Also yes, I am alive. Sorry being partially dead and not super engaging this past week. I’ve actually been very sick IRL and just generally taking backups and making sure things don’t explode while I fight off whatever illness I’ve been dealing with. Not sure if it was COVID but at least I have not succumbed to pestilence...
ABSTRACT: The independent modulation of visible and near-infrared light by a single material, termed dual-band electrochromism, is highly desirable for smart windows to enhance the energy efficiency of buildings. Tungsten oxides are commercially important electrochromic materials, exhibiting reversible visible and near-infrared...
India’s Chandrayaan-3 rover has found sulfur on the Moon’s surface at higher concentrations than previously seen. Sulfur, a useful resource, could pave the way for future Moon bases
I took this pic about 3 years ago. He’s 7 now (based on the estimate I got from the shelter) and goes everywhere with me he can. Luckily, at 120 lbs he chose to keep my feet constantly hot instead of laying on my lap.
New research has found that Ice Age cave art made as early as 40,000 years ago could have been influenced in part by a visual psychological phenomenon that humans still experience today....
What an enjoyable cozy scifi adventure! The story centers around a security bot with a self-hacked governor module, who refers to itself privately as “Murderbot” and likes to watch serials and movies surreptitiously in it’s free time. The socially awkward bot repeatedly assures us that it definitely does not care about...
OK this tells me that bluesky is definitely not for me. I am happy with Mastodon. So long as the people I follow (from technology, science, research, literature, owners of cats, dogs, etc etc) remain on Mastodon, I will remain happy.
The P&V translations (Russian to English) of both Crime and Punishment and Demons by Fyodor Dostoevsky. Both these books have made me fall in love with Dostoevsky’s writing. I also liked the Hapgood translation (French to English) of Le Miserables by Victor Hugo.
On the world called Hyperion, beyond the reach of galactic law, waits a creature called the Shrike. There are those who worship it. There are those who fear it. And there are those who have vowed to destroy it. In the Valley of the Time Tombs, where huge, brooding structures move backward through time, the Shrike waits for them...
And some of the concepts are so novel and interesting. I am thinking of the time tombs (I may be misremembering the name), which travel backwards in time. Also the Shrike and the tree of pain.
status.literature.cafe is now fully up and running, as well as two alternative front ends: old.literature.cafe and ph.literature.cafe, big thanks to Arthur for setting the alt front ends up!...
I am very confused (total Fediverse noob here). Which link should I click and follow where for getting updates if something is wrong? Please explain it to me like you would to a five year old. I am following you on Mastodon where your username has “wandering shop” (that’s you, right or am I mistaken?).
That was me. I am now more than 80% through and don’t want to finish it because I am loving it so much. I don’t mind the philosophical stuff, some of it is quite interesting and thought provoking. Anyways, now I don’t know what to read next. And yes, the main confusing thing I find with Russian literature is the names. Every character I would be reading of would have at least 3-4 versions of their name.
Years ago I read Anna Karenina and from what I vaguely remember, there was some amount of moralising; what you say kind of confirms that for me. Someone suggested Fathers and Sons by Turganev. What do you think about that? I have also heard about Master and Margherita. I can give it a try. I have already read and enjoyed Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment and Demons. Demons was slightly disturbing from what I remember. There’s still The Idiot and Notes from the Underground that I have still to read.
Audiobooks at their heart (at least in the form of “talking books”) were made with accessibility in mind after all. Pretty much every new book that comes out is recorded as an Audiobook in some fashion as well. Audible exclusives always felt quite scummy for that reason alone, as it is restricting what is at it’s heart an...
I am not visually impaired but I have found audiobooks or even tts for epubs to be very helpful when I have a migraine and just cannot use my eyes to read.
Out of curiosity I tried to read the first few lines of Finnegan’s Wake. Couldn’t progress beyond that. How do people who actually read the book make any sense of it? This is not an example as stated in the post, but “most difficult book” made me think of this book immediately.
It was a cheesy Hannukah romance book but the main character in the book “The Matzah Ball” made so mad at times that I just know I was annoyed at her but to this day I have no idea why exactly. Her vibes were just yucky I guess
I think different readers enjoy different things in a book. Reasons for why a person may like a book may vary from individual to individual. For me, the most important reason for liking a book would depend on how real the characters feel to me and how much emotionally involved I feel with the characters. If a book fails to make me care for the characters, I lose interest. It’s even better if the book has philosophical undertones. Additionally, prose also matters. So, I can’t give an opinion on what makes a good book; I can only speak for what I like. And if I fail to get interested in a book beyond ~25-30% mark, I DNF because life is short and I would rather read for pleasure. For me world-building is not important, however someone who loves world-building over everything else might love a book which someone like me may not like at all. So books of different styles are great for different people who would enjoy them.
