The reading collection
Psychology, geopolitics, philosophy—and everything in between.
2,048 readings · 301–312
In his book Chaos*, James Gleick tells the story of how chaos theory came to be. He chronicles the lives and work of the early pioneers of chaos theory, including Edward Lorenz, Benoit Mandelbrot, and Mitchell…
The Life of Freud Sigmund Freud broke with official medicine and was the first in the history of dynamic psychiatry to do so. The result was a cultural revolution that can be compared to what Darwin had unleashed.
In The End of the World is Just the Beginning, author Peter Zeihan attempts to show readers how the world will look after the end of globalization.
The Venezuelan politician Juan Pérez Alfonzo said, “Oil is the devil’s excrement.” A country can be cursed by natural resources because they concentrate power and wealth in the hands of whoever monopolizes them.…
Zizek in How to Read Lacan* does not merely articulate the philosophy of Lacan but adds his own philosophical slant. The book begins with a description of a major development that occurred at the turn of the…
Nietzsche was one of the most influential philosophers of the 19th century. One of Nietzsche’s central ideas was the concept of the will to power. He argued that all living beings had an innate desire to exert their…
In The Innovator’s Dilemma,* Clayton Christensen examines and explains why some companies succeed despite making seemingly bad decisions. He introduces the concept of “disruptive innovation” to explain how even the…
Man is a social animal, directed by others, but his sociability does not lead him into a peaceful civil society, because at the root of sociability is conflict. In trying to unmask the root of conflict and desire, I…
We live in an age where talking to machines is no longer science fiction. Virtual assistants like Siri, Alexa, and chatbots are now part of our daily lives, answering questions, offering advice, and even providing a…
The French wanted influence in the Middle East since the days of Napoleon. They had also made a commitment to defend the Arab Christians in the area against the majority Muslim population.
What we learn from this talk is that there are two different ways of thinking about happiness.
Why is Sex Fun? by Jared Diamond tries to explain a seemingly obvious question contained in the title. To most people, the answer is obvious and needs no further explanation.