Reading Rack

NOTE:
This page is for the books and papers I have read. For each item I have included the date and a summary or comment. Most of the books were purchased on-line, so I have provided Amazon Associate links for anyone interested in purchasing a copy. The technical papers I have either provided links or the .pdf (or both).

Recent Reads

• Six Easy Pieces: Essentials of Physics Explained by Its Most Brilliant Teacher While the book is great, I found it better to listen to listen/watch the lectures while reading (available here) so that you receive the full impact from Richard Feynman as he lectures! His voice and tecahing style is unique, resulting in a wonderful learning experience. This is the STEM introduction that everyone should read or watch. 10/24
• Six Not-So-Easy Pieces While the book is great, I found it better to listen to listen/watch the lectures while reading (available here) so that you receive the full impact from Richard Feynman as he lectures! His voice and tecahing style is unique, resulting in a wonderful learning experience. This is the STEM introduction that everyone should read or watch. 10/24
• Longitude - By Dava Sobel This is a well written book about the race to solve the problem of Longitude. As with so many inventors, this problem was solved in the 1750’s by someone with a very humble background, John Harrison, not a scientist or engineer, but a former cabinet maker. And because of his humble beginnings, his solution of a precision mechanical timepiece (that is more accurate than a modern quartz watch). Also, as with many innovators, Harrison was criticized by someone in power that was jealous of his success, and it would be 30 years, and many legal battles before Harrison was recognized and awarded the Longitude prize. 10/24
• The Innovators: How a Group of Hackers, Geniuses, and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution - by Walter Isaacson This is a great book rich in history of innovations from Ada Lovelace in 1830’s to Tim Berners-Lee in the 1990’s and beyond. What I particularly like about this book is the constant reminder that innovation does not happen in a vacuum, innovation is always built on prior innovation, and most often is the result of a team. Well done Isaacson! 10/24
• American Prometheus This is a well written book about the life of Robert Oppenheimer, and those that he worked with throughout his life. Like so many scientists and engineers, he was not well understood outside of his circle of intellectuals and geniuses. And similar to other innovators, was envied and even hated by lesser intelligent people - and often these folks are in power and tend to make a mess of things as they did when they tried to destroy Oppenheimer’s life, reputation, and service to Country. If you liked the movie “Oppenheimer”, you will love this book! 09/24
• The Physical Principles of the Quantum Theory This is a collection of lectures presented by Heisenberg at the University of Chicago in 1929. What an amazing set of lectures. Interestingly, his primary contributions at the time (bringing linear algebra and calculus into the realm of physics) was saved as an Appendix, and it is nearly half of the book – the first 104 pages are the lectures, and the following 80 pages are the mathematical foundations. As he stated in the Preface, he wanted to conduct the lectures with only the necessary math and equations, presumably out of respect for the “old guard” (see my notes on the book “Uncertainty: Einstein, Heisenberg, Bohr, and the Struggle for the Soul of Science”) 09/24
• Uncertainty: Einstein, Heisenberg, Bohr, and the Struggle for the Soul of Science This is a great book that describes the tension between the “old guard” Einstein and Bohr and the “new” with Heisenberg. It was not until recently and certainly in this book did I finally understand that physicists at this time were not great mathematicians as well. Of course I read that Feynman said he studied math for the rest of his life because he was “bad at math”, but so too were Einstein and Bohr. In fact, in this book the author highlights the math used by Heisenberg as the primary contention that Einstein had with the “new physics”, he said “It makes no sense”. Heisenberg used linear algebra (quite new at the time) and calculus to describe the phenomena of quantum theory and the “uncertainty principle”. This book also paints Bohr as a very harsh man, and this is the first and only time I have read that about him, all other authors write about how quiet and humble he was and completely unaware of his surroundings, but none have said that he was harsh or mean. This might the consequence of Bohr being the doctoral advisor for Heisenberg. Nevertheless, these are all great men of physics, and this was a great book. 08/24
• Mathematics for the Practical Man - J. E. Thompson. Occasionally, while reading a book, I discover a reference to another book. In this case, the reference was a set of vintage and out of print textbooks that I was able to find on eBay at a reasonable price. Books like these are a link to our collective past that made an indellible mark on our future. Printed in 1931, re-printed in 1943. This series of 5 books “Arithmetic”, “Algebra”, “Geometry”, “Trigonometry”, “Calculus” are all excellent. I found these books after reading that Richard Feynman learned math from these books (he checked them out from a local library in New York and taught himself math using these books). These are all excellent books and I highly recommend them to anyone learning or refreshing mathematics. These books use a very practical approach to junior high and high school level math with great descriptions and illustrations. I wish I had these books as a youth. 08/24
• Lectures on Theoretical Physics - A. Sommerfeld. Occasionally, while reading a book, I discover a reference to another book. In this case, the reference was a set of vintage and out of print textbooks that I was able to find on eBay at a reasonable price. Books like these are a link to our collective past that made an indellible mark on our future. Printed in 1951. This series of 5 books are based on the physics courses Sommerfeld taught for 40 years: “Vol I - Mechanics”, “Vol II - Mechanics of Deformable Bodies”, “Vol III - Electrodynamics”, “Vol IV - Optics” “Vol V - Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics”. These are excellent books written by a “father of physics” that taught and mentored 7 Nobel laureates. These books use a very practical approach to university level physics with great descriptions and illustrations. I wish I had these books as a youth. 08/24
• A Mind at Play: How Claude Shannon Invented the Information Age - I really enjoyed this book. I was well aware of the contributions by Claude Shannon (he created the field of Information Theory), but I was not aware that after his seminal papers and book that he literally spent the rest of his life exploring things completely unrelated to information theory, e.g., the physics of a unicycle and juggling (or more correctly, the physics of juggling while riding a unicycle), etc. 08/24
• Niels Bohr’s Times, In Physics, Philosophy, and Polity This book paints a picture of an odd and quiet man of incredible physics. This is a fast read and worth the time. 07/24
• Six Easy Pieces: Essentials of Physics Explained by Its Most Brilliant Teacher - This is a great book for the novice in physics, taught by one of the best teachers in physics. If you read this, I also encourage you to watch the corresponding lectures so that you can hear this contents of this book in the voice of Feynman, with his characteristic tone and tenor. 07/24
• John von Neumann / Functional Operators Volume I–Measures and Integrals 1957 07/24
• AI for Defense and Intelligence - This is a good summary of many topics around the field of AI, from basic description of various AI models and their applications to topics of hardware, AI ethics and Law. There are however, many typos in the book, several sections are generated by ChatGPT, and the author claims as AI several standard math or statistics or statistical learning methods (they are not AI); this is very misleading and confusing to new readers in this field. That said, I would recommend this book as a first read to folks in leadership positions who engage with AI teams or professionals. 07/24
