I've been reading Nick Lane's "Life Ascending: The Ten Great Inventions of Evolution" since I have a large lacking of knowledge in biology and evolution and it was recommended to me. I would recommend the book to people like me, who don't have systematic knowledge in biology and want to learn some cool tidbits, particularly about early life. Non-rigorous. Easy-to-read.
Having now finished the book, I would like to add that the last chapter "Death" serves as a good introduction to research into life- and health-extending tech from the point of view of evolution. The author is quite optimistic that rapid progress is possible and just on the horizon if we concentrate on it.
There was a recent discussion considering the idea of a monthly Book (later expanded to movies, links, etc) thread. The poll was pretty unanimous that this was A Good Idea (tm). The past two threads have had a decent amount of activity, so let's keep going.
Post what you're reading, listening to, watching, and your opinion of it. Post recommendations to blogs. Post whatever media you feel like discussing!
Rules: