Ananyo Bhattacharya, The Man From the Future - A biography not only of the genius's genius, John von Neumann, but also of von Neumann's ideas and influence, which are nearly impossible to exaggerate. Serious and brilliantly-written. David Bodanis, The Art of Fairness...
The books I'm actually reading this week are: Mastermind by Maria Konnikova - drawing on the life of Arthur Conan Doyle and the adventures of Sherlock Holmes as inspiration to riff on creativity, rationality and memory. A pleasure to read and full of good ideas....
What if you took a “Miss Manners” agony aunt column but set it in an alternate Britain at the end of the Victorian era in which strange supernatural happenings are unfolding with increasing regularity. If a minotaur demanded admission to the Savoy, what is the correct...
Lots of intriguing books on deck this week! Jon Peterson's "Game Wizards" is an in-depth history - and I really do mean in-depth - of the creation of Dungeons and Dragons and in particular the ugly struggle for control of TSR. It's vivid and incredibly...
I was delighted to see The Economist give a glowing review to Ananyo Bhattacharya's brilliant new book The Man From The Future, noting that it fills "a yawning gap in the history of science". You heard about that book here first. A different book in almost every way...
Some nerd-tastic books coming out this week from friends and colleagues:Ananyo Bhattacharya’s stunning and deep intellectual biography of John von Neumann, “The Man From The Future”. Looks beautiful, full of telling detail and packed with ideas about group theory,...
I'm interviewing Richard Thaler at How To Academy (online) at 6.30pm UK time today. Tune in! We will, of course, be discussing "Nudge: The Final Edition".Tom Chatfield's book "How To Think" is a masterclass in clear critical thinking. I've been tickled by Rich...
Various exciting books are now out, or imminent. Steven Pinker's "Rationality: What It Is, Why It Seems Scarce" is just around the corner, and as you might expect it is erudite, entertaining, and packed full of ideas (some new to me and some not). I'm doing an event...
I hope you've had a wonderful summer - or winter, if you're reading this in the southern hemisphere, or in early 2022. I've held off posting lots of August updates but now I'm back, and with a lovely little review of The Next Fifty Things That Made The Modern Economy...