kingtet's reviews
21 reviews

This is the best intro on ECT that I've read. As a complete beginner to the subject, I need the practical aspects of ECT front loaded. Kellner's text does just this. Right away, this book starts discussing the unique aspects of the ECT H&P, ECT technique, and how/why to adjust ECT parameters based on the history elicited from the pt. Other books I've read on ECT and TMS scatter nuggets of practical advice among long, barely formatted paragraphs which summarize the findings of recent research, which makes them too difficult to read as an intro.

Most of it is very similar to all the other introductions to ethics for non-experts, albeit less organized than the best ones I've read. What it does add is some empirical findings on the moral lives of babies, which made it worth reading. 

Def reads like a modern-day sequel to the Iliad: the return of some characters with the offscreen deaths of others, certain aspects of the same story are rehashed or revisited, and a deeper exploration of the same cinematic universe. The themes here remain timeless, with some feeling relatively modern, postmodern, or even progressive (compared to Western liberal values), while others remain snapshots of a VERY different age, with some of the characters' values and actions feeling even more "foreign" to me than they were in the Iliad (even more violent and uncompromising revenge; unsympathetic, even positive portrayals of slavery). 

I think Homer's poetry remains relevant because it describes a world like ours: a chaotic one that lacks an easily recognizable good vs evil/Good vs. Bad. The Manichaen, dualistic moral center that so enraptured Western culture arose several centuries after this poem was written; indeed, Socrates lays its foundation, if you buy Nietzsche's argument. Every major Western story from Socrates to the Death of God in the 1800s contains this overt or implied sense that we can make sense of the world through a set of morals and methods of inquiry that derive from a single perfect entity (i.e. God). After the Death of God, we needed to reconstruct the foundations that once underpinned our society, and that's the whole goal of modernism/post-modernism. But modernism/post-modernism feels even less spiritually satisfying than the logical empiricism that arose from the Enlightenment! And that's why Homer matters: this pre-Socratic, pre-Christian epic feels grounded in SOMETHING, namely the Olympian gods and their prescribed rituals, which then leads to an implied sense of kinship between all Greeks. And that feels good and safe and grounded, but feels that way without me disingenuously believing in my culture's quaint attempts at grounding reality (good vs evil, God vs the Devil, good things happening to good people, etc.). It exudes the joy, direction, and simplicity that such normative values generate, but it does so while also admitting the world is chaotic and capricious and unfair and ultimately an unguided, unsolvable mystery. So if you want objective morality but can't stomach Christian God, try pre-Socratic literature! Why did that bad thing happen to a good person? Because Zeus was drunk! Why does the hero fail? Because one of his subordinates didn't sacrifice correctly one time like 5 years ago. Don't like it? Maybe Zeus is sober now, try your luck! And no matter what, treat strangers and travelers with hospitality and be loyal to those you love.

Takeaways : I can't fix your genetic predisposition to dying from the 4 horseman (CV disease, dementia, cancer, and metabolic syndrome), but there's plenty of modifiable risk factors which I can control. I need to do this with the 4 types of exercise he outlines (zone 2, zone 5, strength, balance/movement), socializing, sleep, and optimizing atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease through medical tests and meds if needed. Diet appears to either be not as important or too difficult to study accurately, and so I shouldn't fixate on one of the major food religions. Instead, I need to get a lot of protein, avoid processed foods, get a good mix of fats, eat plants, and avoid alcohol and drugs. Inspiring book! Also I noted a 3 act structure which led to some unexpected catharsis at the end. In the first few chapters, he demonstrates preternatural focus, drive, and intelligence; a respectable yet not threatening man. He gradually introduces hints of interpersonal issues (his wife, his residency attendings) interspersed between his meticulously researched advice and anecdotes revealing his demanding, almost superhuman daily routine. I certainly began to wonder what the catch was, and I wondered if he was a workaholic, and if so, what drove him to be that way? Temperament, conscientiousness-bordering-on-neuroticism, and parental pressure, like so many medical students? Well, let me just say he does eventually reveal his Achilles heel, and in a self-aware, intimate way. An excellent narrative weaved into the more straightforward stuff

This humanizes the scientists behind a world-changing technology, like an biography of the Manhattan Project scientists or something. It feels realistic bc of this, and so the cautionary tale feels more real. I knocked off a star just because the world Silberstein imagines is, well, unimaginative. As a result of the implant rechnology, the whole world undergoes a transformation... into the utopian ideal of an American neoliberal who believes in critical race theory only to the extent that it empowers all marginalized people with the means to participate in capitalist markets. In other words, even this revolutionary technology is not powerful enough to break through capitalist realism. 

It's like the sequel to 'Getting to Yes.' So helpful to get prepared for salary negotiations 

Interesting read! There are several spotify playlists of all the music mentioned in here so you can follow along.