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{{Information Resource
Reading represents quotes and book references from personal reading across technology, philosophy, creativity, and culture.
|scope=Curated quotes, insights, and references from personal reading
|focus=Key insights from technology, philosophy, creativity, and culture
|applications=Research reference, inspiration, intellectual development
|last_updated=2025
}}


Reading represents a curated collection of insights, quotes, and references drawn from extensive personal reading across technology, philosophy, creativity, and culture.
== On Learning ==


== Philosophy and Wisdom ==
In the beginner mind there are many possibilities; in the expert mind there are few.
— Shunryu Suzuki, Zen Mind, Beginners Mind


=== Zen Mind, Beginners Mind - Shunryu Suzuki ===
After you have practiced for a while, you will realize that it is not possible to make rapid, extraordinary progress. Even though you try very hard, the progress you make is always little by little.
— Shunryu Suzuki


> In the beginner mind there are many possibilities; in the expert mind there are few.
Even in wrong practice, when you realize it and continue, there is right practice. Our practice cannot be perfect, but without being discouraged by this, we should continue it. This is the secret of practice.
— Shunryu Suzuki


> When you bow, you should just bow; when you sit, you should just sit; when you eat, you should just eat. If you do this, the universal nature is there.
The purpose of studying Buddhism is not to study Buddhism, but to study ourselves.
— Shunryu Suzuki


> We ourselves cannot put any magic spells on this world. The world is its own magic.
When you want to hurry something, that means you no longer care about it and want to get on to other things.
— Robert Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance


> Even in wrong practice, when you realize it and continue, there is right practice. Our practice cannot be perfect, but without being discouraged by this, we should continue it. This is the secret of practice.
== On Truth and Reality ==


> The purpose of studying Buddhism is not to study Buddhism, but to study ourselves.
Truth, uncompromisingly told, will always have its ragged edges.
— David Shields, Reality Hunger


=== Reality Hunger - David Shields ===
All the best stories are true.
— David Shields


> Truth, uncompromisingly told, will always have its ragged edges.
Human memory, driven by emotional self-interest, goes to extraordinary lengths to provide evidence to back up whatever understanding of the world we have our hearts set on—however removed that may be from reality.
— David Shields


> All the best stories are true.
The stories you tell come true. If you believe everyone is untrustworthy, youll build that into your systems so that even the best people have to act like the worst people to get anything done.
— Cory Doctorow, Walkaway


> Human memory, driven by emotional self-interest, goes to extraordinary lengths to provide evidence to back up whatever understanding of the world we have our hearts set on—however removed that may be from reality.
Meaning, ultimately, is a matter of adjacent data.
— David Shields


> Fiction gives us a rhetorical question: What if this happened? (The best) nonfiction gives us a statement, something more complex: This may have happened.
== On Technology and Power ==


> Meaning, ultimately, is a matter of adjacent data.
Security is about how you configure power, who has access to what. That is political.
— Joseph Menn, Cult of the Dead Cow


> Biography and autobiography are the lifeblood of art right now. We have claimed them the way earlier generations claimed the novel, the well-made play, the language of abstraction.
Small groups with shared values can do even more, especially when they are otherwise diverse in their occupations, backgrounds, and perspectives.
— Joseph Menn


== Technology and Hacker Culture ==
We were pirates, not mercenaries. Pirates have a code.
— Joseph Menn


=== Cult of the Dead Cow - Joseph Menn ===
If you need to pay me to do math, thats because youve figured out how to starve me unless I do a job. A job creator is someone who figures out how to threaten you with starvation.
— Cory Doctorow, Walkaway


> One lesson from the Cult of the Dead Cow remarkable story is that those who develop a personal ethical code and stick to it in unfamiliar places can accomplish amazing things.
== On Information and Connection ==


