There are a litany of things to be read, heard, or watched — consumption isn’t a vice, but selectivity is a virtue. Here, I keep a running list of some of the best content I’ve come across. I’ve linked what I can. Please, reach out if you have suggestions!
Non-Fiction
ANTIFRAGILE | NICHOLAS NASSIM TALEB — This book, one of the four of Incerto (which itself is a must read), is a masterclass on risk taking and positioning oneself for growth. Antifragility is what gains from uncertainty and volatility.
ATOMIC HABITS | JAMES CLEAR — A book on identity and perhaps the one self-help book to rule them all. Clear makes it simple with his 4 Laws of Behavior Change. Every action you take is a vote for the kind of person you want to be.
INCOGNITO | DAVID EAGLEMAN — Eagleman is a brilliant scientist and when I read this book at 12, it became the foundation for my perception of myself, other people, and reality. This book was my first real look at the complex machinery between all of our ears and it taught me to seek multiple explanations for every. single. thing.
MEDITATIONS | MARCUS AURELIUS — Stoicism is lindy. A few quotes from my translation: “Don’t focus on the waves of change, they are constant,” “Discard your misperceptions. Stop being jerked like a puppet. Limit yourself to the present,” “[Live life] without frenzy, or sloth, or pretense.”
THE HARD THING ABOUT HARD THINGS | BEN HOROWITZ — An excellent book on how to build a team and lead, Horowitz has an unwavering emphasis on clarity and unpacks the psychology of leadership while driving home some really actionable advice, stuff as simple as how to set expectations.
THE MERITOCRACY TRAP | DANIEL MARKOVITS — A really peculiar book that opened my eyes to the echo chamber of the meritocracy I’d bought into as an ambitious young middle-class American. Meritocracy, the word, was originally a joke. Read my review of this book.
Fiction
DUNE | FRANK HERBERT — The world that Herbert builds in Dune is marvelous. The heavy environmental and religious notes hit hard. The tragedy of Paul’s journey. It’s perfection.
SPEAKER FOR THE DEAD | ORSON SCOTT CARD — I read this 5 times when I was in middle school. It’s so good. It’s good sci-fi, and it’s an even better exploration of alien cultures clashing. Plus Ender being stupid over-powered is awesome.
THE KITE RUNNER | KHALED HOSSEINI — This is a good book that I enjoyed reading. The characters are fully alive and the plot is exactly what you want out of a bestseller. It’s beloved for good reason.
THE PAPER MENAGERIE AND OTHER STORIES | KEN LIU — This collection of short stories is among the most awarded of all-time, and rightly so. It is a beautiful collection of fantasy and sci-fi that brings emotion up and over the brim. Good Hunting was animated on Love Death + Robots. I can’t recommend this collection enough.
Posts & Clips
A NEW INDUSTRIALIST ROUNDUP | NOAHPINION — Smith hits the New Industrialist nail on the head here (like he did in the exciting techno roundup) and this post is chalk full of great links. A better version of “It’s time to build,” this is the zeitgeist I hope my generation adopts.
DRAFT REPORT ON AI TIMELINES | AJEYA COTRA — A terrifying and terrifyingly well-researched report by Open Philosophy researcher Cotra. The biological anchors model is fascinating & conservative estimates give a 50% chance transformative AI arrives by 2100. Watch Rational Animations’ awesome video on it here.
FALCON HEAVY TEST FLIGHT | SPACEX — I was 18, sitting in 6th period at school, when I watched this launch live. Nothing gets me more excited about engineering than this video. Skip to 22:00, 25:43, and 29:40 for maximum thrill.
SPECIFICATION GAMING EXAMPLES IN AI | VICTORIA KRAKOVNA — Cool (and growing) list of AI agents “hacking” the clearly intended reward functions.
STELLAR ENGINES | KURZGESAGT — Probably the coolest most magnificent space-travel technology ever proposed and the Kurzgesagt animation is gorgeous, as usual. Read Caplan’s original paper here.
THE MAINTENANCE RACE | STEWART BRAND — A telling of the drama of the original Sunday Times Golden Globe Yacht Race, it’s a captivating epic that examines the psychology and methodology of three competitors and a metaphor for a life, I may go there. Thanks Sam R. for sending me this one.
TAMING THE MAMMOTH | TIM URBAN — This is one of my favorite’s on Wait But Why, Urban breaks down why we have such an urge to fit in and why it is a primitive thing. Instead, paint the canvas one way or another.
YOU AND YOUR RESEARCH | RICHARD HAMMING — A speech by great researcher Hamming, it’s chalk full of stellar, simple advice on how to be a good researcher yourself. Hamming wants you to do Nobel Prize work, not good work.
Blogs & Pods
ALEX GUZEY — Alex’s blog has some great original stuff, like his sleep self experiment, and it’s consistently a great launch point for interesting things.
