8月1日的讀書會在黃晉英秘書長主持下，第一場由高傳棋先生報告《清代台北交通：穿山越洋貫東西》，作者高傳棋，專長於地方文史調查及策展，曾任台北縣文獻諮詢委員。本書主要以十九世紀前的數百張歷史圖像為基底，輔以文字，分別從移民到住民、生活的交通、海關與開港、清末現代化等四大主軸，鋪陳從地方傳統邁向現代世界的交通文明史。鍾政勳先生問，交通與區域發展興衰有關，而在氣候異變的趨勢下，又有何改變？報告人表示，未來環境急遽改變時，聚落的發展可以透過彈性的交通做一轉移，並取法前人智慧，以在地化的資材建構必要的交通工具。林俊興董事長表示，知識的本質即在於精準地傳遞非經驗所得決策基礎，本書以豐富的地理資料來重現歷史空間，讓讀者更清晰地解讀歷史文字難以言傳之處；一百多年前的台灣交通發展與國際貿易密不可分，例如基於將台灣茶葉出口至英國的實質需要，然而近晚的交通設施卻未必出於在地的真實需求，拼湊出的交通系統，效率自然無法提高，鑑於歷史，台灣必須扭轉此一劣勢，才能提升整體社會動能。
第二場由鍾政勳先生報告《橄欖：點亮地中海文明的聖物》，為現居於普羅旺斯的記者Mort Rosenblum所著，嗜好是種植與研究橄欖。書中涵蓋多方面關於橄欖的知識，包括橄欖與文明發展、栽培起源、品種與種植分布，以及橄欖油的風味、營養價值與療效等。高傳棋先生問，目前哪個國家的橄欖油製作與出口最為知名，其關鍵特色為何？報告人答，目前橄欖油國際貿易量最大的國家是義大利，不僅是品質較優，其行銷網絡亦相對綿密。林俊興董事長指出，書中提及地中海式的三位一體飲食法，其中的橄欖提供健康的單元不飽和脂肪酸，也是影響群族壽命的關鍵因子之一，越長壽的個體其知識經驗即能在群體中發揮較長的影響力，加速文明的積累速度。
At the first session of bookish assembly hosted by Secretary General Huang Chin-ying on August 1, Mr. Gao Chuan-chi reported on the book
Taipei's Transportation in the Ching Dynasty: Over the Mountains and Passing through West and East. The author, Gao Chuan-chi is an expert specializing in survey of local culture and history and exhibition planning. He was also a member of Taipei County Archives Advisory Board. Mainly based on several hundreds of historical images before the 19th century as the foundation, the book adds text to the images to elaborate on the four main areas covering immigrants turning into residents, livelihood transportation, customs vs. port building and modernization in the late Ching dynasty, and unfolds Taipei's history from local tradition to modernized transportation and civilization. Mr. Chung Cheng-hsin asked what change would there be when transportation has been associated with regional development and global climate has kept changing. Mr. Gao Chuan-chi replied that with the trend of drastic change in the environment, cluster development could be transformed through flexible transportation, also, by using our ancestors' wisdom, we should use local materials and resources to construct required transportation instruments. President Lin Chun-shin pointed out that knowledge per se should precisely deliver non-experience decision making basis. This book uses profound geographical information to reveal historical space, so readers could articulately comprehend the part difficult to be explained in historical words. More than a century ago, Taiwan's transportation and international trading were closely related. For instance, due to the need in reality, Taiwan's tea was exported to England, however, the transportation facilities developed later on had not been necessarily required to meet the real local demand, so the patch-up transportation system naturally could not be very efficient. In view of this, Taiwan has to tip the scales to enhance the overall social momentum.
In the second session, Mr. Chung Cheng-hsin reported on the book
Olives: the Sacred Object to Lighten Mediterranean Civilization. The author, Mort Rosenblum, is a journalist currently living at Provence. His hobby is to grow and study olives. The book covers a variety of knowledge regarding olives, such as olives vs. civilization development, olives' cultivation origin, varieties and planting distribution, and olive oil's unique savor, nutrition and curative effects, etc. Mr. Gao Chuan-chi asked which country is most famous for producing and exporting olive oil and what's the key features. Mr. Chung Cheng-hsin replied that currently, Italy has the largest olive trade volume in the globe, and other than having better quality, it also comparatively has dense sales network to support its sales of olive oil. President Lin Chun-shin pointed out that the unsaturated fatty acid from olives in the Mediterranean diet mentioned in the book is also one of key factors prolonging life-span. An individual having longer life can have more influence power in a group, which will expedite the speed of civilization advancement.
