the set-up in which interesting historical facts serve to make a political argument makes the author prone to the narrative fallacy.
The concepts comfort and privacy were first introduced in Western society at the court of Louis XIV and Louis XV of France
Joan DeJean – The age of comfort
Contains fascinating details on the construction of early water closets.
As an incumbent, organize disruptive innovation away from your core business
Clayton Christensen – The innovator’s dilemma
The history of disc drives and mechanical excavators showcases how difficult it is for incumbents to come out on top when technological innovation hits your market.
Some of the few women who ruled as pharaohs were depicted with male characteristics
Kara Cooney – When women ruled the world
The book illustrates how difficult it is to avoid speculation when trying to reconstruct a comprehensive narrative from ancient historical records.
Making a great painting is in large part a scientific achievement
Walter Isaacson – Leonardo da Vinci
Isaacson’s narrative falacy (‘Leonardo never finishing what he starts’) is at odds with the public recognition he received in his own day and age.
Steve Bannon skilfully helped Trump to play to his own strengths and avoid his considerable weaknesses
The level of Trump’s incompetency is not even shocking.
The history of Rome consists of a unique series of revolutionary social and political experiments
Rome was much more of a ‘social welfare state’ than I ever realized; with a people’s tribunes, food for the poor, land redistribution, and pensions for soldiers.
Bayesian statistics had its MVP in WWII and has safely crossed the chasm on the back of Moore´s law
Sharon Bertsch McGrayne – The theory that would not die
Shocking to realize how much controversy surrounded Bayesian statistics before the explosion of computing power.
Trump’s campaign was not the train wreck that everyone thought it was
Intriguing account covering Trump’s rise, by an NBC journalist debuting on the campaign trail.
The Kelly formula defines the tipping point between aggressive and suicidal bets
William Poundstone – Fortune’s formula
Despite all mathematical considerations, the prerequisite for a truly successful betting strategy inside knowledge.
The best-known claims regarding the use of the golden ratio in art are false
Mario Livio – The golden ratio
Comfortingly conscientious in his evaluation of claims about ao pyramids and the parthenon.
Debt has its origin in inequality, suppression, and war
At first the polemic style is charming, but over-all the writer’s objective to crush the system by his brain power is poorly executed and overlooks too many credible alternative lines of argument.
Developing nuclear physics required a lot tinkering and failing
Atomic Adventures – James Mahaffey
Refreshing view on history of nuclear physics with emphasis on ‘failures’ like cold fusion and nuclear rocket engines in this often counter-intuitive branche of science.
Jesus of Nazareth was ‘just another sect leader crucified for high treason against Rome’ (which is down-played in the gospels to make Christianity more socially acceptable)
Convincing and elegantly developed argument, building on limited historical evidence and close reading of biblical texts in historical context.
J.D. Vance – Hilbilly elegy
Compassionately written, but downplaying that uneducated, scared anti-intellectuals are often ruthlessly mean towards anyone who is not part of their clan.
Deborah Blum – The poisoner’s handbook
Treasure trove of slightly lugubrious annecdotes on crimes, accidents and government schemes.
Richard Evans – The pursuit of power
Masterful balance between major developments and impact on human scale.
Robert Gordon – The rise and fall of American growth
OK… exponential decrease of discomfort may imply decreasing marginal gains, but that does not imply that the future will not see consumer surplus stemming from future inventions.
Thomas Piketty – Capital in the 21st century
The best part is the comparative historical analysis of sources of wealth in different countries, all the way back to the 1800s.