• Racing for the Bomb: The True Story of General Leslie R. Groves, the Man behind the Birth of the Atomic Age - While many reviewers found the first part of this book (the early life of Groves) to be too detailed, this section is an interesting account of his heritage in excruciating detail. This level of rigor continues throughout the book, and the details of the programs he ran before the Manhattan project, during, and after. There are additional details of the scientists that I did not see in other books that I have read, e.g., details not found elsewhere on Feynman, Oppenheimer, or Bohr. Overall a great book. 07/24
• Niels Bohr: The Life and Legacy of the Influential Atomic Scientist - This is a very short book and gives a little detail into the life and upbringing of Bohr. 06/24
• “Surely You’re Joking, Mr. Feynman!”: Adventures of a Curious Character - Fun book to read, but a lot of repeated material if you read “The Pleasure of Finding Things Out” first. The best part of this book is the description of his time on the Shuttle Challenger accident investigation committee. 06/24
• “What Do You Care What Other People Think?”: Further Adventures of a Curious Character - Fun book to read, but a lot of repeated material if you read “The Pleasure of Finding Things Out” first. 06/24
• Pleasure of Finding Things Out: The Best Short Works of Richard P. Feynman - This is a great book. While all of the chapters are great, I believe everyone in STEM should read chapters 10 and 13. Chapter 10 discusses “junk science” and how to avoid it, while Chapter 13 discusses the relationship between religion and science. This is probably the best book about Feynman. While the other books give more details about his life (“Surely You’re Joking, Mr. Feynman!” and “What Do You Care What Other People Think?”), this is probably the one for most folks to read, because the other books are largely a repeat. 06/24
• Fairness and Machine Learning: Limitations and Opportunities - I can see why this book might be popular, and it does have some good ideas and things to ponder. I find that the prose in this book are often speculative (frequent use of phrases like “could”, “can”, “may”, “might”), the data/results are often incorrect (and can be verified by other sources or with more subject matter expertise) and the math derivations following into examples are incorrect (e.g., applying binary assumptions to multi-variate problems), and citations or examples are often “cherry-picked” or contrived resulting in a misrepresentation of the data or graph (e.g., claiming a huge difference in something visually when numerically the difference is less than 1%). While these are certainly weaknesses, there are also strengths in several chapters that provide thought provoking concepts, ideas and frameworks. AI fairness is a very important topic and it requires a balanced approach to the data and the models. An indictment of one category or class over another is not a method to fix actual or perceived bias. I understand this is a very sensitive and emotionally charged topic today, but as a co-author of the AI Ethics Framework for the Intelligence Community - (approved by ODNI Office of General Council and published in July 2020 by ODNI), I can attest that we navigated these issues and their (possibly severe) consequences, and we drafted a very balanced approach to AI ethics and fairness. I read this book twice in the span of two weeks. During the first read I was frustrated with inconsistencies, and during the second I was sympathetic and discovered some good content. While this is not a great book, it is a good one. 06/24
• Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything - This book was gifted to me by a friend. It is a rather long narrative by an investigative reporter. His experience and findings are worth reading, but it is not a quick read on memory techniques. Overall you will find valuable information and history on the art of memory and recall, and it reinforced the knowledge I have gained from reading other books on the subject, and compliments some of the techniques that I use to improve my memory and recall. 05/24
• Nonlinear and Adaptive Control Design - I am presently writing a textbook on modern control theory for UAVs and cruise missiles. This book is the fundamental work in this area and a great reference. 05/24
• Notes on Quantum Mechanics; a Course Given at the University of Chicago - This is the original text that is hand written by Fermi. This book was very exciting to review, particularly because it is hand written and you can see the corrections and notes that Fermi made in preparation for his lectures. I wish I was alive to see the lectures in person. Great book! 04/24
• Nuclear Physics: A Course Given by Enrico Fermi at the University of Chicago - Similar to the Quantum Mechanics book, this is the original text that is both typed and hand written by Fermi. This book was very exciting to review, particularly because it is hand written (equations and graphs). I wish I was alive to see the lectures in person. Great book! 04/24
• The Visual Display of Quantitative Information - This book was recommended to me after I authored a few textbooks. Tufte has a very interesting style that has influence most modern textbooks. 04/24
• Visual Explanations: Images and Quantities, Evidence and Narrative - This book (like Tufte’s other books) was recommended to me after I authored a few textbooks. Tufte has a very interesting style that has influence most modern textbooks. 04/24
• Visual and Statistical Thinking: Displays of Evidence for Making Decisions - This book (like Tufte’s other books) was recommended to me after I authored a few textbooks. Tufte has a very interesting style that has influence most modern textbooks. 04/24
• The Strangest Man - The Hidden Life of Paul Dirac, Mystic of the Atom - I have always wondered why other physics books and physicists referred to Paul Dirac as a quite man and jokingly said “The measure of one word per day is a ‘Dirac’.” This as a very enlightening book about the incredible but challenging life of Paul Dirac. 04/23
• Mastering Bioinformatics and Computational Biology: Unraveling the Complexities of Life Through Data-Driven Discovery - This book was written entirely with ChatGPT! What an interesting experience reading a book authored by an algorithm. 04/24
• Atomic Habits - This is a great book that reaffirms my personal method of achieving goals. Everyone should read this book! This is a quick book to read and I have read it twice (to review some great concepts). 06/23, 03/24
• Four Battlegrounds - Power in the Age of Artificial Intelligence - This book was gifted to me because of my background in AI and the USG. While the reviews on this book are mixed, and at time harsh, I found this book to be well written and comprehensive. Sure the author takes some liberties with opinions, but it is a good book that I think other folks should read. 03/23
• The Last Man Who Knew Everything - The Life and Times of Enrico Fermi, Father of the Nuclear Age - This is a fascinating book about the life of Fermi, his family and his students (who later were co-workers on the Manhattan project). I have read this book twice because it was so enjoyable to read. One of my favorite books 02/24
• Deep Learning: Foundations and Concepts - Bishop - This is a follow-up to his prior book on Pattern Recognition and Classification. This is a well-written book, with a good balance of examples and math. 01/24
• Python Data Science Handbook: Essential Tools for Working with Data - Great book. I have used this as a primer for teaching and boot camps. 07/19, 12/23
• Storytelling with Data: A Data Visualization Guide for Business Professionals - This is my first choice for data visualization books. Great book! 12/23
• Interpretable Machine Learning: A Guide For Making Black Box Models Explainable - The best book on interpretable ML! 12/23
• Probabilistic Machine Learning: An Introduction - Murphy - Great book, very dense, but given the length I expected math proofs and derivations. 01/24
• Probabilistic Machine Learning: Advanced Topics - Murphy - Great book, very dense, but given the length I expected math proofs and derivations. 01/24

