The Renaissance Chiffer (or, What Would You Read?)

[Congratulations]

...And if you haven't already read it, read "American Gods" by Neil Gaiman ...and tell me what you think of it.

AGREED.

[Congratulations]

Okay, I do have a suggestion. I think anthropology, as a field, accommodates the kind of "happy-go-lucky" anti-specialization you're talking about. To a degree, anyway. The idea is to gain a holistic picture of how humans work, on a large scale.

Probably the most important thing going in anthropology is the study of sociocultural change. I'd suggest Europe and the People Without History, Eric Wolf. Kind of a thick tome, but completely worth the time investment. A wonderfully insightful look at "Westernization" as a phenomenon, and the consequences/implications thereof. One of the most important works in one of the most important fields of anthropology. It's theory, but it's approachable and grounded. The canned descriptions on Amazon kind of miss the point; I'd suggest you browse the user-comments for a better idea of what the book tries to accomplish.

For a thinner book, aimed at giving a quick history of sociocultural change theory, try Sociocultural Theory in Anthropology, Merwyn Garbarino. Then read the Wolf.

[emmline]

Maybe I'm way off base.

Not in the least.

What I do when I get those thoughts is to sit down in front of the TV and fall asleep.

That can work.
Or,
Play In the Hall of the Mountain King very loudly on the piano.
Sing along to a Heart cd.
Do a book called "Brain Flexing IQ Tests." (not when tired.)
Tell husband it's time to read some Bill Bryson aloud.
Take dog for a walk. Always a good alternative. Probably the best.

[brianormond]

-I lack most of what was once known as a classical education and recommend Will & Ariel Durant's "The Story Of Civilization" volumes as remedy, history of the world until the late 1930s available in public libraries. Like all histories it illuminates some things & glosses over others but is a wonderful, readable start and gives views of both eastern & western cultures since antiquity.

-The best volume to start with IMHO is "Our Oriental Heritage", so if you've just time for one thick book- read this to tie together loose threads of ancient history (including some of Europe's) you might have wondered about. I like this volume in particular as it details the vital exchange of eastern & western ideas in ancient times.

- Forebears might have learned this stuff in a good high school education, but times have changed and lots of us get to college and beyond lacking the rich background these books provide.

-These aren't the last word in history but are a great place to start, are written engagingly and go deep enough the reader will want to learn more from other sources.

[devondancer]

Emm, I went through this too! I felt totally ignorant, as though I had learnt nothing since Uni (many years ago!)

I decided, rather than trying to learn huge amounts about subjects I had never understood in the first place, I would try to improve my knowledge of what I am interested in and good at! Much easier! So I read many of the classic English texts that I had either never read or had forgotten, found new poets to read and learn, swotted up my bird, flower, tree identification, improved ID on butterflies and dragonflies, etc.

To try to improve my knowledge of history, which is so abysmal as to be embarrassing, I read and still read a lot of fairly accurate historical novels and biographies, so at least I learn something while enjoying what I am reading. I also worked hard to improve my playing of various instruments, which has definitely paid off, in that I'm better than I was before and it is an improvement I can actually see!

For me, there would be no point in studying subjects I don't like, as I know I wouldn't stick at them!

Good luck! And have fun.

Lesley

[fearfaoin]

...(that dang happy-go-luckyness again, while my brother read Encyclopedia Britannica cover to cover and traced atlases.)

I'm currently ... rereading Les Mis en français.

I note here (and from previous posts) that you have something of a sibling
shadow under which you grew up, but please note that there are those of
us out here in the greater world who live in your shadow.

I think trying to cram knowledge into your brain is a moot point after a
certain age (this age varies by person, and you may not have reached
yours yet). I seem to be entering the phase of using the knowledge I have
and trying to create new knowledge with it. This doesn't mean that I've
stopped learning, but most of my learning has been new skill, rather than
new facts (albeit, some facts sneak in alongside said skills). So, the non-
fiction reading I do tends to be about inspiration rather than knowledge.

