Ro's Recz

Computer science is a really popular field to study today, mostly because of the great jobs it can offer people at the biggest tech companies. It is something that I wish I knew more about, as it seems very useful and is an in-demand skill.

Algorithms to Live By is a book written by Brian Christian and Tom Griffiths, and it does a really good job of outlining basic computer science principles, while also applying these to real life situations. I don’t know how useful of a book it would be to those who have already studied computer science, but as someone who knows very little about the subject, I found the content super interesting and informative.

Some of the most interesting topics the book covers include things like how to balance things we are familiar with and enjoy with things that are novel and unknown, how to know when to stop looking for an apartment (or the best price to sell your house at), and how to best choose what to eat or where to park. These are all problems that we have encountered at some point in our daily lives, and we mostly just go based on instinct when trying to solve them. However, this book provides actionable insights about how we can best use computer science and machine learning to approach these problems. While there are no foolproof methods for them, there are better ways to approach these situations than others.

While the title of the book may sound intimidating, it is actually a really easy book to read and understand. I listened to the audiobook version, but I would also consider reading a physical copy to get an even deeper understanding of the concepts mentioned in the book!