tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post4076907873033362384..comments2024-03-28T07:05:25.308-07:00Comments on Hox Scanlations: Many Thoughts on Actual BooksUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-59871711016661965342020-04-04T01:18:51.752-07:002020-04-04T01:18:51.752-07:00Interesting that you have read "War in Human ...Interesting that you have read "War in Human Civilization" by Azar Gat, since I took a few courses and a seminar with him on my B.A.While his focus in political science is on strategy he is also very knowledgeable in political philosophy. <br />He is probably the best prof. in our University, and both his lectures and books are really good. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-32504849208234797462015-04-12T08:41:06.779-07:002015-04-12T08:41:06.779-07:00You mean if I'll scanlate Water Margin after S...You mean if I'll scanlate Water Margin after Sangokushi? Probably not. It is definitely something that eventually needs to be done as its success was what led Yokoyama to do more Chinese-history related manga, but I'm more attracted to his historical works which came towards the end of his career (90s). <br /><br />I'm probably going to end up doing either his adaptation of Shiji or Xiang Yu and Liu Bang, after I wrap up Sangokushi. I'm leaning towards the former as its episodic content will allow me to work on it sporadically with other projects.Hoxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07954194342100256628noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-16460696763486688662015-04-12T07:57:49.447-07:002015-04-12T07:57:49.447-07:00Hey, I have a question: is Water Margin by Yokoyam...Hey, I have a question: is Water Margin by Yokoyama going to follow AFTER the Three Kingdoms series finish? :P :') Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-9080658204827304922015-04-05T12:26:31.632-07:002015-04-05T12:26:31.632-07:00Yes, you are right. I tried to find the studies in...Yes, you are right. I tried to find the studies in question (about IMO) and couldn't, they probably don't exist, part of the problem is that it is very difficult to measure innate mathematics ability, divorced from its environment. So I wish to retract my earlier statement and as a result this almost eradicates my already minor misgivings. <br /><br />I still think that a social explanation is just as plausible as a genetic one, and seeing that there is gender discrimination in the mathematics profession, it would seem that at the very least there is a composite cause. <br /><br />For example gender discrimination in orchestras were reduced when players auditioned behind a curtain, and I don't see why a genetic explanation in this case is not equally fitting.<br /><br />So I think that a stronger caveat in the statement by the author is warranted, but seeing as the topic was quite secondary to his point, I can ignore it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-85624009203798560142015-04-05T09:18:13.023-07:002015-04-05T09:18:13.023-07:00>particular pronouncement striked me as irrespo...>particular pronouncement striked me as irresponsible even<br /><br />Not really. Politically incorrect, yes, but the author is merely admitting that one, there is a cognitive difference between genders and two, these MIGHT explain under-representation of females at the.highest levels. There definitely are many cognitive studies which reveal gender differences, and to claim that there is a possibility that these differences lead to real-world outcomes is hardly unreasonable.<br /><br />>tests scores in things like sat and mathematical olympiads seem to be equal among genders when things like stereotype threat are taken out<br /><br />First of all, I don't think SAT math scores would count as "elite performance." IMO performance, however, does and to my knowledge, there is a well-noted large gender gap. I'm not quite sure what you mean by "equal among genders when things like stereotype threats are taken out," so you'll have to point the specific studies you have in mind to me. <br /><br />Yes, female performance in IMO does vary across cultures, but in all cultures, females are still underrepresented. Yes, the gender gap in IMO has narrowed over the years, but there's no real reason to assume that it'll ever achieve complete equality. I’ve yet to see anyone claiming that females have achieved parity in IMO so if you do have facts to refute this, feel free to enlighten me.<br /><br />At the end of the day, the simple fact is that males have higher genetic variance than females. My thinking is that this has more to do with male over-representation at things like the IMO. But of course, this is irrelevant when talking about averages and medians. <br /><br />>have you seen the book "the princeton companion to mathematics<br />No, but I'll check it out at a later time. Thanks for the rec.Hoxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07954194342100256628noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-91010275484097717232015-04-05T04:08:12.020-07:002015-04-05T04:08:12.020-07:00Thanks for the recommendations, all of them look p...Thanks for the recommendations, all of them look pretty cool.<br /><br />Right now I am reading "War in human civilization" and it is pretty awesome thus far.