Trapped in a World Running Out of Ideas...Thousands of years ago, before he was trapped on an isolated computer system, Flatline was programmed to conquer the world. Today he’s escaped back to the World Wide Web, where he hopes to find his way back to the real world. Except the World Wide Web has forgotten there ever was a real world.Trapped in a World Running Out of Ideas...Thousands of years ago, before he was trapped on an isolated computer system, Flatline was programmed to conquer the world. Today he’s escaped back to the World Wide Web, where he hopes to find his way back to the real world. Except the World Wide Web has forgotten there ever was a real world.The inhabitants of this future Web reside in a closed system, where all possible experiences will soon be exhausted. The Web is winding down, falling into stasis. Here, Flatline is a brief infusion of novelty, bringing chaos to the system. Views: 677
Sam Harris' first book, The End of Faith, ignited a worldwide debate about the validity of religion. In the aftermath, Harris discovered that most people - from religious fundamentalists to non-believing scientists - agree on one point: science has nothing to say on the subject of human values. Indeed, our failure to address questions of meaning and morality through science has now become the most common justification for religious faith. It is also the primary reason why so many secularists and religious moderates feel obligated to "respect" the hardened superstitions of their more devout neighbors.
In this explosive new book, Sam Harris tears down the wall between scientific facts and human values, arguing that most people are simply mistaken about the relationship between morality and the rest of human knowledge. Harris urges us to think about morality in terms of human and animal well-being, viewing the experiences of conscious creatures as peaks and valleys on a "moral landscape." Because there are definite facts to be known about where we fall on this landscape, Harris foresees a time when science will no longer limit itself to merely describing what people do in the name of "morality"; in principle, science should be able to tell us what we ought to do to live the best lives possible.
Bringing a fresh perspective to age-old questions of right and wrong and good and evil, Harris demonstrates that we already know enough about the human brain and its relationship to events in the world to say that there are right and wrong answers to the most pressing questions of human life. Because such answers exist, moral relativism is simply false - and comes at increasing cost to humanity. And the intrusions of religion into the sphere of human values can be finally repelled: for just as there is no such thing as Christian physics or Muslim algebra, there can be no Christian or Muslim morality.
Using his expertise in philosophy and neuroscience, along with his experience on the front lines of our "culture wars," Harris delivers a game-changing book about the future of science and about the real basis of human cooperation. Views: 674
Collection of five light-hearted comedy plays, plus two versions of the same play from a different understanding or knowledge surrounding the circumstances of the past. These are a more serious social comment about the historical circumstances surrounding past events in one of the character's lives. One of the two players is totally unaware of the common thread between them.A collection of short sharp plays. The first five are light hearted comedy plays, using events we have, or will, become involved in during our lives; plus two versions of the same play, from a different understanding of the past, by one of the players, both being serious social comment. One of the characters is totally unaware of the common thread between the two. Cast numbers and props are minimal. Plot lines are very much everyday occurrences made into plausible scenarios. There are several walk-on parts for including people without the confidence or skills in public speaking. Others have comprehensive off-stage spoken parts for people who are afraid to make a physical appearance, but confident enough to speak, unseen. Views: 672
In response to The End of Faith, Sam Harris received thousands of letters from Christians excoriating him for not believing in God. Letter to A Christian Nation is his reply. Using rational argument, Harris offers a measured refutation of the beliefs that form the core of fundamentalist Christianity. In the course of his argument, he addresses current topics ranging from intelligent design and stem-cell research to the connections between religion and violence. In Letter to a Christian Nation, Sam Harris boldly challenges the influence that faith has on public life in our nation. Views: 671
The first day of winter approaches, and with it the dwarven celebration of Nypha. Included in the celebration is a Stalker's Game: a search and destroy for the highest bidders. Six dwarves pit themselves against eight well-armed and hostile human slaves, out on the brutal mountain slopes, where the fate of all will be decided. The rule for the slaves is simple: survive. Who will live and die?The first day of winter approaches, and with it the dwarven celebration of Nypha. Included in the celebration is a Stalker's Game: a search and destroy for the highest bidders. Six dwarves pit themselves against eight well-armed and hostile human slaves, out on the brutal mountain slopes, where the fate of all will be decided. The rule for the slaves is simple: survive. Who will live and who will die in this most treacherous game of all?A short story set in The Cry of Havoc. Views: 670
An unemployed man has to make a mortgage payment at an Automated Teller Machine (ATM). On a whim he scribbles a message on the input card and soon receives a communication from the computer. The man and the ATM develop a ‘relationship’ which solves his financial worries, gives him important information about the bank, and leads to employment - with the bank. But can the relationship last?An unemployed man has to make a mortgage payment outside his bank using an early model Automated Teller Machine (ATM). On a whim he scribbles a message on the input card and soon receives a communication from the computer. The man and the ATM develop a ‘relationship’ which solves his financial worries, gives him important information about the bank, and leads to executive employment – with the bank. But, as can happen, it is difficult to maintain a relationship indefinitely. The story was published in 1983 and also broadcast as a radio story. Although the story is set in the ‘historical’ context of an earlier generation of bank computing, the plot is still plausible as it involves the moral values of Big Banking as they were to be revealed over the decades. Views: 668
