I've been using my Jump to Conclusions Mat quite a bit today.

For my own list, and keeping in mind that I was asking about accessible, enjoyable books for newbies, as a science fiction introduction, I'd probably say:

Stories of Your Life and Others (short stories) by Ted Chiang
The Martian by Andy Weir
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
Providence by Max Barry
The Peacemaker's Code by Deepak Malhotra

NOTE that I did not ask "what are the BEST science fiction books". I am talking more about accessible and enjoyable as an introduction. For example, recommending The Three Body Problem (or if we want to stretch the definition of SciFi a bit and include something like Gravity's Rainbow) to someone who's never read science fiction before, you'd almost certainly be turning them OFF to science fiction for good (opinion)

theFantasyReviews.com yesterday published "9 Essential Science Fiction Books for Beginners" (link below). I don't agree with them all, so I thought I'd ask here, what are the top 5-ish books you would pick to introduce someone (let's say ages 15-99) to science fiction?

https://thefantasyreviews.com/2023/03/05/9-essential-science-fiction-books-for-beginners/

Code's guide: How to know when a tech company is not telling you the whole story about their latest #security breach:

1) Their disclosures have sentences that start with "Out of an abundance of caution..."

2) Their disclosures have sentences that contain the phrase "...while this appears to be limited to a very small portion of our..."

😜

(arggh. Had two re-draft - typoes mayk mee crazey)

Code's eclectic music pick of the day:

Ah, the final day of #altjazz. This album creates a mood that is hard to describe. To me it's a bit melancholy, but still very enjoyable. The backing strings make it feel like it could be a soundtrack to some stylish, late 60's film noir. With Bill Evans on piano, it's pretty hard to go wrong. Check the whole album if this style appeals to you.

Here is Reflections in the Park by The Gary Mcfarland Orchestra

https://youtu.be/cDfk-vFO1t4

#codesmusic #cosomusic

If you've never seen Fleabag (with Phoebe Waller-Bridge), it was one of the best shows of the last few years. I just watched it again and caught a few things I'd missed on the first go 'round.
And if you HAVE seen Fleabag and enjoyed it, I'd also highly recommend Starstruck (on HBO Max, possibly others). Perhaps the best scene of any show in the last 5 years occurs in S2E1. Luminous joy.

Code's eclectic music pick of the day:

It's day 6 of #altjazz. Genre blending in music is often unsuccessful, and can produce a muddled, gloopy mess. But in the hands of competent artists, it can be transformative. By melding a foundation of traditional jazz and 70's jazz/funk, then sprinkling in some hip-hop and spoken word influences, Alfa Mist is a great listen for a puttering-around-the-house Saturday.

Here is Keep On by Alfa Mist.

https://youtu.be/XrY2m5rdlQQ

#codesmusic #cosomusic

Such a great interview by the master Jon Stewart. Here is a non-tw*tter link for those of us who don't wish to go there anymore:
https://youtu.be/tCuIxIJBfCY

𝗣𝗦𝗔: OK, I watched Moonfall. Why? Because I love science fiction and was craving an experience. I wasn't expecting much based on trailers, but hey, I've accidentally found fun movies before when I was expecting even less (yeah, I'm looking at you Space Sweepers).
What I can say is that if you're someone who yells at the screen when abominable science is presented, or inconsistencies are plentiful, or huge storytelling steps are omitted (wait - did I miss something?) then you can skip this mess.