My comment has nothing to do with gender. This article along with a few others I've read recently , some on Digital Devide for example, got me thinking:
Why is it we hear more and more about differences, perceived as inequities, which must be the result of some gender / race / age / religion / political / genetic / discrimination, a wrong to be righted by some government sponsored TLA which will only fsck things up more than they already are?
Why is it that industrious people tend to make more money than lazy people? A more clear case of social injustice could not exist. Our indoctrination into the culture of achievement == reward begins the moment we exit the womb and continues throughout our lives, denying half of all citizens a better than an even chance of achieving their rightful share of the Non Cultural or National Specific Utopian Dream.
Our educational system is but one example where we as a society have failed miserably to prepare and provide for the non motivated. One could almost understand an environment of benign indifference but such is not the case. Test are administered and 'graded' based on the percentage of 'correct' responses. It is no secret that the callous lackeys of the establishment consider those individuals who do their homework, pay attention in class, study and subsequently are able to provide a higher percentage of 'correct' responses to somehow be 'better' students.
The rewards and advantages presented by the establishment to these so called 'better' students are considerable. So is the damage done to the psyche of those considered 'average' and especially 'poor' students. Similar practices in business and industry, and yes even within government, prevail and are obvious to anyone with the courage to remove the social blinders and look. This madness must end. Please join and contribute to:
The Society United to Remove Criteria from Decision Making %United Nations 2000 Socialist Way Clinton, Arkansas ru2b1
I waited several hours to see what was posted in response to your querry. Most of the time I find that someone else says what I would have said so much better than I would have. That has pretty much happened here but I'm posting anyway because a young friend of mine recently asked me about S.F. and I will share the recommendations I made to him.
I got the impression you and your neice were taking this little adventure together. I think that is great. An adult companion might be a good thing through some of the material suggested and you get the benefit of a more youthful perspective.
My list. Alan Dean Foster - Lifeform, Jed the Dead, Trilogy of the Damned, and Codgerspace. Codgerspace might be the best place to start with a 13 year old.
Harry Harrison - Bill the Galatic Hero. A series of very funny short books. A few light and comical sexual references. The Planet of Tasteless Pleasures and The Planet of Bottled Brains were my favorites.
John Bruner - Stand on Zanzabar and Shockwave Rider. Bruner's early work was standard fare spaceship and alien encounter and the last two new books I read were too fatalistic and depressing for me.
Vernor Vinge - A Fire Upon the Deep I have shared this one with everyone I know who reads S.F. and they all gave it a thumbs up. It is a complex story and I would recommend doing this one together. There are several sub plots. The most interesing involving wolf like creatures where each sentient individual is a small pack.
Pol Andersen - The Boat of a Million Years A good history and anthropology lesson as well as a good story.
Yes, you are making sense but that does not necessarily mean you are not full of hot air.:^) Most of the lists read to me more like "Geeks who should be on the top 10 list of scientists, genuses, and/or inventors" more than lists of the top 10 geeks. Then again, what's a geek anyway? The term is not unlike pornography. I can't define it but I think I know it when I see it. We all see it different. My own list of top 10 geeks, if I had one, would probably include H.G. Wells, Wally Cox, and Ralph Nader.
Hypothesis Three: The teacher was genuinely amused at the time of the reading. Later, the teacher read the story, thought about it, realized there was a posibility of future liability and decided some bureaucratic butt coverage was in order. She reported it to the principal, who's larger bureaucratic butt required even greater coverage and things escalated until the kid was in jail.
Slashdot Mirror
My comment has nothing to do with gender. This article along with a few others I've read recently , some on Digital Devide for example, got me thinking:
Why is it we hear more and more about differences, perceived as inequities, which must be the result of some gender / race / age / religion / political / genetic / discrimination, a wrong to be righted by some government sponsored TLA which will only fsck things up more than they already are?
Why is it that industrious people tend to make more money than lazy people? A more clear case of social injustice could not exist. Our indoctrination into the culture of achievement == reward begins the moment we exit the womb and continues throughout our lives, denying half of all citizens a better than an even chance of achieving their rightful share of the Non Cultural or National Specific Utopian Dream.
Our educational system is but one example where we as a society have failed miserably to prepare and provide for the non motivated. One could almost understand an environment of benign indifference but such is not the case. Test are administered and 'graded' based on the percentage of 'correct' responses. It is no secret that the callous lackeys of the establishment consider those individuals who do their homework, pay attention in class, study and subsequently are able to provide a higher percentage of 'correct' responses to somehow be 'better' students.
The rewards and advantages presented by the establishment to these so called 'better' students are considerable. So is the damage done to the psyche of those considered 'average' and especially 'poor' students. Similar practices in business and industry, and yes even within government, prevail and are obvious to anyone with the courage to remove the social blinders and look. This madness must end. Please join and contribute to:
The Society United to Remove Criteria from Decision Making
%United Nations
2000 Socialist Way
Clinton, Arkansas
ru2b1
I waited several hours to see what was posted in response to your querry. Most of the time I find that someone else says what I would have said so much better than I would have. That has pretty much happened here but I'm posting anyway because a young friend of mine recently asked me about S.F. and I will share the recommendations I made to him.
I got the impression you and your neice were taking this little adventure together. I think that is great. An adult companion might be a good thing through some of the material suggested and you get the benefit of a more youthful perspective.
My list.
Alan Dean Foster - Lifeform, Jed the Dead, Trilogy of the Damned, and Codgerspace. Codgerspace might be the best place to start with a 13 year old.
Harry Harrison - Bill the Galatic Hero. A series of very funny short books. A few light and comical sexual references. The Planet of Tasteless Pleasures and The Planet of Bottled Brains were my favorites.
John Bruner - Stand on Zanzabar and Shockwave Rider. Bruner's early work was standard fare spaceship and alien encounter and the last two new books I read were too fatalistic and depressing for me.
Vernor Vinge - A Fire Upon the Deep
I have shared this one with everyone I know who reads S.F. and they all gave it a thumbs up. It is a complex story and I would recommend doing this one together. There are several sub plots. The most interesing involving wolf like creatures where each sentient individual is a small pack.
Pol Andersen - The Boat of a Million Years
A good history and anthropology lesson as well as a good story.
Happy Reading
Yes, you are making sense but that does not necessarily mean you are not full of hot air. :^) Most of the lists read to me more like "Geeks who should be on the top 10 list of scientists, genuses, and/or inventors" more than lists of the top 10 geeks. Then again, what's a geek anyway? The term is not unlike pornography. I can't define it but I think I know it when I see it. We all see it different. My own list of top 10 geeks, if I had one, would probably include H.G. Wells, Wally Cox, and Ralph Nader.
Hypothesis Three: The teacher was genuinely amused at the time of the reading. Later, the teacher read the story, thought about it, realized there was a posibility of future liability and decided some bureaucratic butt coverage was in order. She reported it to the principal, who's larger bureaucratic butt required even greater coverage and things escalated until the kid was in jail.