes you want to read more and more about the subjects involving human language. In contrast, I was reading one of Terrence Deacon's books about language and got stuck with his tiresome writing.

Which character – as performed by Arthur Morey – was your favorite?

About the narrator, this was the second book I listened with Arthur Morey. Like in "The Better Angels of our Nature" his performance was flawless.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, but it's 19 hours of audio!

Any additional comments?

Excellent book for the lovers of linguistics. And an excellent opportunity for those interested in knowing more about this subject without getting bored.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

esto le resultó útil a 3 personas