Space and Science

Star Trek: I'm Working on That, by William Shatner, with Chip Walter. I'm trying to broaden my reading and knowledge with a little nonfiction. This book contained alot of good information; I learned about positrons, for example-- they had been bothering me-- and how far away science is from making half the things you see on the shows. I didn't appreciate the author's writing style, however. Although he is trying to bring nano technology down to something the reader can understand, he went too far into the informal. He also could do with a lesson in commas, as he doesn't use any. Because he was writing informally, the way he probably talks, there were also alot of fragments. I was especially annoyed by all the parenthetical phrases-- at least 2 per page. Why do we need so many? If it isn't important enough to include as regular text, leave it out. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? or, Blade Runner, by Philip K. Dick. I love old science fiction. In 1968, 2010 was so far away. We'll have colonies on Mars! Androids will be indistinguishable from humans! Although the stories turn out to be extremely inaccurate, old science fiction is excellent because it hasn't yet snubbed its collective nose at traditional conventions and plot structures. They feel classic, timeless. Huzzah for people who actually learned how to write before trying to publish.