Books I am Presently Reading

• Computational Molecular Biology: An Introduction
• Essential Mathematical Biology
• High-Frequency Trading: A Practical Guide to Algorithmic Strategies and Trading Systems
• Advances in Financial Machine Learning
• The Feynman Lectures on Physics, boxed set: The New Millennium Edition
• Too Big for a Single Mind: How the Greatest Generation of Physicists Uncovered the Quantum World
• Enrico Fermi: Collected Papers (Note E Memorie). 2-Volume Set. (1962/1965)

Textbooks

Theoretical Physics

• Eight Lectures on Theoretical Physics - Max Planck Great lectures and very eloquent. Dr. Planck takes soft approach to introduce very advanced topics of the day (1909) and describes the problems beautifully. I wish I was alive and present when he presented. 11/22
• Theoretical Physics - Georg Joos Great book by a master. Like many physics books there is a lot of algebra, linear algebra and some calculus. If you have a good foundation in these subjects, then the physics will be easier to understand. 11/22
• Theoretical Nuclear Physics - Blatt and Weisskopf Great book by a master. Like many physics books there is a lot of algebra, linear algebra and some calculus. If you have a good foundation in these subjects, then the physics will be easier to understand. 11/22
• An Introduction to Nuclear Fission This states that it is a graduate-level book, but I think it is really an undergrad book. The math is easy, most of which you can do mentally, and the concepts are well described. A good introduction to the subject. My primary criticism is the notation is not introduced and it is unclear throughout the text, e.g., it is not clear if a variable is a vector or scalar until you see the variable in an equation and perform a calculation, then by deduction you can see that the variable is clearly a scalar. 11/22
• Physics of Waves - Elmore and Heald Great book by a master. Like many physics books there is a lot of algebra, linear algebra and some calculus. If you have a good foundation in these subjects, then the physics will be easier to understand. 11/22
• Einstein’s Theory of Relativity - Max Born
• Mathematics of Classical and Quantum Physics - Byron and Fuller The first few chapters cover the basic equations of classical physics with complete examples using vectors and matrices, calculus of variations and Hilbert spaces in physics, the next few chapters look at analytical functions, Green’s theorem and integrals, and the book concludes with an introduction to Group Theory. The notation is defined and very clear throughout with usage of standard math notation for scalars, vectors, matrices and formulae notation, e.g., summations, products, integrals, etc. The authors even provide complete derivations (not skipping steps) in several examples. 12/22
• Atomic Physics - Max Born Like many of these older books, this one is no exception. I really like the author’s style of writing. Non-native English speakers, or translation of a language, often portrays things very differently and I certainly like this perspective. While this book was significantly modified by the co-authors, they did maintain much of the original text from Dr. Born and the text is well written. 12/22
• A Survey of Physical Theory - Max Planck This is a topical book (a survey) wherein Dr. Planck provides his thoughts on the current state of physics (in 1925). It is rather easy to follow, very little math (I counted fewer than 10 equations), with a particularly interesting discussion on electromagnetic theory. 12/22
• Equations of Mathematical Physics Great book that covers the mathematics of theoretical and experimental physics. 01/23
• Mathematics for Physicists Great book that covers the mathematics of theoretical and experimental physics. 01/23
• History of Physics - Max von Laue
• Subtle Is the Lord: The Science and the Life of Albert Einstein
• Relativity - Albert Einstein
• The Philosophy of Physics
• Lectures on Physics and the Nature of Scientific Knowledge - Erwin Schrödinger
• Equations of Mathematical Physics
• The Physical Principles of the Quantum Theory - Werner Heisenberg
• Relativity:The Special and the General Theory This is a great summary of relativity by Einstein for an audience of non-technical folks. 04/23

Math

• Mathematische Formeln - Sieber My preferred short-form (48 pages) math reference. Apparently every German high school student receives this book! I received this book when I studied in Germany, and during my undergrad I added notes throughout this text, e.g. the definition of a series can be defined in sequence or with a summation, I added the summation form, etc. I have considered translating this book (with my notes) for English speaking students. Send me an email if you are interested.
• Handbook of Mathematics - Bronshtein My preferred long-form (1251 pages) math reference. This book helped me get through college. This book is commonly used in German schools for science and engineering students.
• Matrix Mathematics - Bernsten A single source for nearly all linear algebra derivations, proofs and theory. This is a great book to have once you master the skills in Noble and Golub’s books (of course assuming you already read Strang’s book).
• Applied Linear Algebra - Noble & Daniel This is a graduate-level book that covers more difficult topics and theory in linear algebra. I used this in graduate school and I highly recommend this book.
• Matrix Computations - Golub & van Loan This is another graduate-level book that specifically discusses difficult applied problems like numerical optimization using the modified Gram-Schmidt, CS Decomposition, and sparse unsymmetric linear systems. I used this in graduate school and I highly recommend this book.
• Linear Algebra and its Applications - Strang This is the best starter book in linear algebra (undergraduate level). The concepts are clearly defined and build in difficulty with each chapter.
• Theory of Optimal Search - Stone Great book. The author is right (in the preface), you really need to understand mathematics to understand this book. It is very dense. 11/22
• Optimal Search for Moving Targets - Stone, et.al. Great book. Most of the methods use ILP or MILP, and they have a few examples in Matlab. Several years ago I built an ILP toolbox (ILP Lite) and I was able to solve many problems in this book using ILP Lite. 11/22
• Real Analysis: A Long-Form Mathematics Textbook - Cummings I really like this young authors approach to Real Analysis. He provides several examples that are clear and complete. Most authors skip steps and expect the reader to fill-in the gaps, Cummings does not. 12/22
• Proofs: A Long-Form Mathematics Textbook - Cummings This is a great book, and if you read the author’s book on Real Analysis. The dedication in this book is priceless. 12/22
• Mathematical Notation - A guide for Engineers and Scientists This is a great guide that is similar to my Math Handbook, and a great reference if you are confused with math symbols, e.g., you cannot remember the symbol for a method or you cannot remember the meaning of a math symbol. 12/22
• Mathematical Reasoning - Sundstrom This is the textbook I used when I took an undergraduate math proofs course. This is a great introduction.
• div grad culr and all that - Schey I used this book while studying for aerospace engineering graduate school entrance exams. This was a great review and highly recommended.
• Mathematical Methods in the Physical Sciences - Boas This is another book I used while studying for aerospace engineering graduate school entrance exams. This was a great review and highly recommended.
• Proofs from THE BOOK Mathematician Erdos, though a atheist, believed that if God had a book of the purest of math proofs, they would be assembled into “the Book”. The highest compliment he could pay to a colleague’s work was to say, “That’s straight from The Book.” This book is an ensemble of proofs that many mathematicians believe might be worthy of “the Book.” 01/23
• A History of Mathematical Notations this is a complete history of mathematical notation written by Professor Florian Cajori in 1923. This is a fantastic book that I have only read chapters of. Originally published as 2 volumes, to present day (100 years later), it is still the most comprehensive treatment of the origins of mathematical notation. 01/23
• How to Lie with Statistics This book is a must read for everyone, just to understand how statistics are used to manipulate any narrative. The ideas in book are both comical and concerning. 07/23
• Damned Lies and Statistics: Untangling Numbers from the Media, Politicians, and Activists Like the previous book, this one is a must read for everyone, and the ideas are both comical and concerning. In fact, the author references the prior book as a good starting point. The first 3 pages alone should captivate and concern any reader. In many places I checked the math, I even wrote Matlab simulations to verify the results, and alarmingly the author is correct. For example “the number of child gun deaths have doubled since 1950” the original quote, versus the often (mis)quoted by the media “the number of gun child deaths have doubled each year since 1950”. Given the second quote, here is the math: define deaths(i=1950)=1, for i=1951:1995, let deaths(i) = deaths(i-1)x2, then deaths(i=1995)= 3.5 e+13. That is 3.5 trillion child deaths in the year 1995 alone (not cumulative since 1950, read the quote)! Do you see how a mis-quote is not only misleading but simply impossible?! 07/23
• Theory of Games and Economic Behavior - von Neumann This is a challenging book, and it is hard to imagine that Von Neumann wrote the first 600 pages in just a few days. There is an Easter egg in section 8.3.1 on set theory! Read this biography to find out more. 10/23

