Back in the late 1980’s, some friends and I developed a variant of the game hide-and-go-seek with inspiration from the Alien and Aliens movies. We were in high school at the time (and yes, obviously, we were and are nerds) and played the game for several years before going off to college. I am documenting the rules and their motivation here, as best as I can remember, for the benefit of anyone else who might want to play. Because, frankly, it is an awesome freaking game. Seriously, you should play it if you can. But see the disclaimers below.
Wonderfully stimulating and entertaining. Taleb brings a unique perspective on the problems of randomness and our exposure to the unexpected. He also doesn’t pull his punches. A great read.
Another book on design, but this one emphasizes the actual practice of design and how to make it better. The first two-thirds or so is just excellent. Brooks’s contention is that the best designs always come from either a single designer or (at most) two designers working very closely together. The reason is that the quality most important to a great design is conceptual integrity, an attribute that “design by committee” can never achieve. But design reviews are best done by multitudes, bringing many different perspectives to bear.
About as structured as you might expect from the title, but enjoyable nonetheless. Mister Nelson has lead a complicated and interesting life. I don’t think I could have survived living it, but reading about it is great fun.
This book completes my Donald Norman trifecta. Reading all three (including The Design of Everyday Things and Emotional Design) at once provided an interesting perspective on the evolution of Norman’s thinking. I actually think this was his best book, despite several Amazon reviews that suggested it was his worst. Here he steps back from individual objects and looks at whole systems (including service systems like hotels and airports). He also considers the nature of complexity itself, where it comes from, and how we can cope with it. Good read.
Full disclosure: my wife Beth is the co-author of this fantasy- and horror-themed collection of short stories. If you like dark fantasy, I think you will enjoy these. Note they are not for the faint of heart! For people with e-readers other than Kindle you can use this link.
Beth has started her own publishing company, Luminous Creatures Press, together with her writing partner Emily June Street. They are going to be publishing fantasy-themed story collections and novels.
My wife Beth is now teaching Pilates at Flow Studio in Fairfax, CA. If you are in Northern CA and interested in taking or trying Pilates, check them out. Her teaching style is low-pressure and fun.