> Small groups with shared values can do even more, especially when they are otherwise diverse in their occupations, backgrounds, and perspectives. In the early days of a major change, cross sections of pioneers can have an outsize impact on its trajectory.
Copies have been dethroned; the economic model built on them is collapsing. In a regime of superabundant free copies, copies are no longer the basis of wealth. Now relationships, links, connection, and sharing are.
— David Shields, Reality Hunger


> Security is about how you configure power, who has access to what. That is political.
Value has shifted away from a copy toward the many ways to recall, annotate, personalize, edit, authenticate, display, mark, transfer, and engage a work.
— David Shields


> We were pirates, not mercenaries. Pirates have a code.
== On Systems Thinking ==


> The cDc people were, at least for the most part, up until the later 1990s, more interested in writing, music, art, and that sort of thing. The technical issues were subsidiary to that.
Some interconnections in systems are actual physical flows. Many interconnections are flows of information—signals that go to decision points or action points within a system. These kinds of interconnections are often harder to see, but the system reveals them to those who look.
— Donella Meadows, Thinking in Systems


> Humor is one of the great binding things in the world, and something that cDc shared with the Pranksters was using humor to question the legitimacy of power.
Systems can be nested within systems. Therefore, there can be purposes within purposes.
— Donella Meadows


> If your security is not strong enough to stop script kiddies with publicly available tools, then you have no hope of securing your network from professionals waging war.
Youll be thinking not in terms of a static world, but a dynamic one. Youll stop looking for whos to blame; instead youll start asking, Whats the system?
— Donella Meadows


> It was a time of moral reckoning. People realized the power that they had. Hundreds of focused tech experts with little socialization, let alone formal ethics training, were suddenly unleashed.
== On Creative Work ==


== Information and Media ==
For the morning writing, her ritual is to rise around 5:00, make coffee, and watch the light come. Writers all devise ways to approach that place where they expect to make the contact. For me, light is the signal in the transaction.
— Toni Morrison, Daily Rituals


=== Reality Hunger - David Shields (continued) ===
You should burn yourself completely. If you do not burn yourself completely, a trace of yourself will be left in what you do.
— Shunryu Suzuki


> Copies have been dethroned; the economic model built on them is collapsing. In a regime of superabundant free copies, copies are no longer the basis of wealth. Now relationships, links, connection, and sharing are.
When you bow, you should just bow; when you sit, you should just sit; when you eat, you should just eat. If you do this, the universal nature is there.
— Shunryu Suzuki


> Value has shifted away from a copy toward the many ways to recall, annotate, personalize, edit, authenticate, display, mark, transfer, and engage a work.
We ourselves cannot put any magic spells on this world. The world is its own magic.
— Shunryu Suzuki


> What counts are the ways in which these common copies of a creative work can be linked, manipulated, tagged, highlighted, bookmarked, translated, enlivened by other media, and sewn together in the universal library.
== On Travel and Experience ==


> As recently as the late eighteenth century, landscape paintings were commonly thought of as a species of journalism. Real art meant pictures of allegorical or biblical subjects.
You see things vacationing on a motorcycle in a way that is completely different from any other. In a car youre always in a compartment. On a cycle the frame is gone.
— Robert Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance


> Suddenly everyone tale is tellable, which seems to me a good thing, even if not everyone story turns out to be fascinating or well told.
Life doesnt happen along interstates. Its against the law.
— William Least Heat-Moon, Blue Highways


== Technical Philosophy ==
As soon as my worries became only the old immediate worries of the road—Whens the rain going to stop? Who can you trust to fix a waterpump around here?—then I would slow down.
— William Least Heat-Moon


=== What the Dormouse Said - John Markoff ===
== On Community ==
Exploration of the intersection between counterculture and computing, documenting how the personal computer revolution emerged from 1960s idealism and technological innovation.