Dover books: these are re-prints of great books that I read during my PhD studies.

• Linear Algebra - Shilov
• Introduction to Partial Differential Equations with Applications - Zachmanoglou
• Introduction to Stochastic Control Theory - Astrom
• Optimal Control and Estimation - Stengel
• Nonlinear Filtering and Smoothing - Krishnan
• An Introduction to Random Vibrations, Spectral & Wavelet Analysis - Newland
• Ordinary Differential Equations - Tenenbaum
• Partial Differential Equations for Scientists and Engineers - Farlow
• Stochastic Processes and Filtering Theory - Jazwinski
• Lyapunov Matrix Equation in System Stability and Control - Gajic
• Principles of Statistics - Bulmer
• Introduction to Graph Theory - Chartrand
• Geometry: A Comprehensive Course - Pedoe
• Introduction to Topology - Mendelson
• Probability Theory: A Concise Course - Rozanov
• Introduction to Information Theory: Symbols, Signals and Noise - Pierce
• Introduction to Graph Theory - Trudeau
• Linear Algebra and Matrix Theory - Stoll
• Stochastic Differential Equations - Oksendal
• Introductory Real Analysis - Kolmogorov

Fun Books when you need some thought challenges.

• Challenging Problems in Geometry - Posamentier
• Challenging Problems in Algebra - Posamentier
• The Moscow Puzzles - Kordemsky
• My Best Mathematical and Logic Puzzles - Gardner

Great review books. If you want to learn a subject, skip the other books and just buy one of these and systematically work through every problem in every chapter, then test yourself using the included quizes and exams. I used these in preparation for BS, MS and PhD qualifying exams. Each were a great review!

• Schaum’s Outline of Mathematical Handbook of Formulas and Tables
• Schaum’s Outline of Tensor Calculus
• Schaum’s Outline of Differential Equations
• Schaum’s Outline of Geometry
• Schaum’s Outline of General Topology
• Schaum’s Outline of Intermediate Algebra
• Schaum’s Outline of Abstract Algebra
• Schaum’s Outline of College Mathematics
• Schaum’s Outline of Trigonometry
• Schaum’s 3,000 Solved Problems in Calculus
• Schaum’s 3,000 Solved Problems in Physics
• Schaum’s Outline of Elementary Algebra
• Schaum’s Outline of Linear Algebra
• Schaum’s Outline of Probability, Random Variables, and Random Processes
• Schaum’s Outline of Advanced Mathematics for Engineers and Scientists
• Schaum’s Outline of Digital Signal Processing
• Schaum’s Outline of Analog and Digital Communications
• Schaum’s Outline of Feedback and Control Systems
• Schaum’s Outline of Partial Differential Equations 02/09
• Schaum’s Outline of Advanced Calculus 02/09

Cryptanalysis

• Cryptanalysis: A Study of Ciphers and Their Solution traditional methods for enciphering and deciphering cryptograms.
• Algebraic Cryptanalysis This book truely delivers and “bridges the gap between a course in cryptography, and being able to read the cryptanalytic literature.”
• Translucent Databases: Confusion, Misdirection, Randomness, Sharing, Authentication And Steganography To Defend Privacy an interesting approach to build databases that protect the user’s information.
• Codes, Ciphers, Steganography & Secret Messages a complete introduction to codes, ciphers and secret messages with many examples of each..
• Lattice Theory: Foundation provides a solid foundation on distributive, congruence, constructions, modularity and semimodularity, varieties, and free products.
• Understanding Cryptography: A Textbook for Students and Practitioners this is a great book for undergraduate students or practitioners on the fundamentals of stream ciphers, the Data Encryption Standard (DES) and 3DES, the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), block ciphers, the RSA cryptosystem, public-key cryptosystems based on the discrete logarithm problem, elliptic-curve cryptography (ECC), digital signatures, hash functions, Message Authentication Codes (MACs), and methods for key establishment, including certificates and public-key infrastructure (PKI). -Sphere Packings, Lattices and Groups translated from German, this is a deeply theoretical book on things like the most efficient way to pack a large number of equal spheres in n-dimensional Euclidean space. It also gives applications to number theory, coding theory, group theory, analogue-to-digital conversion and data compression, n-dimensional crystallography, dual theory and superstring theory.
• Applied Cryptanalysis: Breaking Ciphers in the Real World each chapter is written to be self-contained, so a practitioner interested in RSA timing attacks can read that one chapter and gain the needed information. I am presently writing a book in machine learning with a very similar approach to the chapters that I am writing.
• Steganography Techniques for Digital Images Steg’ is not new, but this book provides a new and efficient Steganographic system, called Characteristic Region-Based Image Steganography (CR-BIS) that combines both the robustness of the Speeded-Up Robust Features technique (SURF) and Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT).
• History of Cryptography and Cryptanalysis: Codes, Ciphers, and Their Algorithms I really like history books on technical topics, e.g., A History of Mathematical Notations. This book covers the monoalphabetic cipher of antiquity, to cipher machines used throughout World War I and II, to modern criminal cyber-attacks and cyber-warfare.

