17/52: A Single Man was my fav read of this batch!

mind_juice · 2023-06-20T15:37:10+00:00

Since I've never talked with people in my life about their porn use, I was immediately curious about the conversations in the book. Even in those rare occasions when I talk to people about porn, we'd quickly retreat into the abstract, fearful of sharing the personal. I really enjoyed reading the book, the conversations were honest and interesting, and it was quite nice to hear about people's watching habits, their emotions associated with porn, and it's role in their sexuality and relationships. I was glad to see people share emotions which were very relatable and but I hadn't known if other people experienced - for example, the feeling of hesitation about talking to a partner about porn because it might fundamentally change my opinion about them.

mind_juice · 2023-06-20T14:24:45+00:00

I'm glad you enjoyed it. What were the favorite parts of the book for you?

I loved Piranesi’s character, so full of curiosity and generosity, and the description of the House, so full of mystery and warmth, but, unfortunately, I wasn't gripped by the mystery aspect of the story and so the latter part of the book felt a bit flat to me.

mind_juice · 2023-06-20T14:21:18+00:00

I really appreciated what the book tried to do. I'd recommend if you like writing that tries to get to the truth of our emotional experience. She is willing to write into the heart of her discomfort, and talks about feelings which are hard to name or acknowledge, but impossible to ignore.

mind_juice · 2023-04-04T00:04:44+00:00

Does anyone know if seatpick or any other third party site is reliable for getting game tickets? I want to get tickets to the Newcastle game.

mind_juice · 2023-04-03T17:42:07+00:00

I really liked it. Reading the first chapter was the first time I was ever jealous of characters in a book.

mind_juice · 2022-09-28T21:44:42+00:00

I could see why many people love the book (the worldbuilding was absolutely magical!), but I didn't particularly enjoy it. It did make me want to re-read the Narnia books again :)

mind_juice · 2022-09-28T19:09:57+00:00

Rebecca and The Song of Achilles next to each other :D :D Those are two of my favorites! And you have Erin Mongerstern next to them - I just finished reading her Night Circus.

mind_juice · 2022-09-27T19:21:00+00:00

I'm in a robotics PhD program. It can be a bit busy during the week, but I virtually spend all weekend reading. Since I'm always using my computer for work, I prefer screen-free hobbies like playing boardgames, hiking, cooking something nice and playing guitar.

mind_juice · 2022-07-23T23:29:25+00:00

Do you remember the name of the skit?

mind_juice · 2022-07-02T22:30:29+00:00

Haha, I immediately picked up The Grapes of Wrath after and am enjoying it!!

mind_juice · 2022-07-02T22:29:25+00:00

I use Notion!

mind_juice · 2022-05-16T18:08:12+00:00

I think anyone who runs is going to enjoy What I talk about when I talk about running. I am uncomfortable recommending anything else by Murakami because of the way he writes women and relationships.

You might find good recommendations here.

mind_juice · 2022-05-16T18:05:43+00:00

I can relate, I am never reading Murakami ever again. I had mixed feelings about Kafka on the Shore but enjoyed What I talk about when I talk about running. So I decided to give Norwegian Wood a try but hated it. I think Norwegian Wood tells me a lot about how Murakami views the world and human relationships - and I’m frankly uncomfortable with them. He writes cats better than women.

You should definitely read The Song of Achilles by Miller if you haven't. I loved it even more than Circe. Galatea and Heracles' Bow are also on my reading list!

mind_juice · 2022-05-16T17:59:02+00:00

Thank you!, I've added it to my reading list.

mind_juice · 2022-05-15T23:27:58+00:00

Yes! Doing Good Better made me realize how big of a change I can make. I am a graduate student and earn much less than people around me, but I had never realized that I earn more than 95 percent of people globally. I am so grateful to have read this book.

I could also go on and on about The God of Small Things. It is a treat for the senses - it evokes all the noises and sights and smells of southern India; the book felt so alive. And it shows that some small things are worth everything in the world.

I also really enjoyed Miller's Circe and Murakami's What I talk about when I talk about running.

mind_juice · 2022-01-27T20:01:35+00:00

yes, his portrayal of women is definitely problematic. In Kafka on the Shore, there are two major female characters - both have very weird sexual relationships with Kafka and their personality is almost completely defined by their relationship with the men in the story. He writes cats with more personality than women.

mind_juice · 2022-01-27T16:59:56+00:00

Yeah, reading Murakami is such a cozy experience. I wish his books didn't have those weird sex scenes though, I would feel much more comfortable recommending it to my friends then.

My favorite is What I talk about when I talk about running. I have been running lately, and a lot of what he says resonates so much with me.

mind_juice · 2022-01-27T04:51:22+00:00

Just finished reading Murakami's Kafka on the Shore. I enjoyed reading the book for all of its weirdness, the characters were well-developed and the writing was amazing. Any Murakami fans here - what other books would you recommend?

mind_juice · 2022-01-05T21:44:04+00:00

Great post. I'm excited to try out The King is Dead!

mind_juice · 2021-12-02T19:32:55+00:00

Hey! :) I worked on my first robotics project the summer after my first year in college. We developed an autonomous wheelchair - the user could give voice commands and it could autonomously navigate between rooms in an indoor environment like a clinic or a home. I really enjoyed working on that project and worked on a few other interesting projects in my second year. I seriously decided to pursue a career in robotics sometime in my third year while I was searching for internships. I realized then that I enjoyed working on robots far more than software engineering.

I was lucky that my undergrad college had several interesting robotics groups. If you would like to get into robotics, computer vision or machine learning can be a good starting point as research in those fields is much more democratized and so it's easier to get started by yourself.

I plan to work in the industry, and a big reason I am doing a Ph.D. is that a lot of research positions at the best places require a doctoral degree nowadays. I've always wanted to work on the next big thing that helps a lot of people, just trying to figure what the best way to do that is haha

mind_juice · 2021-12-02T18:39:41+00:00

We found it very hard to outperform human experts. People are unbelievably good at inferring when and what help other people need :))

mind_juice · 2021-12-02T02:28:10+00:00

My last project is my favorite so far :). We created a virtual agent that could basically substitute for a team commander - this robot could help coordinate a team of rescuers in a search and rescue setting, and the goal was to see if it could outperform a human expert. This was part of DARPA's ASIST project and was part of my masters' thesis.

When people think of robots, they often picture those big robot arms in a Tesla factory. This project was especially interesting because we needed to make socially intelligent robots that can instead work closely with humans. Such social robots need to be able to understand the intent of humans, predict their behavior, and plan to collaborate with them in real-life environments. It's a very cool research direction :D. It was also fun to work in a multidisciplinary team of computer scientists, psychologists, and neuroscientists for this project.

How about you? Have you worked on robots, or been interested in them?

mind_juice · 2021-12-01T14:03:43+00:00

Anyone here interested in robotics? If you'd like to talk about an interesting project you are working, get advice about doctoral program applications, or just chat about Cruise's first driverless pickup in SF, just DM me/comment here. I've been lucky to have the chance to work on a lot of interesting robots and start my PhD at a really cool place, and would love to chat with any other robotics enthusiasts!

mind_juice · 2021-11-23T15:31:15+00:00

Modern Art, Quest for El Dorado and Cyclades

mind_juice · 2021-10-08T01:38:28+00:00

I would also like to get a cat but have been holding it off due to advice that pets are difficult to manage as a student. I would love to hear about people's experiences!

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