AUSTIN VERNON — My favorite writer on the internet. Always an interesting angle, perfectly technical, and concise. I highly recommend the energy and power grid articles.
BAD ASTRONOMY | PHIL PLAIT — Astronomer and science communicator, this guy is one of the best. His old SYFY Blog has some gems, the cosmos is beautiful. And big. I found him years ago through the awesome Crash Course Astronomy series.
BEAU MILES — This guy might be the coolest person on the planet. Some of my favorites from the Backyard Adventurer are the Mile an Hour one and his iconic Walk to Work.
BIG | MAT STOLLER — The best blog on antitrust and Private Equity I’ve found. Lots of good deep dives on the weird incentives at play, like being risk-on for software at nuclear power plants.
CASEY HANDMER — My other favorite writer on the internet. A lot like Austin Vernon’s stuff, except he’s ex-JPL. The space journo misconceptions series is a must read if you’re into the industry. His personal site has interesting stuff too.
CHIARA MARLETTO — I won’t claim to slightly understand her work on Constructor Theory, but I do think that it is perhaps the most interesting ideas in physics of late.
CHRISTINE CORBETT MORAN — Probably the single most impressive and interesting person I know of on the internet. Her open source projects are neat and I love her attention to creative writing.
A CLOSER LOOK | JOE MORRISON — A Substack for map and data geeks if there ever was one, Joe’s takes on autonomy are refreshingly technical and his discussions about the market for satellite data are top tier.
CONSTRUCTION PHYSICS | BRIAN POTTER — A fantastic look into the world of construction projects and regulation. Mostly US focused. Great posts on environmental regulations and industrial production.
EVERYDAY ASTRONAUT | TIM DODD — This is the blog for following space launch activity, Tim’s been cheering on rocket launches and writing posts like this one that are as good as any intro college course (I’ve taken at least) on rocket science. This page is the go-to for launch activity.
GWERN.NET | GWERN — I wish I had found this blog 10 years before I did. Not only is it an incredibly accessible project, the information is diverse and thought provoking. His methodology is worth reading, and his fiction and poetry are interesting, to say the least.
KALEZUMEUS | PATRICK MCKENZIE — Also known as patio11. Also has a podcast. Also has compiled his own highlights page. His career advice is stellar and his advice on bootstrapping a software project is probably some of the best there is on the subject.
LIZ BRADLEY — Not really a blog, but her research on chaotic dynamics is captivating.
IMMORTALITY ROADMAP | ALEXEY TURCHIN — Some cool visual diagrams on topics like personal & digital immortality, existential risks, and AI safety. This one on the existence of the universe is a fun one.
INVEST LIKE THE BEST | PATRICK O’SHAUGHNESSY — One of the Colossus shows, these interviews are consistently captivating chats about capital allocation, strategy, absolutely badass CEOs, and cool stuff. Plus the opening theme is a bop.
MAKING SENSE | SAM HARRIS — Beyond being perhaps the most eloquent of speakers, Sam’s philosophy on the self is crisp and grounded. My favorite episode is the one with Bostrom.
NOAHPINION | NOAH SMITH — Definitely one of my favorite posters online. His techno-optimism and monetary policy takes are fun, and his stuff on economies around the world (Sri Lanka, Indonesia), particularly Asia, is fantastic. Is it too meta to link his sci-fi reading list here?
NOPE IT’S LILY | LILY FRANCUS — An absolutely fantastic options blogger that created the Net Options Pricing Effect and suffered a severe amount of internet hate. Good primer podcast on her: Infinite Loops.
OPERATORS | DELIAN ASPARAOUHOV — Fun podcast by Delian Asparouhov where he filters out people that started the companies they’re running. Wish he’d do more non-tech cos, check out the one with Ben Braverman.
PAUL GRAHAM — I started reading PG waaay too late, but I’m catching up. He has this way of perfectly putting down what swims in my head. Taste for Makers, Write Simply, The Lesson to Unlearn, and Do Things that Don’t Scale are my favorites.
SLATE STAR CODEX | SCOTT ALEXANDER — Needs no introduction. The one blog to rule them all. Check out the blogroll too.
VICTORIA KRAKOVNA — Co-founder of Future of Life Institute and an extremely inspiring AI researcher, her list of materials on AI Alignment is the best I’ve found.
VLOGBROTHERS | HANK & JOHN GREEN — The capacity that these two have for doing good, for educating, their boundless verbosity & creativity… For some life advice, watch Hank rant, or get oriented on the official FAQ
WAIT BUT WHY | TIM URBAN — The life advice is sage and the graphics are endearing. An old manager who told me optionality was overrated linked me to career advice, which led to thinking, growth, and life (death) advice. The Musk post is a bonus.
WORKS IN PROGRESS — A place to learn about human ingenuity, new ideas for improving the world & global welfare. The culture tab is my favorite, besides The Maintenance Race, the stuff on the Great Stagnation, Energy, and R&D is great.
To Be Determined 