Machine Learning & Deep Learning

Most of the ML literature I have read is contained in technical papers, which I have supplied in section Technical Papers / Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence.

• Deep Learning with Python, Second Edition 2nd Edition - Chollet Good tutorial book for a beginner in ML. Several examples that you will not find elsewhere. 06/22
• Reinforcement Learning, second edition: An Introduction - Sutton Great book on RL. I took very careful notes (I will soon post them here and implemented these methods on a few projects. 10/21
• Pattern Recognition and Machine Learning - Bishop Good book, mostly simple ML methods, but very well written by an experienced practitioner at Microsoft Research. 04/22
• Pattern Classification 2nd Edition - Duda and Hart Good book, something I have used since graduate school. Duda discusses fundamental concepts at a time when this field was new, but still relevant today. 04/22
• The Elements of Statistical Learning: Data Mining, Inference, and Prediction, Second Edition - Hastie and Tibshirani Fantastic book. Graduate-level and very detailed mathematics and examples. I frequently use this reference in my work. My notes and derivations are posted here. 09/21
• An Introduction to Statistical Learning: with Applications in R - Hastie and Tibshirani Fantastic book. Undergraduate-level with simplified examples from the prior book. I frequently use this reference in my work. 09/21
• Network Science - Barabasi
• Networks: An Introduction - Newman
• Graph Algorithms in the Language of Linear Algebra - Kepner and Gilbert
• Deep Learning - Goodfellow This book reads like a Ph.D. dissertation and includes equation details rarely found in other texts. 01/23
• Machine Learning: a Concise Introduction - Knox I know the author personally 06/19
• Deep Learning: Foundations and Concepts - Bishop This is a follow-up to his prior book on Pattern Recognition and Classification. This is a well-written book, with a good balance of examples and math. 01/24
• Explainable Artificial Intelligence: An Introduction to Interpretable Machine Learning This book is worth the time to read. It covers many of the most common algorithms in ML, with enough depth to be useful in practice. 11/23
• The Metrics Manifesto: Confronting Security with Data This is a great book with several humorous examples of the necessity of selecting the right data and metrics. 12/23
• Inside Deep Learning: Math, Algorithms, Models Incomplete book. 12/23
• Python Data Science Handbook: Essential Tools for Working with Data Great book. I have used this as a primer for teaching and boot camps. 07/19
• Essential Math for Data Science: Take Control of Your Data with Fundamental Linear Algebra, Probability, and Statistics This author does a good job with descriptions of probability theory and Statistics. Better than most! 12/23
• The Data Science Handbook This is a good quick reference, though I found it a bit incomplete. 12/23
• Machine Learning: An Applied Mathematics Introduction Great math introduction, or review, for ML!
• Storytelling with Data: A Data Visualization Guide for Business Professionals This is my first choice for data visualization books. Great book! 12/23
• Generative Deep Learning: Teaching Machines to Paint, Write, Compose, and Play This is a fine tutorial book. Not my favorite. 12/23
• Mathematics for Machine Learning Great math descriptions of algorithms, but not enough depth. I was hoping for more derivations and proofs. 12/23
• Better Data Visualizations: A Guide for Scholars, Researchers, and Wonks Honestly not a great book. This book is much better. 12/23
• Linear Algebra and Optimization for Machine Learning: A Textbook This book is visually dense on each page and consequently it is difficult to read. The author describes each topic well, and you can definitely see his personality coming through the pages. 12/23
• Interpretable Machine Learning: A Guide For Making Black Box Models Explainable The best book on interpretable ML! 12/23
• Interpretable AI: Building explainable machine learning systems This book is okay. This book is much better. 12/23
• Deep Learning from Scratch: Building with Python from First Principles Not a great book. It is definitely not “from scratch” nor is it “first principles”. It is building ML models with Python and using existing frameworks like PyTorch or TensorFlow. 12/23
• Ensemble Methods for Machine Learning This is a great book that covers the most common ensemble methods in great detail. 11/23
• Graph Algorithms in the Language of Linear Algebra Finally a great book on graph theory in the natural language or linear algebra. 11/23
• Fundamentals of Data Visualization: A Primer on Making Informative and Compelling Figures Honestly not a great book. This book is much better. 12/23

Cyber & Software

• Book on C, A: Programming in C 04/08
• C Programming Language 04/08
• Gray Hat Hacking The Ethical Hacker’s Handbook 10/17
• The C++ Programming Language 10/17
• Gray Hat Python: Python Programming for Hackers and Reverse Engineers 10/17

Law, AI Law & Cyber Law

Note: I am presently reading the following textbooks on AI Law. I will provide a complete review of each book when completed.

• The Court and the Constitution - Cox Great book that describes the US Supreme Court and the landmark cases since the start of the country. This book changed my perspective of the US Legal system and my understanding of the US Constitution. 06/22
• The U.S. Constitution: A Reader This was a fascinating read, with clear unbiased commentary and references throughout. A must have for anyone wishing to learn about the past and present of the U.S. Constitution. 05/22
• The Centaur’s Dilemma: National Security Law for the Coming AI Revolution (I will post a review soon) 12/22
• Law of Artificial Intelligence and Smart Machines: Understanding A.I. and the Legal Impact 12/22
• Compelling Essays On AI And Law: Advanced Series On Artificial Intelligence (AI) And Law 12/22
• Artificial Intelligence And LegalTech Essentials: Advanced Series On Artificial Intelligence (AI) And Law 12/22
• Ingenious Essays On AI And Law: Advanced Series On Artificial Intelligence (AI) And Law 12/22
• Law and Artificial Intelligence: Regulating AI and Applying AI in Legal Practice) 01/23
• Advanced Introduction to Law and Artificial Intelligence This book is a good second book on the subject of AI Law. While completely different from The Reasonable Robot, it frequently cites case history as examples. 12/22
• Research Handbook on the Law of Artificial Intelligence 12/22
• Economics and Law of Artificial Intelligence: Finance, Economic Impacts, Risk Management and Governance
• The Reasonable Robot: Artificial Intelligence and the Law Of all the books I have read on AI Law, this is the best summary and most comprehensive view. This is definitely a first read on the subject. 12/22
• Is Law Computable?: Critical Perspectives on Law and Artificial Intelligence 01/23
• Cybersecurity Law 3rd Edition 01/23
• Advanced Introduction to Cybersecurity Law 02/23