<br /><br />There is a minor point I didn't like though: in the first part the author mentions offhandedly that innate gender differences in "spatial reasoning" may account for gender imbalance in elite math performance, but the scientific evidence in this matter seems to suggest quite clearly that this is not so, tests scores in things like sat and mathematical olympiads seem to be equal among genders when things like stereotype threat are taken out. There is a gender imbalance at the elite level but in the face of the evidence it is more plausible that this is entirely due to cultural factors. That particular pronouncement striked me as irresponsible even.<br /><br />This point exemplifies my main gripe with evolutionary sociology, it allows one to make many plausible claims that are very hard to substantiate with more rigorous evidence. <br /><br />On an entirely unrelated note, have you seen the book "the princeton companion to mathematics"? <br /><br />I recommend it to you as you have expressed intererest in the history of mathematics. This book has some history but it is pretty basic. <br /><br />The really cool parts are the 3,4, and 5; where from a background in undergraduate math (say, calculus with epsilon-deltas, maybe a bit more I am not sure) it maps a pretty good landscape of modern mathematics, ideas and insights. It can't be as thoroughly rigorous as a math book, but I think it is still the best for giving the short heuristic "picture" of a ton of branches of mathematics.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-27536291882450427652015-03-26T18:33:41.027-07:002015-03-26T18:33:41.027-07:00Thanks for sharing that online book library link. ...Thanks for sharing that online book library link. You absolutely made my day, so many books I can't obtain where I live, so easy to access them!<br /><br />Thank you, Hox!!! I will check the books you suggested once I am done demolishing all the books I finally found in that website!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-87259536417369390672015-02-18T16:28:23.515-08:002015-02-18T16:28:23.515-08:00I love it when you post longer stuff like this, ke...I love it when you post longer stuff like this, keep 'em coming! Maybe try writing about video games some time.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-30981978605578077542015-01-04T13:23:04.035-08:002015-01-04T13:23:04.035-08:00I haven't read his books, but my offhand remar...I haven't read his books, but my offhand remark was about Thomas Cahill's How the Irish Saved Civilization, not Herman's How the Scots Invented the Modern World. I have reservations about the title, but not having read the book, I can't pass any judgment on it.Hoxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07954194342100256628noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-76538050035474355702015-01-04T10:35:03.265-08:002015-01-04T10:35:03.265-08:00I take it you're not fond of Arthur Herman.
...I take it you're not fond of Arthur Herman. <br /><br />Have you read his Gandhi and Churchill book Hox? It's on my reading list since it's a Pulitzer finalist but knowing that he's a follower of the great man theory (which I disagree with) and your offhand remark about his book make me rather reluctant.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-5351781646988594602014-12-30T02:46:53.007-08:002014-12-30T02:46:53.007-08:00Hmm... Well, a standard 1st-year college math text...Hmm... Well, a standard 1st-year college math textbook would pretty much cover it all, but since textbooks are quite long, it's best to just google the specific topic for online resources to help you understand it.<br /><br />In the first volume, other than basic trigonometry and algebraic operations that every high-school graduate would have covered, there are 3 distinct topics that pop up.Some of this stuff is briefly explained in the manga, of course, so you may not need to google it.<br /><br />1) Matrices. Nothing too deep, just a simple multiplication of 4 by 4 matrices. Google "multiplying matrices" to get a basic understanding of how this is done.<br /><br />2) Arithmetic and geometric sequences. Again, nothing too complex. Just a basic understanding of what they are and how to express general formulas for them.<br /><br />3) Complex Plane. Required are an understanding of how to express a complex number as a vector on the complex plane (Argand diagram) and an alternate expression on the polar coordinate system using radians. <br /><br />Vol 2 is a little harder, but all the work and explanation is given in the manga, so just read carefully and you should be able to understand it. The important concepts touched in this volume are:<br /><br />1)Convergence or divergence of infinite series. Just a barebones understanding of what these terms mean is needed.<br /><br />2) Expressing an infinite sequence as a generation function and vice-versa.<br /><br /><br />With that all said, reading mathematics isn't the same as reading facts in the social sciences. Its not immediately perceptible and you often need to read it over a few times and think about it to see if you actually understand it or are just parroting what the book said.<br /><br />Outside of textbooks, general books about the history of mathematics is a fascinating topic as well, and I'd recommend looking into them. Prime Obsession by John Derbyshire is a good one dealing with the Riemann hypothesis.Hoxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07954194342100256628noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-14209923127835884682014-12-29T13:05:29.796-08:002014-12-29T13:05:29.796-08:00Thanks for the for the suggestions/reviews, i'...Thanks for the for the suggestions/reviews, i'll read some of those. Always appreciate a good book.