I mentioned Nelson Goodman's Ways of Worldmaking this week in class, thought I'd send some information about it if anyone is interested. Nelson Goodman was an American analytic philosopher, who's students included Noam Chomsky and Hilary Putnam, who focused on topics in aesthetics (as well as other things). His Book, Ways of Worldmaking (which can be previewed on Google books HERE) posits that we are constantly producing new "worlds" all the time out of previously constructed worlds. The work is very relativistic for analytic philosophy but is extremely accessible. I highly recommend it.
I also thought I'd also mention Haunted Media by Jeffrey Sconce for those who were interested in spirit photography, the paranormal, and new media. Jeffrey Sconce is a media historian and cultural theorist at Northwestern University and his book, Haunted Media (which can be previewed on Google books HERE), is a history of new media starting with photography and moving all the way into the contemporary period. It is brilliantly written and his thesis is smart and cogent. Again, I highly recommend it.
