Author Topic: Books that introduce fields  (Read 7657 times)

Ian

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Books that introduce fields
« on: July 05, 2014, 01:07:26 AM »
I find that I get a lot of enjoyment out of books that introduce me to fields of study that I haven't explored much before. Perhaps just because it's easier to learn more new things when you're reading outside your area of expertise, but I think broad understanding is a fine goal for this forum.

Recently I finished T Rex and the Crater of Doom, which was a good introduction to how geology is actually practiced through the telling of how a major problem was resolved. What I'd be interested in here is recommendations of other books that serve as a good jumping in point for different fields. They don't have to be traditional introductions (I actually prefer books that are more technical and specific), just ones that don't rely on heavy knowledge of the field.

Some other examples of books along these lines:
The Trouble with Physics (physics)
Predictably Irrational (psychology/sociology)
Guns, Germs, and Steel (world history)

Kriegsspiel

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Re: Books that introduce fields
« Reply #1 on: July 05, 2014, 05:39:02 AM »
Cool thread idea.

Exploring the Earth and Cosmos by Asimov was a cool intro to what it took for humans to learn stuff.

BarkingSquirrel

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Re: Books that introduce fields
« Reply #2 on: July 05, 2014, 05:53:13 AM »
Perhaps you'd like some of Carl Zimmer's books.  My daughter became wildly interested in microbiology after reading one.

grantmeaname

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Re: Books that introduce fields
« Reply #3 on: July 07, 2014, 02:27:59 AM »
The Demon in the Freezer (also everything by Richard Preston. If you're not into infectious disease and bioterrorism, he does a phenomenal job in American Steel, The Wild Trees, and First Light.)
Finance and the Good Society as a bridge to more applied finance works like Fabozzi's Financial Markets book.
Economics Explained (every bit as phenomenal as the big man promised)
Reviving Ophelia
In Defense of Food

mxt0133

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Re: Books that introduce fields
« Reply #4 on: July 07, 2014, 02:35:30 AM »
One of the most beautiful books I've read was an introduction to philosophy called "Sophie's World" by Jostein Gaarder.

Ian

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Re: Books that introduce fields
« Reply #5 on: July 10, 2014, 04:54:26 PM »
Glad to see some good suggestions in this thread. I'll definitely be looking for some of these.

Moonwaves

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Re: Books that introduce fields
« Reply #6 on: September 03, 2014, 10:44:35 AM »
I loved the Willard Price adventure books when I was a young teenager - always felt like I learned a lot about different animals and habitats.

I also found the Jean M. Auel Earth's Children series, especially the first two or three, really interesting. They get a bit drawn out after that and there's a lot of Forrest Gump-type coincidences (she just happens to stop at a camp where someone just happens to have discovered how to make soap, for example and there's an awful lot of that kind of just happens to stuff going on but I suppose you have to condense a lot to get everything in).

LibrarIan

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Re: Books that introduce fields
« Reply #7 on: October 01, 2014, 07:11:47 AM »
I highly, highly recommend Jack Repcheck's The Man Who Found Time: James Hutton and the Discovery of Earth's Antiquity. It's nonfiction that reads like fiction, all about the so-called father of modern geology. It also details a lot of interesting Scottish history and such.


sheepstache

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Re: Books that introduce fields
« Reply #8 on: October 01, 2014, 07:31:12 AM »
One of the most beautiful books I've read was an introduction to philosophy called "Sophie's World" by Jostein Gaarder.
+1

Malaysia41

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Re: Books that introduce fields
« Reply #9 on: October 01, 2014, 07:38:49 AM »
For how network routers work: The Switch Book by Rich Seifert. 

mxt0133

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Re: Books that introduce fields
« Reply #10 on: October 01, 2014, 11:58:28 AM »
For how network routers work: The Switch Book by Rich Seifert.

Are you still having issues with your router?  Did you read this book to help you fix your issues, =)?  If so then that is bad ass!

Malaysia41

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Re: Books that introduce fields
« Reply #11 on: October 01, 2014, 09:17:32 PM »
For how network routers work: The Switch Book by Rich Seifert.

Are you still having issues with your router?  Did you read this book to help you fix your issues, =)?  If so then that is bad ass!

No, I didn't read that book for my recent (failed) debug session, rather, I read that book a few years ago (actually, the title was The All New Switch Book). 

I read it because I was setting out to plan products that might need high density high speed memory, and a major target market was carrier class routers.  I found I couldn't put the book down.  It was clear, concise, and funny in a dorky kind of way.  And written by a guy who was there at the dawn of Ethernet (which, by the way, I just realized the other day, I'm older than Ethernet, but just by a few months).

What can I say?  It was a relief to read an engaging technical book.  Most technical books make me VERY VERY sleepy. 

mxt0133

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Re: Books that introduce fields
« Reply #12 on: October 01, 2014, 09:33:33 PM »
An engaging technical book, I think you just found the first Unicorn!  Now I'm intrigued.

MgoSam

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Re: Books that introduce fields
« Reply #13 on: October 07, 2014, 12:29:19 PM »
Great Thread

"Naked Economics," is a good book about basic economic principles, haven't read the author's book on statistics, appropriately titled, "Naked Statistics," but I know a few people that like it.

Let me think, I know a few other titles but their names are escaping me.


senecando

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Re: Books that introduce fields
« Reply #14 on: October 07, 2014, 12:54:18 PM »
I recommend Chanterelle Dreams, Amanita Nightmares. A cultural and biological introduction to mushrooms.

Raay

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Re: Books that introduce fields
« Reply #15 on: October 18, 2014, 03:36:58 AM »
"The Century of the Surgeon" by Jürgen Thorwald - while you won't be able to perform any form of surgery after reading this book, you will learn about how the profession developed and be very glad that you were not born a century earlier.

sheepstache

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Re: Books that introduce fields
« Reply #16 on: October 24, 2014, 01:29:50 PM »
The Drunkard's Walk is a good, short introduction to statistics and probability.

It's not really an introduction to a field, but W. W. Norton publishes a "Great Discoveries" series where popular authors write about scientific concepts. David Foster Wallace wrote the one on infinity. I also really liked Rebecca Goldstein's on Goedel's Incompleteness Paradox, the significance of which has been misunderstood in popular culture. A good chunk of the book is devoted to trying to explain the proof itself in a way laymen might be able to understand.

The MIT Guide to Lockpicking is also interesting but I believe only published online and may be a bit dated now.



hodedofome

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Re: Books that introduce fields
« Reply #17 on: October 24, 2014, 01:57:42 PM »
I started another thread for this book but Against the Gods - The Remarkable Story of Risk by Peter Berstein is a great intro into probability theory and it's applications.

Liar's Poker by Michael Lewis is a fun intro to Wall Street and specifically bond trading. Very entertaining.
« Last Edit: October 24, 2014, 01:59:19 PM by hodedofome »

solon

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Re: Books that introduce fields
« Reply #18 on: October 24, 2014, 02:51:47 PM »
I think would have to add The Millionaire Next Door to this list. I know everybody here has already read it, but can you think of a more seminal book on personal financial management?