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10271902396703235987noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-16811637941897461772014-12-29T05:32:59.512-08:002014-12-29T05:32:59.512-08:00Interesting recommendations Hox. On history, I am ...Interesting recommendations Hox. On history, I am much more interested in "why did history happened this way instead of that way" rather than "what happened in history" so the <i> Intellectual Curiosity and the Scientific Revolution</i> really interests me. <br /><br />Rather unrelated, but what books about mathematics would you recommend for beginners in math (high-school level math education) to understand basic math tools and inquiries like Math Girls?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-20384096977870671772014-12-28T23:31:14.781-08:002014-12-28T23:31:14.781-08:00Sheesh, Hox, you must be really good at managing y...Sheesh, Hox, you must be really good at managing your time. I think the only book I got through recently was <i>Mapping Decline</i> a somewhat academic work documenting white flight in the St. Louis area. On deck is <i>Dark Tide</i>, about the collapse of a molasses tank...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-8772744325171572592014-12-21T07:02:54.638-08:002014-12-21T07:02:54.638-08:00yo hox, any recommendation similarity to /pol/'...yo hox, any recommendation similarity to /pol/'s torrent book.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13466660957082401810noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-70236301260697163242014-12-21T05:17:51.729-08:002014-12-21T05:17:51.729-08:00Thanks for the write-up! Now I am interested in th...Thanks for the write-up! Now I am interested in the book about the Byzantine empire. I too think that the book on the Tang empire was a bit dry and less engaging. But not all books of this series (History of Imperial China; HUP) are like this. Timothy Brooks' "The Troubled Empire: China in the Yuan and Ming Dynasties" is much more engaging. Still not a narrative history. But Timothy Brooks is a great scholar of sinology and a great writer. Almost anything he writes keeps my attention. You should read Vermeer's Hat as well. <br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-6010298704743718972014-12-20T16:57:30.688-08:002014-12-20T16:57:30.688-08:00pls marry me hoxpls marry me hoxAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-70212645662397844342014-12-19T17:20:22.317-08:002014-12-19T17:20:22.317-08:00Mr. Hox, you're a gentleman and a scholar.Mr. Hox, you're a gentleman and a scholar.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-66221032441520362032014-12-19T10:44:48.593-08:002014-12-19T10:44:48.593-08:00Thanks for writing this up, I will definitely chec...Thanks for writing this up, I will definitely check some of these out. Also, good work this year Hox! Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-69540079967187283842014-12-19T09:51:29.591-08:002014-12-19T09:51:29.591-08:00"None of that pretentious, "Warre is sav..."None of that pretentious, "Warre is savagery, high culture and trade is the only proper subject for academics." " shots fired at John Green.<br /><br />Why Rousseau? they should have go with Hobbes!<br /><br />But i am not interested at all on the love life of Yang Guifei! i will skip that one (tragic love is already plagued in anime, don't need to go and read a history book to find the same content). Wait they actually ignore his love life? ok bookmarked it.<br /><br />I actually don't like Harry Potter, but i fucking love pirates!<br /><br />Oh you eurocentrist, you, i will read that one too.<br /><br />Really? practically half this post was about "War in Human Civilization" you have nothing else to say about these other 2 books, i mean we read this far down the way you could... you know, give us a more solid idea of what they are about (specially for the second one, and actually the review for the first one doesn't says much neither).<br /><br />Actually despite what it may look like, it is quite a varied list of history books upon different topics.<br /><br />You should have talked about that book as a recommended additional complementary lecture when you mentioned how the Japanese section of "War in Human Civilization" had its issues, however i don't even know if the book would bee relevant as far as solving the shortcoming of the first goes, but really by now i don't want to hear about it, maybe another time.Doomroarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13020507115359561091noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-643247485418610029.post-69038759895115936402014-12-19T08:41:46.317-08:002014-12-19T08:41:46.317-08:00I've long been a grateful admirer of your work...I've long been a grateful admirer of your work, and as a fellow history nerd, you again have my thanks for these particular recommendations. Military histories have usually been a bit dry for my taste, but I've sampled them and will continue to do so in the future, as only a fool would discount the perspectives they provide. You may enjoy "Rising Up and Rising Down" by Vollmann, which is more of a philosophical treatise, but is also chock full of history both ancient and modern, and which delves into the history of and justifications concerning violence. Not exactly pertinent, but I hope it helps, and thanks again for all your work. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com