Jarl's day is about to become a confusing ride of strange uncertainties.This is a science fiction short story of 1,770 words. It is part one in the 'Origins' series of stories which connect with one another in unexpected ways.A Divine SecretA Loyal ProtectorA Forbidden LoveEve Collins starts her freshman year at college blissfully unaware that one revelation will challenge everything she’s believed to be true about her family, life, and future, and right in the midst of it all is Asher St. Michael. Mysterious and aloof, Asher is appointed to protect Eve at all costs. Bound by his oath of loyalty to mankind, loving her is forbidden. Dark and enigmatic, Gage Gallagher may be even more dangerous to Eve than the demonic army that hunts her. Caught in the middle of a centuries old war, Eve must choose sides knowing that the wrong choice will cost more than just her life. Can Asher and Eve fulfill their destinies or will their love destroy everything? Revelation is a page turning journey of self-discovery, love, secrets, and sacrifice. Intended for mature readers. Views: 668
A discussion of culture, design, environmental issues, and fuel economy associated with the Denver International Airport. It was originally written as part of a book inspired by the visionary thinker, Mr. Jim Starry.A discussion of culture, design, environmental issues, and fuel economy associated with the Denver International Airport. It was originally written as part of a book entitled "Simple Solutions" inspired by the visionary thinker, Mr. Jim Starry. Views: 667
A Nick Valentine short story.Disgraced Great War hero, Nick Valentine returns to France for the first time since the war on what should be a routine information gathering assignment in post-war Paris.But things are never that simple. Not for Nick Valentine.Nick Valentine is the flawed hero of the full length novel, Noho. This short story includes an opening excerpt from Noho.Arrested for sharing his faith a young convert named Tychicus lays bruised, broken and discouraged in a Roman cell. In the darkness he hears a voice say, "my name is Paul and God sent you here. You are here to learn about your new found Savior while you help me write a letter to the believers in Ephesus. Take an imaginary journey and spend nine days with the Apostle Paul and Tychicus while imprisoned in Rome. While there meet Gregory, Mr. Gruff, Lucius and Angel as God brings these characters into their lives to help accomplish the writing of the Epistle to the Ephesians. Come stay in the Prison of Freedom. Views: 667
This anthology contains: Introduction; Sixty Million Trillion Combinations; The Woman in the Bar; The Driver; The Good Samaritan; The Year of the Action; Can You Prove It?; The Phoenician Bauble; A Monday in April; Neither Brute nor Human; The Redhead; The Wong House; The Intrusion Views: 665
Hugo Award-winning author Ben Bova joins forces with Nebula Award finalist Doug Beason for an action packed technothriller with Space Station Down."Think Die Hard happening two hundred and fifty miles above the earth... Will have you watching the skies overhead much more closely."—Steve BerryWhen an ultra-rich space tourist visits the orbiting International Space Station, NASA expects a $100 million win-win: his visit will bring in much needed funding and publicity. But the tourist venture turns into a scheme of terror. Together with an extremist cosmonaut, the tourist slaughters all the astronauts on board the million-pound ISS—and prepares to crash it into New York City at 17,500 miles an hour, causing more devastation than a hundred atomic bombs. In doing so, they hope to annihilate the world's financial system.All that stands between them and their deadly goal is the lone survivor aboard the ISS,... Views: 662
In the future, humanity has spread throughout the solar system, on planets and moons once visited only by robots or explored at a distance by far-voyaging spacecraft. No matter how hostile or welcoming the environment, mankind has forged a path and found a home. In the far reaches of the solar system, the outer planets—billions of miles from Earth, unknown for millennia—are being settled. Neptune, the ice giant, is swathed in clouds of hydrogen, helium, and methane and circled by rings of rock and dust. Three years ago, Ilona Magyr's father, Miklos, disappeared while exploring the seas of Neptune. Everyone believes he is dead—crushed, frozen, or boiled alive in Neptune's turbulent seas. With legendary space explorer Derek Humbolt piloting her ship and planetary scientist Jan Meitner guiding the search, Ilona Magyr knows she will find her father—alive—on Neptune. Her plans are irrevocably altered when she and her team discover the... Views: 661
The Road is a Short Allegory. Like all of us, Chris is walking on the Road. The Road is a metaphor for life. He loses his parents, but he finds friends. The Road is easy and comfortable, but Chris can hear the mountains calling to him and he is curious about the secrets held there. Chineka feeds this curiosity and they eventually strike off into the wild lands.Let Dr. Rex Chartreaux, a mysterious professor and raconteur, take you on a journey through 9 stories of wonder, adventure, mystery, and terror, in which cats play a major role. From the tale of a young girl who embarks on a journey to find her missing cat and ends up discovering much more, to the tale of a merciless criminal who discovers he is being hunted down by a mysterious and seemingly invincible vigilante known as THE CAT, to the story of a falsely accused man who is saved from a life in jail thanks to the help of a feline, 9 LIVES is a collection of stories for the whole family that will surely thrill, inspire and move you. A must for fans of Lillian Jackson Braun, Rita Mae Brown, Agatha Christie and Frances Hodgson Burnett. Views: 660
Gold is the final and crowning achievement of the fifty-year career of science fiction's transcendent genius, the world-famous author who defined the field of science fiction for its practitioners, its millions of readers, and the world at large. The first section contains stories that range from the humorous to the profound, at the heart of which is the title story, "Gold," a moving and revealing drama about a writer who gambles everything on a chance at immortality: a gamble Asimov himself made -- and won. The second section contains the grand master's ruminations on the SF genre itself. And the final section is comprised of Asimov's thoughts on the craft and writing of science fiction. Views: 660
