Reading

I took the train down to see my girlfriend  and stay with her before we go on holiday to Austria. I find that normally the train ride is quite difficult because you're essentially sitting there and waiting till you arrive. Even with a magazine or a newspaper, it's tedious. I had decided to buy a magazine for the train in the hope of occupying my mind for at least some of the journey. On this occasion however, I passed a discount book store (The Works) and picked up a new copy of Bret Easton Ellis' outspoken 'American Psycho' for £1.99. I thought that this was amazing value considering Amazon don't do as good deals as they used to on even used books as the minimum delivery cost is £2.80 now (14/08/11). This was part of a 3 for £5 deal on books and fiction works.

I started reading from the moment I got on my first train (it's a long journey) and I started to appreaciate the appeal of reading a book over say, a newspaper or a magazine. With a newspaper, one skims the text and can't really get involved unless the subject matter is particularly cultured or concerned with some gripping theme. With a book, the mind is constantly building the environment described in the book and working hard to mould freeform thoughts into a coherent scene. This mental activity pulls you in and immerses you in the book. It is this drawing the reader into the book that makes time fly by. I tend to block out the environment around me when I read as I focus so heavily on the book and what's going on in the story. This makes for some telling offs when the missus tries to talk to me whilst I read. But this induced ignorance is exactly what is required for travelling because then one doesn't notice the other people on the train or the time. This is what makes reading books such a good use of one's time whilst travelling. The pages turn, the mind races and time rushes on. Before you know it, you're at the terminus of your journey and a large portion of your book is read. I'll certainly be reading a book on my return journey.

Review: Freefall by Joseph Stiglitz

I've just finished reading Joseph Stigliz' review of the 2008 financial crash. In his book Freefall, he sets out the context of the financial institutions that were responsible for the downturn and the massive harm to the global ecomony. He gives a critical review of the appraisal and encouragement systems within banks and investment companies that gave their leaders disproportionate bonuses and salary relative to the work that they did.

Stigliz goes on to give a detailed critique of the actions of both the American government and the banks before and during the crisis. He talks about the current down turn whilst contrasting and comparing with past recessions and the Great Depression. This is a useful vehicle for explaining how the banks became so intertwined and how governments became so reliant on banks for growth. The book also touches on the rarely mentioned taboo of insider trading and it's role in the financial crunch.

What is most heartening about the book is that it isn't simply a critique of the governments' failure in safeguarding the taxpayer during a market crash. It also gives potential paths forward for government to follow in the future so it gives hope to the reader. The best part about this is that the solutions to our problem http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifaren't plucked out of thin air, they're tried and tested learnings from recessions and bubble bursts from over the past century. This relevance gives the reader confidence that Stigliz has done his homework, giving a thorough treatment of the matter.

In summary, it's a fantastic read. It's exciting and not packed with obscure jargon so you don't need an economics degree to understand what's going on. I will say however, some parts move so quickly (unexpected in a review of financial history) that going back and reading again is a must so that all the information can be assimilated. The book is available on Amazon :

Albert Speer

I'm reading a book on Albert Speer, Hitler's Minister for Armaments and prior to the war, Hitler's personal architect. It's a biography which gives a really in depth coverage of Speer's time in the Reich and a thorough account of the situations that he found himself in day to day, working under the Fuhrer. The book also explores the mindset of Speer during his time as Hitler's close aide and during his later years after his time in prison. A curious point to pull out of the book is that while he denied all knowledge of the industrialised killing of millions of Jews, the slaughter of millions of soviets and the extermination of gypsies, he knew that he was using slave labour to construct many of his most grand works. It is for this that he received 20 years in prison and avoided the firing squad after the war ended.

the book is: Albert Speer - His Battle With Truth. Available on Amazon.

University Open Days

So you want to go to university. You know what you want to study and you know where. But how do you get more information aboutstudying what you want where you want. Well, the best and most simple option is to go to an open day.

Weather
Not the most obvious point to consider when thinking about univerity is the weather. Open days are really exciting opportunities for you to find out as much as you can about higher education at a specific institution. It is important that you enjoy your time there so it's important to dress sensibly for the weather. Make sure you pack an umbrella for the journey if it looks to be drizzly and wear something more breathable if it's going to be really hot. A hat an suncream would be a welcome addition to the latter scenario too.

Location
Before you got to an Open day, you need to know where you're going. Make sure that you have a chat with the admissions office of the unviersity that you want to go to. They will tell you times dates and locations of the sites that are open for open days. It's also a good idea to scan the prospectus to see what you're most interested in seeing when you go. From here, you can book train tickets, bum a lift, check bus timetables and plan a whole day around your university / university town, scoping out the place to see what's what.

Information
It is important that you make the most of your open day experience. Ensure that you have a general idea of the kind of information that you want to get out of your open day and ask lots of questions to satisfy your curiosity. Don't just ask about the obvious things like the course and the general student life. It may pay to ask about:

part time jobs at university,
societies that students can get involved in
charitable involvement opportunities
The experience of the students who may be presenting to you
The proximity of shops to the university
Course composition and assesment methods

After going for a University Open day it may be a good idea to email the university to get any more information or follow up any questions that weren't satisfied on the day.

Remember, you're going to university for three years at the very least. As a result, it is important that you enjoy the town / city you're going to be living in and are comfortable with the course that you sign up to. With that said, think hard about your options and carefully choose where to study, weighing up all the options. Good luck!

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