Learning to Live with Procrastination [Video]

A cool promo video for David McRaney’s book, YOU are NOT so SMART.

An entertaining illumination of the stupid beliefs that make us feel wise.
You believe you are a rational, logical being who sees the world as it really is, but journalist David McRaney is here to tell you that you’re as deluded as the rest of us. But that’s OK- delusions keep us sane. You Are Not So Smart is a celebration of self-delusion. It’s like a psychology class, with all the boring parts taken out, and with no homework.

[YOU are NOT so SMART] Learning to Live with Procrastination [Video]

BestSFBooks Catalogs Award Winning Science-Fiction Books

If you’re a SciFi fan and looking for some new books to devour, BestSFBooks catalogs the winners of a dozen different Science-Fiction literature awards–check out the best from the present all the way back to the 1950s.
Currently BestSFBooks has a catalog of 699 authors, 305 series, and 3,213 books, all ranked and organized based on their placement in a dozen different awards–including the Huge Award, Arthur C. Clarke Award, Nebula Award, and more. You can drill down through the catalog by specific award, year, series, author, and more.
Hit up the link to take it for a spin. Have a favorite Sci-Fi book to share, listed at BestSFBooks or otherwise? Let’s hear about it in the comments.
BestSFBooks [via Boing Boing] BestSFBooks Catalogs Award Winning Science-Fiction Books

Awesome Flowchart Helps You Pick Your Next Sci-Fi or Fantasy Read

So as you may be aware, NPR crowd-sourced a list of the 100 greatest sci-fi and fantasy novels. As you might also be aware, 100 novels is a lot of novels. Chances are you’ve read or at least heard of some of them before, but let’s say you want to pick a new one, something you aren’t familiar with, something that will be an exciting surprise, but more importantly, something you’ll actually enjoy.

Well you don’t have to choose arbitrarily based on title or cover art any more; SF Signal has created an exhaustive, infinitely useful flowchart that’ll help you find the pick that’s right for you. Also, it’s funny, which is always a plus. Whether you’re interested in diving into the annals of post-apocalyptic Catholicism thousands of years in the future or an epic fantasy series with at least ten books under its belt, this flowchart is sure to lead you to the right choice.

(via io9) Awesome Flowchart Helps You Pick Your Next Sci-Fi or Fantasy Read
Click the image to embiggen.

Ebook readers' bill of rights

"LibraryGoblin sez, 'The Librarian in Black, Sarah Houghton-Jan, has posted this call for basic e-book user's rights. She's released it into the public domain and is encouraging people to spread it as far and wide as possible. Enough of anti-user DRM and licensing!'

Every eBook user should have the following rights:

* the right to use eBooks under guidelines that favor access over proprietary limitations

* the right to access eBooks on any technological platform, including the hardware and software the user chooses

* the right to annotate, quote passages, print, and share eBook content within the spirit of fair use and copyright

* the right of the first-sale doctrine extended to digital content, allowing the eBook owner the right to retain, archive, share, and re-sell purchased eBooks

I believe in the free market of information and ideas.

I believe that authors, writers, and publishers can flourish when their works are readily available on the widest range of media. I believe that authors, writers, and publishers can thrive when readers are given the maximum amount of freedom to access, annotate, and share with other readers, helping this content find new audiences and markets. I believe that eBook purchasers should enjoy the rights of the first-sale doctrine because eBooks are part of the greater cultural cornerstone of literacy, education, and information access.

This is great stuff. My only quibble is with 'ebook user' rather than 'ebook reader' -- a reader is so much more noble a beast than a mere user.

The eBook User's Bill of Rights
(Thanks, LibraryGoblin, via Submitterator!)