Aeronautical & Mechanical Engineering, Stability & Control, Aircraft Design

• Aircraft Design: A Conceptual Approach, Fourth Edition I served on the AIAA Air Craft Design Technical Committee with this author for 5 years. This book helped me design several military aircraft. This is absolutely the best book for aircraft design, and I know the author personally
• Aircraft Design: A Conceptual Approach, Sixth Edition I served on the AIAA Air Craft Design Technical Committee with this author for 5 years. This updated edition includes electric aircraft design. I know the author personally
• Lessons Learned: A Guide to Improved Aircraft Design I know the author personally
• Introduction to the Design of Fixed-Wing Micro Air Vehicles This book was purchased for a small and successful IRAD project. 06/14
• Dynamics of Flight - Etkin & Reid This book helped me design several military aircraft. Excellent book for understanding stability variables and derivatives. 06/07
• Fundamentals of Astrodynamics 08/16
• Radar Cross Section Second Edition This book helped me design several military aircraft. 01/08
• Simplified Aircraft Design for Homebuilders - Raymer I know the author personally 01/08
• Fundamentals of Aircraft Design - Nicolai This book helped me design several military aircraft. I know the author personally 11/05
• Theoretical Aerodynamics 08/05
• Theory of Wing Sections - Abbott & von Doenhoff This book helped me design several military aircraft. A must have for aircraft design and wind tunnel testing 08/05
• Aerodynamics of Wings and Bodies 08/05
• Airplane Design: Part I - Roskam This book helped me design several military aircraft. I know the author personally 07/05
• Airplane Design: Part II - Roskam This book helped me design several military aircraft. 07/05
• Airplane Design: Part III - Roskam This book helped me design several military aircraft. 07/05
• Airplane Design: Part IV - Roskam This book helped me design several military aircraft. 07/05
• Airplane Design: Part V - Roskam This book helped me design several military aircraft. 07/05
• Airplane Design: Part VI - Roskam This book helped me design several military aircraft. 07/05
• Airplane Design: Part VII - Roskam This book helped me design several military aircraft. 07/05
• Airplane Design: Part VIII - Roskam This book helped me design several military aircraft. 07/05
• Airplane Flight Dynamics & Automatic Flight Controls: Part I - Roskam This book helped me design several military aircraft. 07/05
• Airplane Flight Dynamics & Automatic Flight Controls: Part II - Roskam This book helped me design several military aircraft. 07/05
• Fundamentals of Sailplane Design This book was purchased for fun and it is a great design book for sailplanes or high-altitude ISR aircraft. 04/05
• Dynamics and Thermodynamics of Compressible Fluid Flow: v.1 - Shapiro I used this text while in grad school, great book! 12/07
• Modeling and Simulation of Aerospace Vehicle Dynamics This book helped me design several military aircraft. 11/08
• Fluid-Dynamic Drag: Theoretical, experimental and statistical information - Hoerner A must-have for aircraft design 10/08
• Fluid-Dynamic Lift: Theoretical, experimental and statistical information - Hoerner A must-have for aircraft design 10/08
• Intake Aerodynamics This book helped me design intakes of several military aircraft. 10/08
• Boundary Layer Theory - Schlichting I used this text while in grad school, great book! 10/08
• Fighter Combat: Tactics and Maneuvering Great book for military aircraft flight testing. 05/08
• Gas Dynamics, Volume 1 - Zucrow & Hoffman I used this text while in grad school, great book! 02/09
• Flight Testing of Fixed-Wing Aircraft - Kimberlin Great book for flight test planning and analysis 01/09
• Aircraft Control and Simulation - Stevens & Lewis Great book for 6DOF simulation design. 10/10
• Fundamentals of Aircraft and Airship Design: Vol 1 - Nicolai I served on the AIAA Air Craft Design Technical Committee with this author for 15 years, and he helped me on a Navy aircraft design many years ago. This was his seminal work before his death. This is a great book. 12/23
• Fundamentals of Aircraft and Airship Design: Vol 2 - Nicolai I served on the AIAA Air Craft Design Technical Committee with this author for 15 years, and he helped me on a Navy aircraft design many years ago. This was his seminal work before his death. This is a great book. 12/23

Electrical Engineering, Navigation Theory, State Estimation, Signal Processing

• Aided Navigation, GPS with High Rate Sensors - Farrell This was my PhD adviser. His book is the reason I petitioned him to be his PhD student. Farrell and this book are known world-wide. This book is one of the few books that I have seen where every variable is clearly defined and explained. I learned so much from Dr. Farrell and I have carried forward his instruction into how I write my books. This is a great book on Kalman Filters, GPS-INS navigation, AHRS, GPS positioning, smoothing, and state estimation.
• Principles of GNSS, Inertial, and Multisensor Integrated Navigation Systems - Groves This is my go-to book when I need the kinematic equations and their derivatives in multiple reference frames, e.g., ECI to ECEF, or NED to ECEF, etc. Of course his book has many other topics, but the reference frame descriptions are the best I have seen in any book. This is a great book that I reference frequently.
• Fundamentals of Statistical Signal Processing, Vol 1, Estimation Theory - Kay This is the best 3 volume series on signal processing and specifically estimation theory. There are many books, but Kay maintains great notation and derivations throughout. Some may find these books a bit terse, but once you learn the notation, the books are a great resource. I have used these books since graduate school.
• Fundamentals of Statistical Signal Processing, Vol 2, Detection Theory - Kay This is the best 3 volume series on signal processing and specifically detection theory, e.g. anomaly detection. There are many books, but Kay maintains great notation and derivations throughout. Some may find these books a bit terse, but once you learn the notation, the books are a great resource. I have used these books since graduate school.
• Fundamentals of Statistical Signal Processing, Vol 3, Practical Algorithm Development Theory - Kay This is the best 3 volume series on signal processing and specifically on practical considerations, performance evaluation, metrics, trade-offs, and testing. There are many books, but Kay maintains great notation and derivations throughout. Some may find these books a bit terse, but once you learn the notation, the books are a great resource. I have used these books since graduate school.
• Fundamentals of Linear State Space Systems - Bay This is a great book to start learning state space methods after you have read Strang’s linear algebra book. I used this in graduate school and still refer to this book.
• Applied Optimal Estimation - Gelb After you master Bay’s book and you are interested in estimation theory, this is a great book to learn. Herein you will learn methods that are also discussed in Kay’s books, but with slightly different notation.
• Optimal Control Theory, An Introduction- Kirk After you master Bay’s book and you are interested in control theory, this is a great book to learn.
• Probability, Statistics, and Random Processes For Electrical Engineering
• Nonlinear Systems - Khalil I used this during my PhD studies 01/14
• Discrete-Time Signal Processing - Oppenheim I used this during my PhD studies 01/14
• Fundamentals of Wireless Communication I used this during my PhD studies 01/14
• Modern Digital and Analog Communication Systems - Lathi I used this during my PhD studies 01/14
• Adaptive Filter Theory - Haykin I used this during my PhD studies 01/14
• Fundamentals of Kalman Filtering - Zarchan I used this during my PhD studies 01/14
• Advanced Kalman Filtering, Least-Squares and Modeling: A Practical Handbook - Gibbs I used this during my PhD studies 01/14
• Essentials of Robust Control - Zhou I used this during my PhD studies 01/14
• Strapdown Analytics Part 1 Part 2 - Savage, (purchased directly from Savage) I used this during my PhD studies 01/14
• Introduction to Strapdown Inertial Naviagtion Systems - Savage, (purchased directly from Savage) I used this during my PhD studies 01/14
• Strapdown Inertial Navigation Lecture Notes - Savage, (purchased directly from Savage) I used this during my PhD studies 01/14
• Probabilistic Robotics - Thrun I know the author personally I used this during my PhD studies 01/14
• Nonlinear Control Systems: Analysis and Design - Marquez I used this during my PhD studies 01/14
• Global Positioning Systems, Inertial Navigation, and Integration - Grewal I know the author personally 07/10
• Kalman Filtering : Theory and Practice Using MATLAB I know the author personally 07/10
• Convex Optimization - Boyd I used this book throughout grad school and continue to use it in my research. This is the “bible” of convex optimization. You should also look-up the software, CVX, that was written to accompany this book (written mostly one of Boyd’s grad students). 06/14