=== The Idea Factory - Jon Gertner === 
Thats the walkaway dilemma. If you take without giving, youre a mooch. If you keep track of everyone elses taking and giving, youre a creep scorekeeper.
Chronicle of Bell Labs and the invention of the modern world, showing how systematic innovation and long-term thinking created foundational technologies.
— Cory Doctorow, Walkaway


=== In the Plex - Steven Levy ===
What bothers me about the whole concept of pacifism, is that its fundamentally elitist. Poor people who have to live every day with violence by police arent going to see anything admirable in inviting police violence passively.
Deep dive into Google culture and philosophy, examining how search algorithms and data processing reshape human knowledge access.
— David Graeber, Direct Action


== Systems Thinking ==
Humor is one of the great binding things in the world. The thing about acidheads is, they think authority is funny.
— John Perry Barlow


=== Thinking in Systems - Donella Meadows ===
== On Personal Growth ==
Framework for understanding complex systems, feedback loops, and leverage points for creating change in interconnected environments.


=== Company of One - Paul Jarvis ===
Bit by bit, she learned to surf the moods. She recognized the furies as phenomena separate from objective reality. They were private weather, hers to experience alone or share with others as she chose.
Philosophy of sustainable business growth focused on optimization over expansion, challenging traditional scaling assumptions.
— Cory Doctorow, Walkaway


== Creativity and Process ==
When your mind becomes demanding, when you long for something, you will end up violating your own precepts. If you keep your original mind, the precepts will keep themselves.
— Shunryu Suzuki


=== The War of Art - Steven Pressfield ===
== Books Worth Reading ==
Examination of creative resistance and the professional mindset required to overcome obstacles to artistic and intellectual work.


=== Tools of Titans - Tim Ferriss === 
Technology:
Collection of tactics, routines, and habits from high performers across diverse fields, emphasizing systematic approaches to excellence.
- Cult of the Dead Cow by Joseph Menn
- What the Dormouse Said by John Markoff
- The Idea Factory by Jon Gertner
- In the Plex by Steven Levy


=== Daily Rituals - Mason Currey ===
Philosophy:
Documentation of creative routines and working methods of artists, writers, and thinkers throughout history.
- Zen Mind, Beginners Mind by Shunryu Suzuki
- Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig
- Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu


== Philosophy and Culture ==
Systems:
- Thinking in Systems by Donella Meadows
- Company of One by Paul Jarvis
- The Utopia of Rules by David Graeber


=== Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance - Robert Pirsig ===
Creative Process:
Philosophical inquiry into quality, rationality, and the relationship between technology and human values through motorcycle repair metaphors.
- Reality Hunger by David Shields
- The War of Art by Steven Pressfield
- Daily Rituals by Mason Currey


=== Notes of a Native Son - James Baldwin ===
Culture:
Essays on race, identity, and American society, examining the intersection of personal experience with broader cultural forces.
- Direct Action by David Graeber
- Notes of a Native Son by James Baldwin
- Blue Highways by William Least Heat-Moon


=== Direct Action - David Graeber ===
Fiction:
Anthropological analysis of protest movements and consensus-based decision making, exploring alternatives to hierarchical organization.
- Walkaway by Cory Doctorow
- The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin
- Exhalation by Ted Chiang


== Technology Criticism ==
== Note ==


=== Abolish Silicon Valley - Wendy Liu ===
These quotes come from years of reading. They are starting points for thinking, not final answers. Read the original books. Find your own connections. Keep questioning everything.
Critique of tech industry culture and venture capital, proposing alternative models for technology development and distribution.
 
=== Silicon Values - Jillian York ===
Analysis of how tech platforms moderate content and shape global discourse, examining the intersection of technology and human rights.
 
=== Futureproof - Kevin Roose ===
Guide to thriving in an automated world, exploring how humans can maintain relevance alongside advancing artificial intelligence.
 
