From Microorganisms to Megacities
by Vaclav Smil
Recommended by Bill Gates
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Recommended by 2 sources and appears in Most Recommended Books, Finance, and Science.
A systematic investigation of growth in nature and society, from tiny organisms to the trajectories of empires and civilizations.Growth has been both an unspoken and an explicit aim of our individual and collective striving. It governs the lives of microorganisms and galaxies; it shapes the capabilities of our extraordinarily large brains and the f...
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Recommended by 2 sources and appears in Most Recommended Books, Finance, and Science.
People and public figures who have recommended this book.
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Bill Gates
Co-founder of Microsoft; co-chair of the Gates Foundation
Recommended this book
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Consider The Undoing Project by Michael Lewis. Recommended by 18 sources.
“Michael Lewis chronicles the friendship and intellectual partnership of Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky, who championed the idea that cognitive biases shape our choices. The narrative reads like a buddy story, weaving their discoveries into personal anecdotes and the drama of their collaboration. You'll grasp key ideas—loss aversion, framing—through their story, but the book focuses on biography, not application. Helpful for understanding behavioral economics' origins; less useful if you want actionable advice. The emotional arc of their relationship can overshadow the science.”
Each recommendation is collected from a public source — interviews, articles, or curated lists — and linked to its original URL. Books with many verifiable recommendations from respected people rank higher.