Halmos & Rudin.
FDVS or set theory? Baby or Papa?
Ask HN: What books do you keep on your desk?
181–190 of 219 posts
Re: Ask HN: What books do you keep on your desk?
#182Earlier quoted context omitted.
I hate that the default attitude of our society about people with religious beliefs necessitates your disclaimer.
What attitude can you expect from rationalists towards those who decide to believe in claims without requiring evidence or justification? The moral high ground which you seem to think exists for you, does not.
I think the world would be a better place without cunts like you.
Re: Ask HN: What books do you keep on your desk?
#183By far the #1 book I keep referring to and re-reading: Zero to One.
Re: Ask HN: What books do you keep on your desk?
#184Adams, Douglas. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Brewer, Ebenezer Cobham. Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable
Euclid, Elements of Geometry
Fuller, Buckminster. Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth
Greene, Robert. The 48 Laws of Power
Kernighan & Ritchie. The C Programming Language
The King James Bible
Polya, George. How to Solve It
Re: Ask HN: What books do you keep on your desk?
#185The Internet for Dummies, under my monitor stand to make it a bit higher
Re: Ask HN: What books do you keep on your desk?
#186"A Brief History of Time" and "Universe in a nutshell" are always there. I never get tired of reading a random page from those books.
I have nothing programming related on my desk; we have Google to thanks for that.
Re: Ask HN: What books do you keep on your desk?
#187I use CLRS and the 2600 book as monitor risers. More seriously, I generally don't re-read books. One exception is The Cuckoo's Egg, which I reread every ~5 years.
The Cuckoo's Egg is such a good read, at the time it came out there was a television program in the UK about it and I have been rereading the book every couple of years since watching that.
The only negative is the biscuit recipe isn't very good.
Re: Ask HN: What books do you keep on your desk?
#188Joel Whitburn's "Top 40 Hits". "Computer Music" by Dodge and Jerse. Several others have been displaced by the web ... or obsoleted by the inexorable March of Science. (Life was more interesting before surface-mount.)
Re: Ask HN: What books do you keep on your desk?
#189A few Stroustrup books. A few Chinese language books (to help communicate with co-workers) A few Algorithmic Trading related books as well as a few math books. And, laugh if you wish, a few Buddhism books to help remind myself patience, no negative energy, etc. If I am feeling frustrated I can read a few quick thoughts.
Not laughing at the Buddhism books. That's actually a great suggestion!
Me neither. Nothing like a saucy koan to snap me out of an infinite stoopid-loop.
Re: Ask HN: What books do you keep on your desk?
#190Earlier quoted context omitted.
I hate that the default attitude of our society about people with religious beliefs necessitates your disclaimer.
What attitude can you expect from rationalists towards those who decide to believe in claims without requiring evidence or justification? The moral high ground which you seem to think exists for you, does not.
That which works is sufficient evidence unto itself. The whole idea that what is beyond the capabilities of reason doesn't exist is laughable, except when it becomes inhuman.