I took a year of Make Magazine because I thought it would have some
neat projects. It was disappointing in that regard. I found instead that
its real strength was in showing very ordinary people doing less-than-
ordinary things using ordinary objects. I found it inspiring the latent
inventor in me. As a kid, I always tried to find a weird way to use
regular objects in the world, and I think I needed to start doing that
again, but I didn't realize it until I was reading about others doing the
same thing. Now I scour websites like Instructables.com, Makezine.com,
and EvilMadScientist.com to see how people are trying to do weird stuff
using normal stuff.

I guess my point is, you might get more satisfaction from reading for
inspiration rather than for raw knowledge, but YMMV.

[emmline]

I think trying to cram knowledge into your brain is a moot point after a
certain age (this age varies by person, and you may not have reached
yours yet).

Sadly, I believe I have.

I guess my point is, you might get more satisfaction from reading for
inspiration rather than for raw knowledge, but YMMV.

I'm in complete agreement. But, this does not preclude drawing inspiration from a history book. Obviously, it would be more interesting and enlightening to read something well and intriguingly written that analyzes and illuminates history and its characters as opposed to a textbook.
This is the sort of recommendation I'm looking for...what people have enjoyed and found enriching.

Because you're quite right...cramming facts is boring and useless. They fall right out.

[mutepointe]

Emm, here's my two cents.

You're already brilliant at communicating and listening and synthesizing information. You're a mother, what haven't you done already and what else in life do you really need to know? Are you looking to hold up your own end of the conversation during cocktail parties or something? So much information that's floating out there as "intelligence" is really "trivia."

I would think that you would aspire to something more than "knowing" and focus your energies on "doing." Besides the raising of kids, I bet you could do something great that mattered.

[emmline]

So much information that's floating out there as "intelligence" is really "trivia."

True. Don't worry. I have no wish for brain combustion a la Colonel Doctor Irina Spalko... (I want to know everything!!)


But it's fun to know what the Chiff-at-large would put, say, on a basic college curriculum so as to instill a well-rounded knowledge base. That sort of thing.

[West]

...And if you haven't already read it, read "American Gods" by Neil Gaiman ...and tell me what you think of it.

AGREED.

+1

[WyoBadger]

But it's fun to know what the Chiff-at-large would put, say, on a basic college curriculum so as to instill a well-rounded knowledge base. That sort of thing.

Seriously, Em, check out this book. It is a lot of fun, and fairly amazing. It isn't the complete answer to what you want, but it might be a good start.

Tom

[emmline]

Seriously, Em, check out this book. It is a lot of fun, and fairly amazing. It isn't the complete answer to what you want, but it might be a good start.

Tom

Interestingly, the two B&N reader reviews for that book average 1.5 stars out of 5, whereas if you check it on Amazon it gets 4 out of 5, based on 89 reviews.

[Congratulations]

Also, I'm convinced you can learn everything worth knowing from Frank O'Hara and/or David Wojahn.

[Tyghress]

Brief History of Time by Hawking
QED by Feynman
Origin of Species by Darwin

These three books are on my permanent list to understand all the implications.

I have recently plunged into the Great Courses catalog and I'm having a blast. Linguistics and Mathematics mostly.

[Martin Milner]

I think starting fiddle has been one of those things, though...it was something I had wanted to do all of my life. For the first time in a very long time I'm feeling a sense of accomplishment musically.

I like to think of myself as an irritating grain of sand that helped start your musical pearl!

I agree with Lesley that you have to enjoy your studies, or they won't last long. There are massive wedges of life that I find dull and uninteresting (foreign languages, ballet and philosophy come to mind), but as long as I enjoy what I'm doing, some of the learning thrown at my wall will stick.

People who accomplish great things, whether that is becoming President-Elect, winning an Olympic medal, discovering a cure for cancer or writing a bestseller, have sacrificed many things along the way, including a "normal" life. I'm quite happy to be considered normal, because deep down I know I'm better.

Some are born to Greatness
Some achieve Greatness
and
Some have Greatness thrust upon them.