8月4日的讀書會在黃晉英秘書長主持下，第一場由游秀雲小姐報告《紅樓夢在國外》，作者為大陸學者胡文彬先生。書中記載了紅樓夢外傳至國外的範圍，並描述各國研究學者對紅學的流傳、翻譯及研究等現象。孫菊君小姐問，報告人提到日本與韓國對紅學的研究最多，那麼日本在紅學研究的領域中是否有其重要性？報告人答，由於日本研究起步早、研究範圍廣，且重視資料的收集與更新，因此可說是紅學研究的重鎮。林俊興董事長認為經典文學或藝術作品中經常透露出許多訊息，透過研究這些作品的內容，就可以了解該國的常民文化，而一國的智者就會透過這樣的符號來解讀各項隱藏的訊息。然而，文化間的交流若只是一味的模仿將無法超越，超越唯一的途徑即是創新，而創新的動能關乎知識密度，因此，唯有提升知識密度才得以提升國力。
第二場由張培臣先生報告《颱風》，本書為MIT地球、大氣及行星科學系教授Kerry Emanuel所著，作者曾於2007年獲得美國氣象學會最高榮譽─羅士比獎章。書中以歷史案例及科學分析講解颱風的生成原因、結構、影響強度的因素以及與颶風的差異等，並解釋為何颱風不容易預測行經路徑的原因。游秀雲小姐問，氣候異變與颱風的相關性為何？報告人答，氣候異變造成海溫上升，理論上颱風的強度會增強，而氣候異變對颱風的生成頻率目前則是未有定論。林俊興董事長指出，書中對颱風的分析對一般人而言稍嫌艱澀難懂，因此另以簡單的地球物理觀點來分析颱風的成因，另外，亦提到在引入國外研究方法時，應視在地需求而定。
At the first session of bookish assembly hosted by Secretary General Huang Chin-ying on August 4, Ms. Yu Hsiu-yun reported on the book
The Dream of the Red Chamber in Foreign Countries. The author, Mr. Hu Wen-bin, is a Chinese academic. The book records the range of foreign areas where the Dream of the Red Chamber has spread, and describes the translation and research given by the academics the world over. Ms. Sun Chu-chun asked that as mentioned by Ms. Yu that Japan and Korea have the widest research on the Dream of the Red Chamber, then, is it that Japan is in an important position in Redology. Ms. Yu Hsiu-yun replied that Japan is the foreign country giving earliest and widest research of Redology. Compounding that it has placed a high premium on data collection and renewal, so it has turned out to be an important place for Redology. President Lin Chun-shin pointed out that classic literature or artistic works could always reveal many messages. By studying those works, the folk culture of a country could be better understood. Wise persons in a country usually use this kind of symbols to interpret various hiding messages. Nevertheless, cultural exchange can never surpass anything if the progress is only limited to simulation. The only way to get beyond the existing progress is innovation. Yet, the momentum of innovation is associated with the amount of knowledge. Hence, national power will never be enhanced without increasing the amount of knowledge.
In the second session, Mr. Chang Pei-chen reported on the book
Typhoon. It is authored by Kerry Emanuel, a professor of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Science at MIT earning the Carl-Gustaf Rossby Research Medal, the highest honor awarded by American Meteorological Society. The book uses historical accounts and scientific analysis to elaborate on formation and structure of typhoons, factors influencing strength of typhoons and difference between typhoon and hurricane. It also interprets why it is not easy to predict the route of a typhoon. Ms. Yu Hsiu-yun asked what is the correlation between climate change and typhoon. Mr Chang Pei-chen replied that climate change could result in the rise of sea temperature, so theoretically, typhoon's strength would intensify with the rise of temperature. Nevertheless, there is still no conclusion for the relation between climate change and frequency of typhoons. President Lin Chun-shin pointed out that, for everyday people, the book's analysis of typhoons is a bit too arcane, so he used some simple geophysics viewpoints to analyze how a typhoon is formed. In addition, he also mentioned that local requirements should be taken into consideration when introducing foreign research methods.
