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Reviews
Algorithms to Live By: The Computer Science of Human Decisions by Tom Griffiths, Brian Christian
frankstory's review against another edition
5.0
The book didn't turn out to be what I expected. It exceeded my expectations! While individuals with a computer science or IT background would get the most out of it, many of the lessons and thought experiments are applicable to everyone.
Several of the explanations for common computer science concepts and strategies rank as the clearest and most succinct I've ever heard.
Several of the explanations for common computer science concepts and strategies rank as the clearest and most succinct I've ever heard.
read_mo's review
3.0
coming from an eecs background this book was so silly, i was hearing concepts i had learned in classes explained in very fake deep ways. this is essentially an easy to read textbook
ametakinetos's review against another edition
DNF'd for no other reason than it was due back at the library. Would've liked to have finished it!
rebecanunez's review
4.0
Muy interesante. Son cosas en las que uno no se pone a pensar, por mas que están presentes todo el tiempo. Ademas el lenguaje que utiliza, creo que va a estar al alcance de todos los que podrían interesarse.
libellum_aphrodite's review against another edition
3.0
The algorithm applications to real life were mostly fun, apropos, and insightful though a few trite and silly ones crept in.
These four I found quite relevant, to the point I stopped reading to consider the use in my own life.
* optimal stopping
* explore / exploit
* overfitting
* relaxation
Milage varied on the rest, ranging from "big stretches" to "interesting application, but overplayed."
* sorting
* caching
* scheduling
* Bayes' Rule
* randomness
* networking
* game theory
Style-wise, I felt the authors were trying a bit too hard to be cool and clever, with occasionally groan-worthy pop culture chapter quotes, but they effectively explained computer science terms in real human language (as best I can tell, admittedly - working in tech may well have tainted my impartiality).
These four I found quite relevant, to the point I stopped reading to consider the use in my own life.
* optimal stopping
* explore / exploit
* overfitting
* relaxation
Milage varied on the rest, ranging from "big stretches" to "interesting application, but overplayed."
* sorting
* caching
* scheduling
* Bayes' Rule
* randomness
* networking
* game theory
Style-wise, I felt the authors were trying a bit too hard to be cool and clever, with occasionally groan-worthy pop culture chapter quotes, but they effectively explained computer science terms in real human language (as best I can tell, admittedly - working in tech may well have tainted my impartiality).
finlay_b's review
5.0
A fantastic exploration of some of the most interesting problems encountered in the field of computer science.
This covers a wide range of topics including search, scheduling, complexity and so on. Where this book shines is in the examples and use cases used to illustrate each problem - and establish the importance of being able to compute (reasonably) good answers to them.
We also delve into the applications of computer science in less obviously-related disciplines like psychology and philosophy. Intriguing and entertaining, these tangents develop an even greater appreciation of just how relevant and creative computer science can be.
The authors write with a perfect level of detail throughout; not so technical as to make it inaccessible, but covers enough such that the reader can fully grasp the challenges discussed and how the proposed solutions address them. One of the best science books I’ve encountered.