looking for good books

i am in the mood for some new books. my mind has been stagnant lately, and i'm really yearning to grab anything i can pick up and read.

i'm looking for some science/mathematics books, since i'm very interested in those, although i'm also going to pick up some philosophy books as well.

my list so far:

-anything by c.s. peirce (more of his philosophy and logic, less of his semiotics)

-maybe something by wittgenstein

-being and nothingness by jean-paul sartre

-maybe something by james, dewey, russell, rorty, or nozick

-godel, escher, bach (still thinking about this one. i don't know if it's going to be what i expect)

any suggestions? maybe something about complex dynamical systems, chaos, number theory, physics, or esoteric math (or theoretical math). i love reading those.

thanks.

#219608

Here are some philosophy books to stimulate your mind:

Kant - Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals

Plato - Gorgias and Republic

Aristotle - Nicomachean Ethics

Mill - Utilitarianism

Niesche - On the Genealogy of Morals

#219613

Roger Penrose: Shadows Of The Mind

Stephen W. Hawking: A Brief History Of Time

Noam Chomsky: Manufacturing Consent

Ilya Prigogine: Les Loi Du Chaos ()

Hofstadters' Gödel Escher Bach is definitely worth a read.

#219615

If you're into theoretical math, check out Paul Erdos' work on graphing, he even manages to throw in some humor once in awhile, a most remarkable writer methinks.

For politics read Noam Chomsky's "Radical Priorities" which critiques the Vietnam war, American Politics, the CIA infrastructure, among other things.

"A Mencken Chrestomathy" by Henry Louis Mencken is definately worth a read. It's a collection of his writings from the early part of the 20th century, subjects range from the types of man, to religion, and even hits upon music etc.

You didn't mention fiction, but "A wind-up bird chronicle" by Haruku Murakami is definately a must, the juxtaposition of characters and the plot coupled with Murakami's style is awesom...

#219617

thanks for the suggestions!

@sciphan, i've read the plato, aristotle, and nietzsche, and i'm familiar with the others, but i'll have to take a look at them again.

@herd, i've been meaning to pick up hawking's book for a while now, but i never did. and i've forgot all about chomsky. he should definitely be on my list. i'll check out the others. i assume you've read geb. it's hard to tell from the reviews, but it looks like hofstadters has his own personal thesis and ties those elements into it. is it more creative/imaginative or descriptive? that's what i wonder (e.g. is it fact, or is he stating an opinion about those things).

@mubach, that sounds neat. and i just found some other books on paul erdos, and they seem really interesting. i will check out the others as well. i'm particularly fond of japanese fiction (after having read "the sailor who fell from grace with the sea"), as well as existential novels (camus' "the outsider").

#219619

thanks for the suggestions!

@herd, i've been meaning to pick up hawking's book for a while now, but i never did. and i've forgot all about chomsky. he should definitely be on my list. i'll check out the others. i assume you've read geb. it's hard to tell from the reviews, but it looks like hofstadters has his own personal thesis and ties those elements into it. is it more creative/imaginative or descriptive? that's what i wonder (e.g. is it fact, or is he stating an opinion about those things).

GEB was meant to tear down "some walls of perception" and in that matter its a typical 70es book with more constructed special effects inside it than being effective at it. Its a fun ride / read today. It has its insights and is still orders of magnitude better than, say "Sophie's World" by Jostein Gaarder IMHO.

The Penrose book rules out the possibility of artificially creating or copying a self conscious mind by argumenting in lieu of quantum mechanics. My jaw dropped at the sight of bacteria with microtubular fiberoptic "eyes" who could "see" by quantum interference calculus...

If you are after scientific / philosophic stuff to train your mind and have a good time too, I'll also recommend Science Fiction by Iain Banks - especially The Culture novels like "Use Of Weapons", "Azad" etc. On the Fantasy sector, I'd kill for Terry Pratchetts Discworld series ("Lords & Ladies", "Small Gods") - besides being good comedy, it'll give you most complete philosophical insights about religion, politics etc while entertaining you beyond knowledge...

#219630

not necessarily training, but just for personal interest. i'm working on some papers in philosophy, which is why i want to read more and get ideas, critiques, etc. i've also always had a passion for theory in math, physics, and economics, so i'm constantly reading about those.

i just read some reviews for the penrose book, and it seems to touch on things i find fascinating (godel, turing machines, schrodinger's cat, etc.

but of course, these are all big books (the sartre one is 864 pages) and it'll take me a while to finish them. i'm thinking i should probably choose the 3 or 4 i'm most likely to read first and just buy those.

#219632

On the Fantasy sector, I'd kill for Terry Pratchetts Discworld series ("Lords & Ladies", "Small Gods") - besides being good comedy, it'll give you most complete philosophical insights about religion, politics etc while entertaining you beyond knowledge...

these are some of my favorites, love the discworld series...

if you're looking for fiction involving math, cryptography, etc. try a book called 'cryptonomicon'. i just started it, but it's one my brother has been hasseling me for years to try, one of his favorites. it flashes back and forth between ww2 to the future...

#219649

try a book called 'cryptonomicon'. i just started it, but it's one my brother has been hasseling me for years to try, one of his favorites. it flashes back and forth between ww2 to the future...

#219651

I just finished A Brief History of Time a few days ago and found it to be an excellent read.

#219652

Here are some authors you should check out:

Terry Goodkind (fantasy)

Dan Brown (thrillers)

R. A. Salvatore (hardcore fantasy, but very good)

Michael Crichton (thrillers)

#219659

thanks for the suggestions. i'll have to review these, then order some from half.com.

#219728

thanks for the suggestions. i'll have to review these, then order some from half.com.

I hope they don't come cut in Half. Just kiddin'.

#219736