Zed, thanks for replying - I had heard of your book and actually quite like the style. Much better than the academic papers I usually devour, I just didn't really think that last chapter was very good.
By the way, I enjoyed track 2 of week 2 of your "random improv".
2. I am old compared to a lot of programmers, but yes it was kind of a joke. There's several exercises where people know my age.
3. It's a good thing you're not my target audience. It's a lot harder for me to write in 2nd person passive voice like you're used to reading in all those academic papers you devour.