== Notable Quotes by Theme ==
 
=== On Learning and Growth ===
 
> In the beginner mind there are many possibilities; in the expert mind there are few. - Suzuki
 
> After you have practiced for a while, you will realize that it is not possible to make rapid, extraordinary progress. Even though you try very hard, the progress you make is always little by little. - Suzuki
 
> The purpose of studying Buddhism is not to study Buddhism, but to study ourselves. - Suzuki
 
=== On Truth and Reality ===
 
> Truth, uncompromisingly told, will always have its ragged edges. - Shields
 
> All the best stories are true. - Shields 
 
> Human memory, driven by emotional self-interest, goes to extraordinary lengths to provide evidence to back up whatever understanding of the world we have our hearts set on. - Shields
 
=== On Technology and Power ===
 
> Security is about how you configure power, who has access to what. That is political. - Menn
 
> Small groups with shared values can do even more, especially when they are otherwise diverse in their occupations, backgrounds, and perspectives. - Menn
 
> It was a time of moral reckoning. People realized the power that they had. - Menn
 
=== On Information and Connection ===
 
> Value has shifted away from a copy toward the many ways to recall, annotate, personalize, edit, authenticate, display, mark, transfer, and engage a work. - Shields
 
> Meaning, ultimately, is a matter of adjacent data. - Shields
 
> Now relationships, links, connection, and sharing are the basis of wealth rather than copies. - Shields
 
== Reading Methodology ==
 
=== Kindle Sync Integration ===
Systematic capture and organization of highlights using automated sync tools, enabling cross-referencing and pattern recognition across multiple texts.
 
=== Thematic Organization === 
Books and quotes organized by conceptual themes rather than chronological or alphabetical order, facilitating intellectual synthesis and connection discovery.
 
=== Reference System ===
Each quote maintains source attribution with direct links to original texts, supporting verification and deeper exploration of context.
 
== Related Resources ==
 
* [[Ancient Wisdom Systems]] - Classical philosophy integration with modern thinking
* [[Information Architecture for Humans]] - Knowledge organization principles 
* [[Documentation Discipline]] - Systematic approach to capturing and connecting insights
* [[Personal Learning Systems]] - Individual knowledge development methodologies


[[Category:Reading]]
[[Category:Reading]]
[[Category:Knowledge Management]] 
[[Category:Quotes]]
[[Category:Philosophy]]
[[Category:Technology]]
[[Category:Reference]]

Latest revision as of 15:03, 1 September 2025

Reading represents quotes and book references from personal reading across technology, philosophy, creativity, and culture.

On Learning

In the beginner mind there are many possibilities; in the expert mind there are few. — Shunryu Suzuki, Zen Mind, Beginners Mind

After you have practiced for a while, you will realize that it is not possible to make rapid, extraordinary progress. Even though you try very hard, the progress you make is always little by little. — Shunryu Suzuki

Even in wrong practice, when you realize it and continue, there is right practice. Our practice cannot be perfect, but without being discouraged by this, we should continue it. This is the secret of practice. — Shunryu Suzuki

The purpose of studying Buddhism is not to study Buddhism, but to study ourselves. — Shunryu Suzuki

When you want to hurry something, that means you no longer care about it and want to get on to other things. — Robert Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

On Truth and Reality

Truth, uncompromisingly told, will always have its ragged edges. — David Shields, Reality Hunger

All the best stories are true. — David Shields

Human memory, driven by emotional self-interest, goes to extraordinary lengths to provide evidence to back up whatever understanding of the world we have our hearts set on—however removed that may be from reality. — David Shields

The stories you tell come true. If you believe everyone is untrustworthy, youll build that into your systems so that even the best people have to act like the worst people to get anything done. — Cory Doctorow, Walkaway

Meaning, ultimately, is a matter of adjacent data. — David Shields

On Technology and Power

Security is about how you configure power, who has access to what. That is political. — Joseph Menn, Cult of the Dead Cow

Small groups with shared values can do even more, especially when they are otherwise diverse in their occupations, backgrounds, and perspectives. — Joseph Menn