8月11日的讀書會在黃晉英秘書長主持下，第一場由張惠喬小姐報告《色膽包天玉簪記─琴曲書畫崑曲新美學》，作者為當代文學家白先勇先生。本書作者率領崑劇團隊，重新探討詮釋明代劇作家高濂的作品「玉簪記」，讓該劇呈現出現代化與傳統藝術美學並具的質感。李創源先生提問，作者將該劇重新詮釋後，觀眾的反應如何？報告人答，年輕族群對本劇接受度頗高，且認為場景安排相當豐富有新意。林俊興董事長表示作者試圖將古老的戲曲，以藝術的手法呈現給現代觀眾，更主要的目的是將各項中華文化精粹結合至本齣戲曲，然而，我們應當反思在精緻化及原創力之間取得平衡，找出兼具兩者優勢的路徑，這才是未來台灣人民亟需思索的方向。
第二場由孫大倫先生報告《帕金森法則》，本書主要作者為研究英國海軍歷史的學家C. Northcote Parkinson。本書首先介紹帕金森法則的內涵及成立前提，並介紹了開會定律、雞毛蒜皮定律、辦公大樓法則以及雞尾酒法則等組織運作的潛在法則，且省略繁瑣的研究文獻，以淺白的文字說明各項法則的內涵及應用要點。林俊興董事長指出，帕金森法則係作者於1950年代所提出的論點，而成書背景則為第二次世界大戰之後，此時的英國已為強弩之末，這也說明了作者所觀察到的英國海軍，增加人力卻無法增加辦事效率，顯然已是自我膨脹後的龐雜系統。由此可知，當承襲了過往的文明經驗，並取其精華不斷複製，不代表文明程度就能向上提升，最重要的是藉由觀察周圍細微的事物，能夠誘發新穎的創見，尤其在氣候異變情況下，如果不能夠循著良善的系統及典章制度，並予以創新改革，人類的文明將無以為繼。
At the first session of bookish assembly hosted by Secretary General Huang Chin-ying on August 11, Ms. Chang Hui-chiao reported on the book
Pai's Jade Hairpin - New Esthetics with Arts of Kun Opera. The author is Pai Hsien-yung, a contemporary literary writer. The author lead the Kun Opera troupe to re-explore and interpret the original Jade Hairpin, a literature created by a Ming Dynasty's dramatist, Gao Lien. The book highlights the opera quality of both modernization and traditional artistic esthetics. Mr. Lee Chuang-yuan asked how is the audience's responses for the adaptation of the opera? Ms. Chang Hui-chiao replied that the adapted opera has been very acceptable for the young generation, while, at the same time, the plots have been arranged with a lot of creation. President Lin Chun-Shin noted that the author tries to present the ancient opera in an artistic manner to modern audience. The main purpose of it is to build the quintessence of a variety of Chinese cultures into the opera. Nevertheless, we should think of how to get balance between delicacy and originality, so as to find out a path covering the strength of both parts, and identify the direction Taiwanese shall head for in the future.
In the second session, Mr. Sun Ta-lun reported on the book
Parkinson's Law. The main author of the book is C. Northcote Parkinson, a British Navy historian. This book first introduces the content of Parkinson's law and the premise of it, followed by bringing up potential laws regarding organization operation, such as meeting law, trivial law and office building law, etc. It omits complicated research literature and uses easy words to explain the contents of a variety of laws and their application. President Lin Chun-Shin pointed out that Parkinson's Law was the contention put forward by the author in the 1950s. At that time, England had been losing its steam after the World War II, so the author noticed that the British Navy could not really enhance their efficiency even though they had already increased manpower. Apparently, it was a boasting chaotic system. It illustrates that adoption of past civilization experiences and reproduction of the best part of the civilization could not really pull the degree of civilization upward. The key point is that we should observe the subtle things around us which could bring out innovative ideas. Under our current circumstance where climate has kept changing, if we cannot follow benign systems and laws to give innovative reform, humans' civilization will never be able to continue.
