Brian Christian – The most human human
Unfortunately, the book does not explicitly challenge if humans are adequate judges in the Turing test.
Brian Christian – The most human human
Unfortunately, the book does not explicitly challenge if humans are adequate judges in the Turing test.
Michael Pollan – How to change your mind
It is much harder to relate to the author’s obsession, which seems mostly driven by a some vague feeling of disappointment concerning life in general.
Jordan Ellenberg – How not to be wrong
A cornucopia of charming mathematical anecdotes and facts
The purposeful one-sided rant makes the book lose all credibility, in particular since the arguments can easily be reversed – especially in the wake of Trump’s desperate challenge the US election outcome.
Daryl Collins – Portfolios of the poor
Thorough application of small data that provides valuable insight in how people live on less than 2$ a day – and what that implies for microfinance.
Benjamin Labatut – When we cease to understand the world
A highly entertaining fictionalized history of landmark scientific breakthroughs.
Filled with highly interesting statistics about the evolution of public perception on ethical issues.
Adrian Daub – What tech calls thinking
Entertaining and polemic book, although many of the author’s points hardly need to be argued.
Jonathan Rodden – Why cities lose
In the US election system, geographic concentration puts democrats at a fundamental disadvantage.
Colin Tudge – The secret life of trees
There is a limit to the degree of suspense that you can bring into taxonomy.
Anita Anand and William Dalrymple – Koh-i-Noor
The stone itself is just an excuse to tell wonderful stories.
Justin Fox – The myth of the rational market
The book resists the temptation to get lost in juicy stories, but focuses on the evolution of ideas.
Anita Anand – The patient assassin
Compelling story telling and enriching perspectives make it hard not to become fascinated by Udham Singh and his quest for revenge.
Richard Davies – Extreme Economies
Well chosen examples (prisons, refugee camps, declining cities, etc.) illustrate why economics is a social science
Daivd French – Divided we fall
The hypothetical scenarios are well crafted and unfortunately not as far-fetched as one might hope.
Nice to read in conjunction with The Age of Wonder.
Richard Holmes – The age of wonder
Conveys lively how science was considered an undertaking for daring adventurers.
Good diagnosis of current monetary policy, but combined with a disappointingly naive belief in the free market as panacea.
Lee Vinsel, Andrew Russel – The innovation delusion
Funny enough, the polemic narrative applies all the trick of typical innovation literature to promote a maintenance mindset.
A practical guide to understanding composition and graphic design.