Every once in a while I read a truly awesome book. I am talking about a book that conveys concepts and ideas that move me to think about things in a new ways, a book that opens up new worlds of thought. I just finished such a book called Godel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid, the Pulitzer Prize winning book by Douglas Hofstadter. The book was written over 30 years ago, but its concepts are as relevant today as they were in 1979.

Davies tackles the origins of life on Planet Earth. He covers various theories on the subject and covers a lot of ground. While Davies is a physicist and not a biologist, he covers the topic in a thorough fashion. I really enjoyed reading this a number of years ago and it has helped shape the way I think about life.

This is the book that is so popular in the technology and science community it has spawn a yearly conference. The term “singularity” is now in usage in scientific circles, and is making its way into the mainstream. In the book Kurzweil presents predictions about the evolution of humanity through the next 20 years as IA, robotics and medicine progress to levels that were science fiction just a few years before. While some of his predictions are wild, Kurzweil has a great track record of technical predictions. Regardless of the accuracy of his predictions, the book takes a deep dive into some of the most remarkable technologies available and discusses their current and future impacts on society.

Brian Greene has become the de facto spokesman for string theory. In this book he lays it all on the table. I really enjoyed some of the thought experiments presented, but have to admit that some of the physics was way over my head. There was more than one page I had to read and re-read. Still, a universal theory of everything is quite an exciting topic and string theory is one of the leading contenders.

A very interesting presentation of The 9/11 Report. The 9/11 Commission spent years on their report and this graphical version really brings life to a government document. Its a very interesting read.

This is the best argument against the existence of a deity I have read. Dawkins, an evolutionary biologist, uses logic, science and fact to tear apart various theological arguments. I quickly read this cover to cover and was hungry for more. One of the best books I have ever read.