Matt Titchener — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 14:53:46 GMT

I would like to second Jorge Arango choice of “Godel, Escher and Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid”. No joke, this is quite simply one of the best books ever written. The genius not only of the people Hofstadter describes, but of Hofstadter himself is quite breath-taking (I don’t use the word ‘genius’ here lightly either – it really is a masterpiece of the modern age).

In essence this book is about explaining ‘the self’ – all be it in a rather round-about way – no pseudo-science around here. The patterns Hofstadter analyses, the recurrance relations, recursion and feedback loops are not only talked about but *present* in the book (you will notice even the title, Godel, Escher and Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid has the letters EGB throughout – and the design on the front cover is simply outstanding when you recognise what he’s trying to get at).

Each chapter is seperated by a fictional dialogue designed to reinforce the points he has been making.

Anyway… I can’t say too much about this book! Read! Have you mind twiddled, your eyes twoddled (yes, it’s that confusing at times), and your breath (quite literally) taken away.

Julia Debari — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 20:27:44 GMT

I would like to add Peter Morville’s new book, Ambient Findability. Excellent musings on how findability relates to everyday events and things; plus how to apply it to interface design.

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