Watchmaking

• Traité de construction horlogère 08/23
• Modern Calendar Watches 08/23
• Le pivotage 08/23
• Le réglage 08/23
• Watch Adjustment 08/23
• A Guide to Complicated Watches 08/23
• The Mechanics of Mechanical Watches and Clocks 08/23
• Watchmaking - George Daniels The best book to get you started in watchmaking. 09/19
• The Watchmakers’ Staking Tool - K&D Co. Ver useful to understand the staking tool and its applications. 12/19
• Bench Practices for Watch Repairers - Fried 12/19
• 2,100 Victorian Monograms (Lettering, Calligraphy, Typography) A great reference for artistic design that is nearly a lost art. 12/19
• 5000 Decorative Monograms for Artists and Craftspeople A great reference for artistic design that is nearly a lost art. 12/19
• Art Alphabets, Monograms, and Lettering (Lettering, Calligraphy, Typography) A great reference for artistic design that is nearly a lost art. 12/19
• The Modern Watchmakers Lathe And How To Use It - Perkins Great book for understanding different lathe tools and how to use them correctly. 12/19

Technical Papers

Note: There are literally hundreds (maybe thousands) of technical papers that I have read in the last 25 years. I will post nearly all of them, but I will only provide my comments on a subset that I found impactful in my research. Please be patient as I locate and upload these papers.

Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence

The technical papers that I have read are organized in this folder.

• Foundation Models seem to be the next wave. I am presently reading their 214 page report and I will provide my findings.

Medical Journals and Papers

The medical papers that I have read are organized in this folder.

Law Journals and Papers

The Law papers that I have read are organized in this folder.

Aspen Institute

The following were read in-depth during the Aspen Institute Executive Leadership Seminar 09/2023. This 7-day seminar was the best experience of my professional career.

Human Nature

• Aristotle, “Nicomachean Ethics”
• Thomas Hobbes, “Leviathan”
• Mencius, “Human Nature”
• Nel Noddings, “Starting at Home”

Liberty and Rights

• Aristotle, “Politics”, Book I, Chapters 1-7
• Jean-Jacques Rousseau, “The Social Contract”
• Declaration of Independence
• Ayn Rand, “What is Capitalism?”

Tensions: Law and Conscience

• Herman Melville, “Billy Budd”

Efficiency and Prosperity

• Plato, “The Republic”, Book II
• Ibn Khaldûn, “The Muqaddimah: An Introduction to History”
• Amartya Sen, “Development as Freedom”
• Simón Bolívar, “The Angostura Address”
• Wisława Szymborska, “Nothing’s a Gift”

Equality and Dignity

• Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, “The Communist Manifesto”
• Arthur M. Okun, “Equality and Efficiency: The Big Tradeoff”
• Simone de Beauvoir, “The Second Sex”
• Martin Luther King, Jr., “Letter from Birmingham Jail”

Individual and Community

• Alexis de Tocqueville, “On Democracy in America”
• Bell Hooks, “Kentucky Is My Fate,” selections
• Richard Rodriguez, “Brown: The Last Discovery of America”
• Walter Van Tilburg Clark, “The Portable Phonograph”

Leadership

• Niccolò Machiavelli, “The Prince”
• Confucius, “Analects”
• Plato, “The Republic”, Book VII
• Karl Popper, “The Paradoxes of Sovereignty”
• Maya Angelou, “Surviving”
• Sophocles, “Antigone”

Values in Balance

• Isaiah Berlin, “Two Concepts of Liberty”
• Ursula Le Guin, “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”
• James O’Toole, “Four Poles of the Good Society”

Casual Reading

Note: I have ~200 books that I have read in this area. I will post the photos, links, and reviews soon. Below is a partial list.

Technical

• The Making of the Atomic Bomb - Rhodes Wonderful book that describes the history that lead to the Manhattan Project, and the personal history of the primary scientists on the project. I have read this book 3 times! 10/22. 02/23
• Blind Man’s Bluff: The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage - Sontag A great story with incredible detail of submarine espionage. This book encouraged me to read the “Theory of Optimal Search” and “Optimal Search for Moving Targets” listed above. I have read this book 2 times. 09/22
• Adventures of a Mathematician This was an interesting perspective after reading this book. This book is both inspiring and sad, and has become one of my favorite autobiographies. 07/23
• The Man in the Arena: Selected Writings of Theodore Roosevelt This book, and in particular this passage is most inspiring; “It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.” This passage has helped me when my work was criticized, and reminded me that often people who criticize cannot do what I can do. 06/23
• Energy This is the same author as this book and as usual he provides great detail. This is a good book, but it took me several chapters to get “into it”. 06/23
• The Psychology of Totalitarianism This is a great analysis of the human condition and how our psychology influences not just our decisions but to a great degree our overall health. This is a must read, even if you have no interest in governments, politics, or mental health. 05/23
• Dark Sun: The Making of the Hydrogen Bomb Another fantastic book from Richard Rhodes, and a follow-on to his prior book with intriguing stories regarding the concerns of the physicists that worked on the hydrogen (super) bomb. 04/23
• Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA An interesting historical account of the CIA comprised of declassified and FOIA documents. 03/23
• The Man from the Future: The Visionary Life of John von Neumann I loved this book! Great bio on Von Neumann. 10/23
• Land of Hope: An Invitation to the Great American Story This is a great, classical, view of American history. This should be taught in more schools.
• Apocalypse Never - M. Shellenberger This is a controversial book with volumes of references and links to data and research. 08/23
• How to Lie with Statistics This book is a must read for everyone, just to understand how statistics are used to manipulate any narrative. The ideas in book are both comical and concerning. 07/23
• Damned Lies and Statistics: Untangling Numbers from the Media, Politicians, and Activists Like the previous book, this one is a must read for everyone, and the ideas are both comical and concerning. In fact, the author references the prior book as a good starting point. The first 3 pages alone should captivate and concern any reader. In many places I checked the math, I even wrote Matlab simulations to verify the results, and alarmingly the author is correct. For example “the number of child gun deaths have doubled since 1950” the original quote, versus the often (mis)quoted by the media “the number of gun child deaths have doubled each year since 1950”. Given the second quote, here is the math: define deaths(i=1950)=1, for i=1951:1995, let deaths(i) = deaths(i-1)x2, then deaths(i=1995)= 3.5 e+13. That is 3.5 trillion child deaths in the year 1995 alone (not cumulative since 1950, read the quote)! Do you see how a mis-quote is not only misleading but simply impossible?! 07/23

