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Here is where you find my reading- and recommendation lists!

Recommendation Lists:

  • Favorite Books of 2018
  • Favorite Books of 2017
  • Favorite Books of 2016

Reading Lists:

  • Reading List 2019
  • Reading List 2018
  • Reading List 2017
  • Reading List 2016

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To illlustrate the challenge we are facing with containing Super intelligence, ones it’s created, Tengmark used a very effective (and quite funny) analogy: ——- Imagine you, as an adult, are playing with a bunch of 5 year olds. You are the monster and they try to keep you imprisoned. Since it’s a game, you play along when they cover you with pillows and sloppily put tape all over your body. Compared to them, you are super intelligent. How hard would it be for you to force your way out or trick them into releasing you. The same goes for AI Super Intelligence—and to it we are the 5 year olds. ——— Tengmark urges us to plan ahead so that we can be prepared. ——— 📝 We are probably alone in our universe, and we could easily be wiped out if we don’t expand out to other planets. What’s the point if no one is here to observe the cosmic drama? ——— 📝 A computer beating Lee Sedol in Alpha Go is important. It shows that already now AI can be better strategists than humans. This happened 10 years earlier than experts predicted (the game has almost infinitely more possible moves than chess.) Where else are we wrong? ——— ⭐️ TAKEAWAY: One of the reason I take AI so seriously is because I see how AI, with increasing frequency, is becoming a part of daily life. The latest example was yesterday, when I was met with a company that used AI to clean up scanned photo data by removing all shadow information (I work in video games). Of course this is all “narrow” AI, but things are moving forward quickly. Pay attention. ——- ⚖️ VERDICT: If you read other broad books on AI, like Super Intelligence (or Homo Deus for that matter.) you will already know about most of the issues raised by Temark. But if you haven’t, then what are you waiting for?! Get informed about what could be the most important discussion of our time. Both in scope and impact ——- 3/5 ——- Photo credit: @penguinpressart ——- ⁉️ What are you reading right now?
Some reading projects are more ambitious than others. On my journey to reading a biography of every American president the time has come for Nixon (3 of 45). ——- This is an excellent biography of a powerful, yet insecure and anxious man, in period of great turmoil historical. Corruption and paranoia; this dense biography really has it all. ——- Todays notes highlights attitudes have changed since the Nixon days (or have they?! 😉) ——— 📝 Abortion: Abortion encourage permissiveness, Nixon thought, but, “there are times when abortions are necessary...” “..you know, between a black and a white.” he told Colson. “Or rape.” Colson said. “Or rape..”, Nixon said, “..you know what I mean.” ——- 📝 Nixon had theories of black inferiority and black prospects: “Most of them are basically out of the threes. I have the greatest affection for them but I know they won’t make it for next 500 years.” ———- 📝 Stress and Self medication: “In the evening, if I have 2-3 drinks I feel good. Do you think that should be knocked off or reduced?” Nixon said to his doctor. Alcohol is a great stress reducer. I have tried it myself haha 😂 ———- 📝 “You know one of the reasons fashion has made women look so terrible is that the god damn designers hate women.” Nixon theorized, “Though now they are trying to get some more sexy things going again.” “Hot pants.” Erlichman added. “Jesus Christ.” Said Nixon. ———- ⭐️ TAKEAWAY: I can see where the American publics distrust of government comes from. What a mess this period was! Watergate, the Pentagon papers and projects Moongoose 🤦‍♂️ —— My next president will probably be Kennedy or Lincoln. ——— Do you have any ambition reading projects? ——— 4/5
“Guests, like fish, begin to smell after three days.” - Benjamin Franklin ————- At the moment, with a lovely little baby at home, it’s easier to check off smaller items on the bucket list than big ones. Trying surstromming was one of the smaller items! ----------------------- The Lab Report - 011 - “Surströmming” ----------------------- 🔸WHAT? Fermented herring, or ‘surströmming’ in Swedish, is best known for its horrible smell. It has the quality of hangover fart. It’s distinct, inescapable and has a warm texture to it. Check out #surströmming , #surstromming or #surstömmingchallenge to get an idea of what you are up against. ———- 🔹WHY? It’s been a part of the northern Swedish cuisine since the 16th century. As a Swede I should probably try and see what’s up?! ———— 🔸HOW? It’s traditionally eaten on a hard bread with chopped onions, potatoes and sour cream. As for drinks; Beer and snaps! ———— 🔹WHEN? Since the 1940:s the premiere for surstömming has been on the third Thursday I August. ———- 🔸FUN FACT: According to a Japanese study, a newly opened can of surströmming has one of the most putrid food smells in the world. ------------------------- ⚖️ VERDICT: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ With the associated side dishes the herring isn’t too bad (don’t get me wrong, the smell is terrible but you get used to it after a while.) and the liquor and drinking songs that goes with it helps making it all worthwhile. Though a crayfish party (another Swedish tradition) is way tastier a surströmming dinner might be more memorable! Skål! 🍻 ------------------------ ⁉️ What are you checking off you bucket list this year? ——— Check out #poorbjornsexperiments for more Lab Reports!
