Making books was hard work.

Making a book was no easy task, it took time, dedication effort and many people to do it. On this You Tube video you will get an idea of the fabrication methods.

What we read and how should we read it.

From the day we learn to read to the last day of our lives we will be reading. Newspapers,  magazines,  signs, text books, instruction manuals. Almost everything that exists has a text. Books are of course the most readable material with different kinds of formats, information and looks. We have magazines, newspapers and comics which are not books per se, but have a similar function and format : to provide readable information and made of the book cover and pages.

We all have a different way of reading and different places to do it but on this post I want to point out a few do's and don'ts with regards to what you are  reading and where to read it. These are common sense but are not taken in to account some times and can affect the way you read. They can also maximize what you learn from reading (specially when reading study material).

Ambiance ( for studying)

We can read almost everywhere, but the truth is some books are best read in a lonely and quiet place. So I would advice to read study material in a library, and if at home in a place where no one will disturb you. You also need a good surface and illumination to read. Any wide desk will let you spread your book open over the surface plus any notebook or paper you might need for annotations or exercises. With regards to illumination set your lamp in a position that will not cause shadows on what you are reading of your head or arms. The shadows will make your eyes tire and is a loss of time to be moving around looking for better illumination. Also do not place light directly on the reading material. Some pages (almost any white pages) tend to reflect light back and this really hurts the eye. Music is good, any kind of music, but of course instrumental, soft or nature sounds work better because it blocks of whatever activity that might be going on around you so you don't pay attention to it, just beware of the volume.

Never study in front of the TV (this is obvious) or on the kitchen where everybody goes for a snack.  You don't want your mom asking you if you finished your shores or your sister interrupting you to ask for the phone.It may or may not be a good idea to study at work. It depends on whether you will have long periods of time without interruption. If you are sure of this, then do. If not don't even try it. It will only stress you more.

Reading position
A good reading position will rid you of pain on your neck, arms, back and legs. If you are reading study material then the rule is only one: seat straight on a chair (not the sofa or the floor) and slightly bend over whatever it is that you are reading. For any other book that you might be reading ,anywhere is good as long as you do not do or overdo the following:

• do not crouch over your book
• do not lay back down, leaving only your head up 
• do not read on your side for a long period of time
• (if on the floor) spread your legs, let your blood flow
• do not read belly down holding your head up

There are many more good advices on how and where to read our books. Want to share the ways you all do it?

FLAT LAND (A romance of many dimensions)

When I first read the title in Mychio Kaku’s book Hyper Space I told myself:  “I have to read this”.  I quickly went to Amazon and found the copy so cheap that I bought it. My curiosity took me to reading the book and with the first thing I stumbled with was the ancient (old english) in which it was written. It didn’t bother me that much as long as I had an open mind and my dictionary close.

 Edwin A. Abbott, wrote it in 1884. Edwin was a clergyman, scholar, Shakespearean and mathematician (the last one was a hobby). Whatever his motivations were, the book is so fun and ingenious that it will keep you reading. It’s an 82 page book (at least the edition I have) and is a social critic and satire of that time. It serves as an introduction to the concept of dimensions which was not   too spoken of at the time. The story is narrated by a “Square” who introduces you to the social and political structure of the two dimensional world, explaining from the different social classes to the method of recognition of each. Triangles comprise the lower classes (unintelligent, all males) and females are lines (dangerous, not easily controlled impulsive beings). The more sides a figure had, the higher its rank until the priest (or circle) was reached, the highest ranking figure and the supreme power.

One day our narrator the square had a visitor from the third dimension (a sphere) who after various attempts of trying to explain what the third dimension was and what it looked like, took him to the third dimensional realm. The journey ended pretty soon due to the Square annoying the Sphere with questions. At the end our Square friend ends up in jail for speaking about other worlds and dimensions, a topic that was forgiven in Flatland.

This classic is worth reading and enjoying either if you are a science fiction fan or just a regular reader. It’s a short read and very entertaining.