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I really enjoy reading popular science and other non-fiction books and would love to get some suggestions from other sifters. Please add amazon invocations and a bit on why you like a particular book.

I really like what a recent Ted Talk had to say about snobbery- and it made me think of my own run-in with it yesterday.

On my way to work I usually get off my bus in central Brisbane, get a coffee and walk the 15 minutes into Fortitude Valley. My brew of choice is a Starbucks Grande filter coffee with just a splash of milk. I get my coffee at Starbucks because it's just about the only place in Brisbane where you can get filter coffee (except McDonalds). Espresso rules Australia- I don't mind it, but I find all the milk of a latte or cappuccino too heavy. Brewed coffee suits me just right.

Anyway, I was feeling a bit peckish, so after getting my coffee, I stopped at this trendy little German bakery near Central Station called "Brot: Wicked European Bread" for a croissant to carry with me.

I put my Starbucks cup on the counter to get my money out and an older lady, who looked like an office worker in her 50s said - "Oh, Starbucks - don't let him set that there, it's the McDonalds of coffee".

The guy behind the counter replied "Yes, I call Starbucks 'The Crematorium'". They both had a good chuckle and I went away without saying anything witty, because I hadn't had my coffee yet.

But now I have the perfect reply to that old hag- I would say "I like women like you, the same way I like my coffee - cheap, bitter and operating in a predatory manner to destroy local coffee shops for greater corporate profits".

That would have showed her.