“Every single vote in a democracy is equal to every other, but every single opinion is not...” —— This might be the most alarming book I’ve read since #ryanholiday s Trust Me I’m Lying. ——- It’s about the relationship between the citizen and the expert in a democracy, why it’s falling apart and what we can do about it. ——- Some of the suggested culprits in the drama are unexpected. Nicols points at increased collage attendance and the information flood on the internet as two factors. It makes us fool ourselves that we know more than we actually do: —- “Knowing things is not the same as understanding them. Comprehension is not the same thing as analysis.” —— It talkes about: students as customers, ‘safe zones’, conspiracy theorists, the influence of the internet, confirmation bias and entitlement. —— 📝 We all overestimate ourself but the less competent do it more than the rest of us! —— 📝 Experts can be wrong. The point is that they are less likely to be wrong than non-experts. —— 📝 Even if a dentist might do a sloppy job pulling out a teeth, he or she is still better than you! ——- 📝 “No knowledge is complete, and experts realize this better than anyone. But education, training, practice, experience, and acknowledgment by others in the same field should provide us with at least a rough guide to dividing experts from the rest of society.” ——- 📝 Jonathan Haidt: “Almost everyone finds a way to stick to their values and reject the evidence.” —— 📝 “When feelings matter more than rationality or facts, education is a doomed” Higher education is not the place for you if you can’t take having your views challenged. ——- 📝 Be less cynical about the news. Maybe reporters know more than you? Not everyone is out to fool you. (But vary your sources.) —— 💥 ACTION: I’m slowly going to reintroduce news in my life. After 4 years without them. I think it’s time to let some information in and become a more informed citizen. —— ⭐️ TAKEAWAY: This book made me course correct and pay more attention to the quality and sources of the information I’m consuming. ——- It’s one of the most important books I’ve read this year. A humbling reading experience. —— 4/5
Are you a slow reader? What are you going to do about it? ———- I did a reading speed test when I started reading seriously back in 2015 and I got an abysmal result. Four years and hundreds of books later I hoped that my reading speed had improved. The had not. I’m still well below average with a reading speed of ~165 words per minute. The adult average being 200-300. ———- My biggest issue is likely subvocalization; the habit of speaking the words in I read in my head. It limits the reading pace to the speed of speech. Which is quite slow. Minimizing subvocalization is going to be my focus for the coming months. Even if it leads to diminished comprehension in the short term. ———- Here a a few tips on how to improve your reading speed: ———— 🤫 Silence the inner voice! Subvocalization is the most common bad habit among readers. You slow yourself down to the speed of speech at 150-200 words per minute. ———- 📖 Do not reread words on the page. Most readers spend significant time re-reading the same passages (I know I do..). This is a bad habit and crushes momentum. If there is something you absolutely don’t understand then you can go back and review it later. ———- 📝 Build vocabulary. Vocabulary both improves speed and comphrehension. Either you slow down because you encounter an unknown word you have to look up, or you skip it and jeopardize understanding. A Lose-Lose situation. ———— ☝🏻Use a tracker and pacer. Use a pen or your finger to follow the line you are reading. It prevents your eyes from getting lost on the page and keeps you from backtracking. ————- ⏰ 📖 Google ‘reading speed test’ to measure your speed and share the results!
