Rating: 
Summary: Philosophy from Scott Adams
Review: It is hard to believe that this book is from the same author as all of the Dilbert books, but it is. Adams lays out in 132 pages a completely new philosophy of life, love, religion and values to live by. I found the book to be interesting and thought provoking. I read it in one sitting. I suggest that you read it, also.
Rating:
Summary: There should be a usenet group to discuss this book.
Review: This is mixture of thought provoking ideas some true some nonsense but all interesting. The odd description of physics is a direction being persued by a number of theoreticians so far witout result. But its not stupid. The claim that evolution is true but has no practical results is silly. Modern agraculture, the manufacture and preservation of antibiotics and bioengineering are practical results. The best thing about it is I couldn't put it down. The worst thing about it is I couldn't put it down.
Rating:
Summary: Of course it's contrived...
Review: Of course it's contrived, but no more than say, Schroedinger's cat is contrived. That's the way of thought experiments. Besides, it's fiction. Adams says so right there in the introduction. It was never intended to answer any questions about the nature of the universe any more than Star Wars was intended to be a history of the universe a long time ago. I thoroughly enjoyed God's Debris, even though I can spot several flaws in the logic. Part of its charm, really, is that despite being purely fictional, there is a hint of the odd sort of reality of quantum physics that no one truly understands ("If you think you understand quantum mechanics, you don't understand quantum mechanics." -- Richard Feynman), extrapolated to ultimate simplicity. But don't confuse that with any sort of attempt to propose the Theory of Everything. This isn't it, nor does it pretend to be. Adams's challange to the reader is to try to spot the errors. I found that challange to be very entertaining, even if I have no way to verify whether I met the challange or not. Add to that a light-hearted background story, and you get what I considered to be a very good read. My only true disappointment with God's Debris was that it was over too soon.
Rating: 
Summary: Thought Provoking
Review: I've ready this thought provoking work from the creator of Dilbert and enjoyed it immensely. It helped me to expand my horizons, my thought processes, and my enjoyment of life in general. Scott provides another way of looking at our sometimes mundane existence and jostles your brain cells enough to help you to realize that often there is more going on than meets the eye or other senses. At the end I was left wanting more. I understand now how Scott Adams continues to fascinate me with his Dilbert cartoon strip. This was a deep journey into his psyche, this is no ordinary person we're talking about here. As he says in the introduction, "The opinions and philosophies expressed by the characters are not my own, except by coincidence in a few spots not worth mentioning. Please don't write me with passionate explanations of why my views are wrong. You won't discover my opinions by reading my fiction." But the mere fact that he was able to put this altogether and make it work is a window into his writing capabilities. Thanks Scott
Rating:
Summary: Oh, God! This book is EXCELLENT!
Review: I do a lot of reading on spiritual topics, especially, metaphysics. I look for books with the word "God" in their title especially. So naturally, when I found this book in the metaphysics section of Border's Books, I took a look at it. I normally just open a book up somewhere, anywhere, and read a few paragraphs. If it sounds like something I am interested in, I will take a closer look. If I like what I am reading, I will buy it! First of all, being the creator of Dilbert (I love Dilbert!), tickled me to no end that Scott would write a book like this! I knew there would by rye humor and intelligent wit contained in its contents :) I have read many, MANY books on spirituality, no way to count them all, I think. And I have often thought...for all the so called "knowledge" that I have extracted from those books, I should write a book. But I keep thinking, why should I just regurgitate something which others have written? And that is what has stopped me. But Scott's book, if no other, has proven to me, that even though there are many books about Spirit, we can always say something original and new and refreshing, if we are willing to listen to our inner voice. It is clarity which one needs to write a simple essay like this, succinctly, and from the heart. Not since I read Conversations with God, A Common Dialog, by Neale Donald Walsch, have I read a book more worth reading than Scott's! And the tone and substance of his
book, and the dialog, is so much in line with Walsch's, I knew that there was but One Source that it's inspiration derived from :) I think this book is a written Masterpiece! This is true Spirit in it's purest sense. I loved the down-to-earth, simple, humanistic and day-to-day common sense "attitude," that is so typical of Dilbert, carried thru in the entire book. Once again we have the Old Master speaking to yet another new student, instructing us in the common sense of Who We Are. I recognize the modus. I think Scott has succeeded so well, where many others have failed, in communicating something valuable. I have observed something which seems to be true. In the book, he wondered, how is it that you can drive down the same street for a long time and never take note of a sign that has been there all along? Well here is something I noticed along the long road of my spiritual development...when God speaks, it is simple, succinct, direct, personable and in imminently common sense terms...God writes SMALL books with BIG ideas. God leaves the BIG books with SMALL ideas for all the rest of us to write to each other. What Scott has written, is another Conversations with God book, and its from The Old Man! You will know what I mean when I say "Old Man," when you read this book for yourself. I hope, Scott will continue the dialog with another book. But for some reason, as I fear, so often happens, sequels, never are as good as the original. For some reason, when God speaks, He does so, one book and one person, at-a-time. What needed to be said gets said, the first time around. That is why, I devour such books deliciously when I find them, but always get to the end with an "awwww, do I really gotta go to bed now mom" feeling...that somehow, I wish that all that wonderful wisdom had not ended so abruptly when my mind was so much in sync with and wanted to continue with, the dialog.
