A couple of weeks ago Mr. Tyson showed up on reddit.  He was asked what book should an intelligent person read.

Here is the list of 8 book that he gave.  Some redditors left links to free audio books as well as free e-books.  I have also tried to find the links for kindle, audible and the old fashioned print copy.

1.) The Bible Free Librivox Audio ASV, Free Librivox Audio KJV, Free Android Bible App, Kindle, For a Hard copy- you can get them free from almost any hotel, Audible.

2.) The System of the World by Isaac Newton (Part of The Principia) View pages Free Online, Kindle version.

3.) On the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin Free Librivox Audio, Free Online text, Free Kindle version, Amazon Print, Audible.

4.) Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift Free Librivox Audio, Free Online text, Free Kindle, Audible, Amazon Print.

5.) The Age of Reason by Thomas Paine Free Librivox Audio, Free Online Text, Free Kindle, Audible, Amazon Print.

6.) The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith Free Librivox Audio, Free Online Text, Free Kindle, Audible, Amazon Print.

7.) The Art of War by Sun Tsu Free Librivox Audio, Free Online Text, Free Kindle, Audible $1.95,  Amazon Print.

8.) The Prince by Machiavelli Free Librivox Audio, Free Online Text, Free Kindle, Audible $1.95, Amazon Print.

Tyson added: “If you read all of the above works you will glean profound insight into most of what has driven the history of the western world.”

Post Ron

——————–
via Foxnews.com

The ultimate douchbag, Bill O’Reilly, out douchbags himself in this short condescending clip from Faux News!

by Ron

A wonderful excerpt from the audio version of ” The Portable Atheist” by Christopher Hitchens.  Although this letter by Salman Rushdie would now be written to the seven billionth, it will be relevant until humans awaken from the hateful madness of religion.

Near the top of each page on this blog are some tabs. The new one on the right is “Books”.  I have had a few readers ask what books they should read about investing. I have put a few of my favorite books there. They are not trendy books that talk about what is hot today. They are time tested books that cover investing basics and are for the long term investor.  Read one of them and you will know more than most investors. If you have any questions about which book is right for you, contact me and I can help.

It is still a work in progress but I have found some cool new tools from amazon.  Go check it out and let me know what you think.  When I get time I will add more books for different topics.  Right now I have:  Investing, James Randi, and Atheism.

I could not believe my eyes.  I saw this on Amazon.  There are many more like this one.  I did not see the one I was looking for, “bible cure for mass delusion.”

From the J-Walk Blog.

tip to the Friendly Atheist.

Go hereand download the Holy Quran as a PDF file

Locate the PDF file on your computer

Select the file and click Burn

Insert a CD, when prompted

Click OK

Wait for the free publicity and inevitable outrage

Rinse and repeat!

New Book by Philip Pullman:  The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ.

It is a twist on the classic Jesus story.  Mary has twins!  One is Jesus and he is strong and filled with passion.  The other is Christ and he stays in the shadows and help Jesus get out of trouble.

Here is a short sample…

On the few occasions when Christ came close to Jesus, he did his best to avoid contact with him, but from time to time someone would ask him who he was, what he was doing, whether he was one of Jesus’s followers, and so on. He managed to deal with questions of this kind quite easily by adopting a manner of mild courtesy and friendliness, and by making himself inconspicuous. In truth, he attracted little attention and kept to himself, but like any other man he sometimes longed for company.

Once, in a town Jesus had not visited before and where his followers were little known, Christ got into conversation with a woman. She was one of the prostitutes Jesus made welcome, but she had not gone in to dinner with the rest of them. When she saw Christ on his own, she said “Would you like to come to my house?”

Knowing what sort of woman she was, and realising that no one would see them, he agreed.

You can read a longer sample here…

Because of the book title some are offended – as Pullman intended.  Here is a short video of his position on the issue.