Heads up for transparency: this instance will begin using cloudflares hash scanning API to detect any suspected CSAM soon.
Also yes, I am alive. Sorry being partially dead and not super engaging this past week. I’ve actually been very sick IRL and just generally taking backups and making sure things don’t explode while I fight off whatever illness I’ve been dealing with. Not sure if it was COVID but at least I have not succumbed to pestilence...
Tungsten oxide hydrate: the future of smart windows (interestingengineering.com)
ABSTRACT: The independent modulation of visible and near-infrared light by a single material, termed dual-band electrochromism, is highly desirable for smart windows to enhance the energy efficiency of buildings. Tungsten oxides are commercially important electrochromic materials, exhibiting reversible visible and near-infrared...
Chandrayaan-3’s measurements of sulfur open the doors for lunar science and exploration (theconversation.com)
India’s Chandrayaan-3 rover has found sulfur on the Moon’s surface at higher concentrations than previously seen. Sulfur, a useful resource, could pave the way for future Moon bases
This a picture of my best friend, Evan, from a few years ago. (lemmy.sdf.org)
I took this pic about 3 years ago. He’s 7 now (based on the estimate I got from the shelter) and goes everywhere with me he can. Luckily, at 120 lbs he chose to keep my feet constantly hot instead of laying on my lap.
What is favourite File manager app and why ?
Some years back I was a mixplorer user, then switched to solid explorer for some time and now I’m using Material Files....
Construction supervisor (lemmy.world)
The stray cat I saw just outside my apartment (discuss.tchncs.de)
Visual psychological phenomenon may have stimulated early humans to make cave art (www.eurekalert.org)
New research has found that Ice Age cave art made as early as 40,000 years ago could have been influenced in part by a visual psychological phenomenon that humans still experience today....
What I felt after reading "All Systems Red" by Martha Wells
What an enjoyable cozy scifi adventure! The story centers around a security bot with a self-hacked governor module, who refers to itself privately as “Murderbot” and likes to watch serials and movies surreptitiously in it’s free time. The socially awkward bot repeatedly assures us that it definitely does not care about...
What does Bluesky have that Mastodon doesn't?
Is it just the momentum and word of mouth, or are there improved features as well?
What are some of the best translated fiction books you've read?
Could be translated from english to another language you speak or translate to english from another language
Hyperion by Dan Simmons (Hyperion Cantos #1) - $1.99
On the world called Hyperion, beyond the reach of galactic law, waits a creature called the Shrike. There are those who worship it. There are those who fear it. And there are those who have vowed to destroy it. In the Valley of the Time Tombs, where huge, brooding structures move backward through time, the Shrike waits for them...
We now have an uptime status page, as well as alternative front ends. Also a backup fedi account for system status messages
status.literature.cafe is now fully up and running, as well as two alternative front ends: old.literature.cafe and ph.literature.cafe, big thanks to Arthur for setting the alt front ends up!...
The booming business of audiobooks (qz.com)
[No spoilers] I am reading The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor dostoevsky
cross-posted from: sh.itjust.works/post/3688704...
I've always wondered if the rise of audiobooks and easier access to them has benefited blind and visual impaired people as a side effect to its mainstream popularity
Audiobooks at their heart (at least in the form of “talking books”) were made with accessibility in mind after all. Pretty much every new book that comes out is recorded as an Audiobook in some fashion as well. Audible exclusives always felt quite scummy for that reason alone, as it is restricting what is at it’s heart an...
Read A Wizard of Earthsea (literature.cafe)
And the other books in the Earthsea series too, of course....
Time to brag: what’s the hardest book you read?
By this I mean, a book you had to brace yourself to read, and you feel proud for having read. Did you enjoy the process of reading it?
Any characters in books you've read that just annoyed the hell out of you for seemingly no reason?
It was a cheesy Hannukah romance book but the main character in the book “The Matzah Ball” made so mad at times that I just know I was annoyed at her but to this day I have no idea why exactly. Her vibes were just yucky I guess
What elements are, in your opinion, necessary to make a good book?
Is it interesting characters? Or believable motivations? Maybe writing style? Is the world building?...