We were pirates, not mercenaries. Pirates have a code. — Joseph Menn

If you need to pay me to do math, thats because youve figured out how to starve me unless I do a job. A job creator is someone who figures out how to threaten you with starvation. — Cory Doctorow, Walkaway

On Information and Connection

Copies have been dethroned; the economic model built on them is collapsing. In a regime of superabundant free copies, copies are no longer the basis of wealth. Now relationships, links, connection, and sharing are. — David Shields, Reality Hunger

Value has shifted away from a copy toward the many ways to recall, annotate, personalize, edit, authenticate, display, mark, transfer, and engage a work. — David Shields

On Systems Thinking

Some interconnections in systems are actual physical flows. Many interconnections are flows of information—signals that go to decision points or action points within a system. These kinds of interconnections are often harder to see, but the system reveals them to those who look. — Donella Meadows, Thinking in Systems

Systems can be nested within systems. Therefore, there can be purposes within purposes. — Donella Meadows

Youll be thinking not in terms of a static world, but a dynamic one. Youll stop looking for whos to blame; instead youll start asking, Whats the system? — Donella Meadows

On Creative Work

For the morning writing, her ritual is to rise around 5:00, make coffee, and watch the light come. Writers all devise ways to approach that place where they expect to make the contact. For me, light is the signal in the transaction. — Toni Morrison, Daily Rituals

You should burn yourself completely. If you do not burn yourself completely, a trace of yourself will be left in what you do. — Shunryu Suzuki

When you bow, you should just bow; when you sit, you should just sit; when you eat, you should just eat. If you do this, the universal nature is there. — Shunryu Suzuki

We ourselves cannot put any magic spells on this world. The world is its own magic. — Shunryu Suzuki

On Travel and Experience

You see things vacationing on a motorcycle in a way that is completely different from any other. In a car youre always in a compartment. On a cycle the frame is gone. — Robert Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

Life doesnt happen along interstates. Its against the law. — William Least Heat-Moon, Blue Highways

As soon as my worries became only the old immediate worries of the road—Whens the rain going to stop? Who can you trust to fix a waterpump around here?—then I would slow down. — William Least Heat-Moon

On Community

Thats the walkaway dilemma. If you take without giving, youre a mooch. If you keep track of everyone elses taking and giving, youre a creep scorekeeper. — Cory Doctorow, Walkaway

What bothers me about the whole concept of pacifism, is that its fundamentally elitist. Poor people who have to live every day with violence by police arent going to see anything admirable in inviting police violence passively. — David Graeber, Direct Action

Humor is one of the great binding things in the world. The thing about acidheads is, they think authority is funny. — John Perry Barlow

On Personal Growth

Bit by bit, she learned to surf the moods. She recognized the furies as phenomena separate from objective reality. They were private weather, hers to experience alone or share with others as she chose. — Cory Doctorow, Walkaway

When your mind becomes demanding, when you long for something, you will end up violating your own precepts. If you keep your original mind, the precepts will keep themselves. — Shunryu Suzuki

Books Worth Reading

Technology: - Cult of the Dead Cow by Joseph Menn - What the Dormouse Said by John Markoff - The Idea Factory by Jon Gertner - In the Plex by Steven Levy

Philosophy: - Zen Mind, Beginners Mind by Shunryu Suzuki - Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig - Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu

Systems: - Thinking in Systems by Donella Meadows - Company of One by Paul Jarvis - The Utopia of Rules by David Graeber

Creative Process: - Reality Hunger by David Shields - The War of Art by Steven Pressfield - Daily Rituals by Mason Currey

Culture: - Direct Action by David Graeber - Notes of a Native Son by James Baldwin - Blue Highways by William Least Heat-Moon

Fiction: - Walkaway by Cory Doctorow - The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin - Exhalation by Ted Chiang

Note

These quotes come from years of reading. They are starting points for thinking, not final answers. Read the original books. Find your own connections. Keep questioning everything.

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