After my fast I got sick with the flue. This was by the time I finished the Death of Expertise and I wanted to fill my time with something short, sweet and different before continuing through my To-Read-Pile. ———- Southeast Asia: A Very Short Introduction is delivers on its name. It’s a concise history of the cultural hotpot of countries that we all call Southeast Asia. ———- The books takes us from the time of kingdoms, to the era of colonization, onward to today’s nation states. ——— Nations: * Brunei 🇧🇳 * Burma 🇲🇲 * Cambodia 🇰🇭 * Timor-Leste 🇹🇱 * Indonesia 🇮🇩 * Laos 🇱🇦 * Malaysia 🇲🇾 * the Philippines 🇵🇭 * Singapore 🇸🇬 *Thailand 🇹🇭 * Vietnam 🇻🇳 ——— Religions: * Buddhism * Islam * Christianity -Confucianism ———- 💥 ACTION: Read up on the Thmer Rouge If Cambodia. Any book recommendations? ———- I don’t think you could do a better job at condensing the history of an area as vast and dynamic as Southeast Asia. It’s bigger than Europe for Europe for one. The problem is that the text can get very dense with names, year and places. But just chill, and you’ll come out of this one with a better understanding of the world. ———- ⁉️ What Southeast Asian countries have your visited? ———- Now I want to go travelling! 😊 ———- 4/5
“What the eyes are for the outer world, fasts are for the inner.” - Mahatma Gandhi ----------------------- The Lab Report - 010 - “Fasting" ----------------------- My rules where these: One week of intermittent fasting (18:6), as a warm-up, then a 36 hour fast. During fast I only drank water and tea. ----------------------- Observations (intermittent fasting) ——- 🔸A perk is that fasting becomes a daily expression and practice of self control and awareness. It’s very easy pick up something to eat without it being a conscious decision. ——- 🔸Saturday: noticing I’m fantasizing about food at 10.25 am. Woke up at 7:00 am. —— 🔸I have bad breath 😷 even after brushing between 10 am and lunch time. ——- 🔸 I have noticeably less energy than usual from 11 am and onward. ----------------------- Observations (36 hour fast) ——— 🔹Fasting is a huge time saver. No eating frees up time. ——— 🔹Glad I didn’t have any addictions during the experiment. It would have made it much harder. I did feel any cravings at all. ——— 🔹Got sick directly after ending my fast (the flue). ——— 🔹Keeping yourself busy was key. I spend the evening cooking that day. ——— 🔹Having a warm up week was probably a good choice. ------------------------- ⭐️ TAKEAWAY: My biggest takeaway is just the fact that I managed to go without food for 36 hours. Just like my experiment with not drinking for a day it sounded like a true challenge but ended up being fairly managedble. My self image has been altered. ———- ⚖️ VERDICT: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Try a 36 hours fast! Especially if you think it would be impossible for you to pull it of. It’s interesting to surprise oneself ones in a while. As for intermittent fasting, I don’t think it’s very noteworthy unless you’re intrigued by health benefits its proponents rave about. 😊. ------------------------- ⁉️ What are you experimenting with these days? ----------------------- Check our my Highlight for Stories from the fasting week. ------------------------- Check out #poorbjornsexperiments for more Lab Reports!
⁉️ Did you know? —— 📊 In 2014, Americans where polled about if the US should engage in military intervention in Ukraine in the wake of the Russian invasion (thereby opposing Russia, another nuclear nation, with the possibly of triggering world war lll?!). Of the respondents, only 1 in 6 could identify Ukraine on the map. It’s easy to fail a map test, but: ——— 🇺🇦 “..Respondents actually showed enthusiasm for military intervention in Ukraine in direct proportion to their lack of knowledge about Ukraine. Put another way, people who thought Ukraine was located in Latin America or Australia were the most enthusiastic about the use of US military force.” - The Death of Expertise. ——— 🤥 Being ignorant about a subject didn’t stop people from expressing fairly pointed views on the matter and then we have the Dunning-Kruger effect. ——— 🧠 The Dunning-Kruger effect, a cognitive bias, is the phenomenon that the dumber you are, the more confident you that you’re not actually dumb. We all overestimate ourself but the less competent do it more than the rest of us! ——- The Death of Expertise Review coming soon! ——— What steps did you take to become more well-informed this week?

Recent Posts

  • Thoughts on: ‘Richard Nixon: A Life’ John A. Farrell 10 October, 2019
  • Thoughts on: ‘Southeast Asia: A Very Short Introduction’ 27 September, 2019
  • Fasting: A 36 Hour Experiment 26 September, 2019
  • Book Notes on Aging and Dying 18 September, 2019
  • Thoughts on: Inner Engineering by Sadhguru 18 September, 2019

Pages

  • 5 Outstanding Books this Year
  • A Guide to Quality Reading – Life is Too Short for Bad Books!
  • Favorite Books of 2016
  • Lab Reports – Life is an Experiment
  • Reading List 2016
  • Reading List 2017
  • Reading List 2018
  • Reading List 2019
  • Reading Lists
  • Top 10 Books of 2017
  • Reviews
  • Blog posts
  • Top 10 Books of 2017
  • Reading Lists
  • Reading List 2018
  • 5 Outstanding Books this Year
  • Lab Reports – Life is an Experiment
  • Reading List 2019
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