Creative, Inspirational, or Informational

• Atomic Habits This is a great book that reaffirms my personal method of achieving goals. Everyone should read this book! 06/23
• Creativity, Inc.: Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration A great story about creativity and how to overcome your personal obstacles. 05/21, 05/23
• Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future This is a fascinating story about a very interesting person! My cousin and several colleagues work for Elon, and based on their personal experience with him, he sounds exactly like a guy I worked for in Northern California for a decade. It seems to me the true risk takers and entrepreneurs are very similar, and the roller coaster of working for them is both exhilarating and exhausting. I have read this book 2 times. 10/21
• The Creature from Jekyll Island: A Second Look at the Federal Reserve A very interesting perspective on the world banking system, with several good references. 01/22
• Failure Is Not an Option: Mission Control from Mercury to Apollo 13 and Beyond - Kranz A fantastic book that describes the origins of mission control in an era when computers were just emerging and communication was a logistical challenge. I have read this book 2 times. 11/22
• Kelly: More Than My Share of It All - Johnson A classic story about the man that set the industry standards in research and development, decades before Elon Musk. For 25 years, and in each company I have worked, I have followed his “14 principles” (in Ch. 16). I have read this book many times. 03/21
• Skunk Works: A Personal Memoir of My Years of Lockheed - Rich A great story of the successes and challenges at SkunkWorks, particularly in a classified environment. I have read this book 2 times. 04/21
• The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci, Vol 1 06/16
• The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci, Vol 2 06/16
• Camping & Wilderness Survival, 2nd: The Ultimate Outdoors Book 01/14
• Secret Empire: Eisenhower, the CIA, and the Hidden Story of America’s Space Espionage 08/16
• More Shop Drawings for Craftsman Furniture: 30 Stickley Designs for Every Room in the Home 05/11
• The Furniture of Gustav Stickley: History, Techniques, and Projects 05/11
• Making Authentic Craftsman Furniture: Instructions and Plans for 62 Projects 05/11
• Shop Drawings for Craftsman Furniture: 27 Stickley Designs for Every Room in the Home 05/11
• Shop Drawings for Craftsman Interiors: Cabinets, Moldings & Built-Ins for Every Room in the Home 05/11
• Shop Drawings for Craftsman Inlays & Hardware: Original Designs by Gustav Stickley 05/11
• The Classic Friedrich Nietzsche Collection I am presently working my way thorough this collection. 07/23
• The Grand Inquisitor - Dostoyevsky This a provides a thought provoking dialogue about human nature and freedom. 07/23
• The Art of War - Sun Tzu This is a rather short read, but provides a narrative of war that has remained consistent for a thousand years. 07/23
• Tribe On Homecoming & Belonging This is a book I wish I had read shortly after my deployments. It is a great read and puts “life at home” in perspective. 11/23
• Ace the Data Science Interview: 201 Real Interview Questions Asked By FAANG, Tech Startups, & Wall Street This book gave me ideas on how to interview candidates for my team. It is a good book, but I have seen other reviews that have taken this book a little too far using it as the only way they are going to get a job in ML. My advice: learn how to be awesome at ML, learn how to communicate your ideas by presenting in school or at conferences, and practice interviews with your friends. Finally, be honest on your resume and candid during the interview. If you master these, I would most likely hire you. 11/23
• Humble Pi This is a humorous book that tells storys of when a math error causes unexpected results. 10/23
• Woke, Inc. - V. Ramaswamy This is a controversial book, but a good read. 09/23
• San Fransicko - M. Shellenberger This is a controversial book with volumes of references and links to data and research. 09/23
• The Great Narrative (The Great Reset) -K Schwab This is a controversial book, with an academic perspective. 08/23

Leadership

• Effective Phrases for Performance Appraisals: A Guide to Successful Evaluations Something I use to help write better performance appraisals. 08/22
• Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win - Willink Very powerful book that encouraged me to change how I act and lead others. Own your decisions, especially your mistakes! Don’t blame anyone else, ever! 06/20
• Turn the Ship Around!: A True Story of Turning Followers into Leaders - Marquet A great book about leadership and how to encourage your team to be leaders. I have read this book 2 times. 06/20
• The Founder’s Mentality: How to Overcome the Predictable Crises of Growth I read this for work. I have read a lot of books like it, e.g., Lean Startup, etc. This book was okay and a rather good reminder of what makes companies great. 01/24

Health

• The Blood Sugar Solution 10-Day Detox Diet - Hyman This book changed my life and my perspective on healthy eating. Chronic illness is gone, I have lost weight and inches around my waste, and best of all, I have better mental clarity to read and retain great books like those on this list! I reference this book in my book “How to do Research, Remotely” 06/22
• Food: What the Heck Should I Cook? - Hyman I purchased this book because of the 10-day detox, and I really like this book. 06/22
• Food: What the Heck Should I Eat? - Hyman I purchased this book because of the 10-day detox, and I really like this book. 06/22

Poetry and Fiction

• Twelve Plays by Shakespeare 11/14
• The Chronicles of Narnia Set 12/14
• Six by Lewis box set: The Abolition of Man, The Great Divorce, Mere Christianity, Miracles, The Problem of Pain, The Screwtape Letters 02/10
• The Wit and Wisdom of Mark Twain 12/14
• Best Works of Mark Twain: Four Volumes 12/14
• Henry David Thoreau : Collected Essays and Poems 03/15
• The Complete C.S. Lewis Signature Classics 08/15
• T.S. Eliot: The Complete Poems and Plays 06/15
• Robert Frost: Collected Poems, Prose, and Plays 01/09
• Whitman: Poetry and Prose 01/09

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