A thread through the archive
Essays tagged “book review”. Follow an idea across the archive.
Scott Alexander reviews Toby Ord's 'The Precipice', a book about existential risks to humanity, noting Ord's careful analysis and surprisingly low risk estimates while emphasizing the importance of addressing these risks.
The review examines Herbert Hoover's life, from his business success and humanitarian work to his presidency and post-presidential career, presenting him as a complex and influential figure in American history.
Scott Alexander reviews John Gottman's marriage counseling methods, finding them intuitively appealing but scientifically questionable.
Scott Alexander reviews 'Just Giving' by Rob Reich, criticizing its arguments against philanthropy by showing how they could also be used to condemn book-writing.
Stuart Russell's 'Human Compatible' presents AI safety concerns and potential solutions in an accessible way, though the reviewer has reservations about its treatment of current AI issues.
Scott Alexander reviews a book about Chinese education, comparing it to criticisms of US schools and examining evidence for discipline-focused vs. creativity-focused approaches to education.
Scott Alexander critiques therapy books, highlighting their exaggerated claims and questioning the validity of their approaches, based on his clinical experience and historical misdiagnoses in psychology.
Scott Alexander reviews 'The Body Keeps The Score', a book on PTSD, praising its historical context but criticizing its outdated science and uncritical embrace of alternative therapies.
Scott Alexander reviews 'Against The Grain', which argues that early grain agriculture and state formation were detrimental to human welfare and mainly benefited emerging state powers.
Scott Alexander shares and comments on passages from Peter Turchin's 'Ages of Discord', exploring historical cycles of unity and polarization in American society.
Scott reviews 'Ages of Discord', which applies cyclic theories of civilizational rise and fall to modern America, finding the data interesting but the core theory questionable.
Scott reviews 'Reframing Superintelligence' by Eric Drexler, which proposes future AI as specialized services rather than general agents, contrasting with Nick Bostrom's scenarios.
Scott Alexander reviews 'Secular Cycles', which proposes pre-industrial civilizations follow ~300 year cycles of growth and decline, examining the evidence and potential implications.
Scott Alexander reviews 'The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test', examining Ken Kesey's LSD-fueled counterculture movement and its lasting impact.
Scott Alexander reviews a book attributing rising service costs to the Baumol effect, finding it convincing but raising some concerns about conflicting data and affordability issues.
Scott Alexander shares and comments on excerpts from Joseph Henrich's 'The Secret of Our Success', exploring cultural evolution and its impact on human societies.
Scott reviews 'The Secret of Our Success' by Joseph Henrich, which argues that culture, not raw intelligence, is key to human success and explores the evolutionary basis for cultural transmission.
Scott Alexander reviews three books: a controversial psychotherapy text, an introduction to Lacan's philosophy, and a rationalist-themed fantasy novel.
Scott Alexander reviews 'Inventing The Future', critiquing its communist strategy while acknowledging its utopian vision.
Scott Alexander reviews 'Zero To One' by Peter Thiel, discussing its advice on creating monopolies, believing in secrets, and embracing definite optimism for successful startups.
Scott reviews Kuhn's 'Structure of Scientific Revolutions', finding its thesis on paradigm shifts in science intriguing but frustratingly vague, especially beyond physics.
Scott reviews a book applying evolutionary psychology to psychiatry, finding the approach intriguing but hard to verify and potentially open to misuse.
Scott Alexander reviews 'The Mind Illuminated', a Buddhist meditation guide by Culadasa, praising its clarity while questioning some of its optimistic claims about meditation progress and risks.
Scott reviews 'The Black Swan' by Nassim Taleb, examining its key concepts and Taleb's unique perspective on probability and risk.
Scott Alexander reviews the EA Hotel, a project offering free accommodation to effective altruists in Blackpool, England, discussing its potential benefits and challenges.