This is one of those books you wish had not ended so quickly. Finally, I couldn't help but chuckle with glee, when Scott said, to effect, to the old man (Avatar), (page 126): "That sounds very charitable, I said, but I notice your level has the highest number. That's obviously the good one. You must be feeling a little smug" I was sitting in a McDonald's having a hamburger when I read those words, and I couldn't help but burst out chuckling...I want you to know, my chuckling made a lot
of mom's and their kids smile because I could not restrain my chuckling! I thought I would leave everyone who reads this commentary on this note...Scott Adams have done GOOD work here!
Rating:
Summary: God's Debris: A Thought Experiment
Review: Even if you think you have examined meta-physical/mystical/neo-spritiual concepts in depth in your life, you owe it to yourself to check this one out. Scott Adams is a brilliant writer and this one will keep you glued; I couldn't put it down 'till I was done (then started over again!). Expect to be amazed, expect to be intrigued, then expect not to expect anything anymore. Perfect for those (20-27 yr olds, OUR generation) kinda strugling with their beliefs, this won't necessarily change them but it'll help you in ways you might not be able to understand yet. Enough reading reviews by strangers, GET THE BOOK!
Rating: 
Summary: Don't quit your day job
Review: Well I guess I'll have to be contrary because I didn't get anything out of this book. It appeared to be disjointed ramblings with no central theme. I love Dilbert though.
Rating:
Summary: A very fun and challenging experiment!
Review: If you think that Scott Adams can only write comic strips (you know, Dilbert), you'll be as surprised as I was. Adams has tackled what many are tackling these days - basically a spiritual philosophy - but that few are succeeding at quite this well. I am telling you, this funny cartoonist is about as deep, thoughtful, and intriguing a writer as I've come across. Not complex, mind you, but deep. As I entered into his new book, God's Debris (just wait till you find out what the title means!), I was delighted to learn that he uses the language very well - especially for a philosophical piece like this, which, at its best, really only pretends at fiction. (It is primarily a philosophical dialogue between two men.) When the narrator steps into a room and sees a little old man sitting, I actually laughed to picture it as Adams described: "Something moved and I noticed, on the far side of the fireplace, in a wooden rocker, a smallish form in a red plaid blanket, looking like a hastily rolled cigar." The narrator later tosses an extra log onto a dying fire, and we read that "the retiring embers celebrated its arrival." Now, these points are not by any stretch the meat of the book - but it's important to know, this is not just some comic stab at writing. Nor is it a comic stab at philosophy. Adams examines really the core of who we are, and who God is, as well as numerous details of life, always conforming to certain central themes. His approach? Really a Socratic exercise, not necessarily answering the questions of the world, but certainly asking them. As for answers, these abound as well ... but Adams does not take himself so seriously as to insist on their accuracy. Rather, he wisely notes how intriguing many of the answers are, and challenges the reader to consider them too. I can tell you how I consider them: they are among the most convincing answers I have yet come across (for me, very much like What is Man? by Mark Twain - another comic with tremendous depth to his philosophy). Along the way, Adams certainly pokes and prods his readers, forcing questions that must make them squirm. "If people believed in God," he points out, "they would live every minute of their lives in support of that belief. Rich people would give their wealth to the needy. Everyone would be frantic to determine which religion was the true one. No one could be comfortable in the thought that they might have picked the wrong religion and blundered into eternal damnation, or bad reincarnation, or some other unthinkable consequence. People would dedicate their lives to converting others to their religions." He adds: "If you believe a truck is coming toward you, you will jump out of the way. That is belief in the reality of the truck. If you tell people you fear the truck but do nothing to get out of the way, that is not belief in the truck." Now, do you believe in God? That example is a mere detail, though, and there is a much more important thread and theme running through this, dealing with the deepest questions of all. In its effort, it supports much of its philosophy with tantalizing scientific proofs, and with areas where science has fallen down. The philosophical portion thoroughly discusses who God is, what our relationship is to God, the nature of good and evil within these definitions, and other potent topics. I admit, I was sure at one point that the book was roaming randomly. But enough chapters passed by, and I was convinced that Adams was tying everything together. In the end, it's an experience! There are so many parts of this book that I'd like to share, but it would spoil the surprise. If you want a good challenge based in both science and philosophy for what God is, for what we are, for just what the heck we're doing here ... take a peek, and find yourself wondering about things, and probably - just probably - in brand new ways.
Rating:
Summary: Very Interesting
Review: I loved this book, it really did make me look at things in a different light, however if you are set in your beliefs and ideas don't read it. Especially if you don't like having your notions about everything questioned. Although Scott Adams says in his preface that this is unscientific it does make some sense.
Rating:
Summary: A new twist on old thinking
Review: I read a lot of philosophy books. From the presocratics to pre-modern day Nietzche, I've dabbled in whatever I can get my hands on. I picked up this book with the notion that Scott Adams has written something along the lines of a "thought provoking" book. Upon reading it, I have to agree that it does do just that. The book provides a good mixture of psychology, metaphysical mind journies, and a hint of preaching. It was never intended to reveal the secrets of the universe; nobody can do that. Instead, it allows the reader to step up from dogmatic thinking patterns and really question the world in which we live in. My only complaint was that the book's ultimate thesis was argued only via appealling to faith. As there is no clear method to explain reality via science, Adams uses the word "model" to justify his position in the book. However if one were to look beyond simple semantics, the underlying explainations of our current belief systems are indeed quite impressive. I enjoyed the book very much. I never expected to have all my world views crushed, and as such I was no disappointed.
|
