Incerto
78% recommend22% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Framework for thinking about risk, probability, tail events and the limits of knowledge, with practical lessons for investing, startups and life. Rewards rereading; suits readers who want to question assumptions.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
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Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
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…Tao Te Ching - The Gateless Gate (Koun Yamada translation/editing) - The Baroque Cycle (Quicksilver, The Confusion, The System of the World) by Neal Stephenson - The Invisibles by Grant Morrison - Incerto (Fooled by Randomness, The Black Swan, Antifragile, The Bed of Procrustes) by Nassim Nicholas Taleb - Iron John by Robert Bly - Catch 22 by Joseph Heller - The Character of Physical Law by Richard…
on “Ask HN: What books fundamentally changed the way you think about the world?” ↗1. Incerto by Nassim Taleb This is the first book that gave me a thorough insight into philosophy. Completely changed my worldview. I reread chapters from it everyday. It has become my bible. The Incerto strictly…
on “Ask HN: Life Changing Books?” ↗The only 2 (set of) books I ALWAYS recommend: Incerto by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, and Zero to One by Peter Thiel. Masterful pieces of work. Especially the 2 books in the Incerto book set: The Black Swan and Antifragile.
on “Ask HN: Books that teach you to think” ↗Read “Incerto” by Nassim Nicholas Taleb.
on “Ask HN: How do you critically evaluate scientific papers?” ↗The Incerto by Nassim Nicholas Taleb.
on “Ask HN: What nonfiction books do you keep rereading?” ↗So, I really felt like more people should be reading Nassim Taleb's Incerto series of books. A lot of the issues that fall out of AI he dealt with in his books like ten years ago. He gives one the best pieces of advice I've ever heard: if you are going to do something for a…
on “The Only Moat Left Is Money” ↗Taleb's Technical Incerto. Imminently readable and accessible probability theory. His postulates concerning fat tail vs normal distributions can readily be translated into quick and dirty computer simulations. Thereby demonstrating…
on “Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?” ↗…this book changed the way I look at trees. I'll be driving some days and out of nowhere notice a tree and appreciate it. This book inspired me to consider that there is an objective meaning to life. The Incerto Series by Nassim Nicholas Taleb: where to start...I started reading this series over a decade ago and I still think about it weekly. It can be very dense to get through as I took a lot of notes. But I…
on “Ask HN: Which books you have read till now that were worth investing time in?” ↗Everything from Nassim Taleb, basically "the incerto", his four books are basically one book (https://www.amazon.com/Incerto-Fooled-Randomness-Procrustes-...)
on “Ask HN: Best books you read in the past decade?” ↗The entire Incerto book series by Taleb (which includes Fooled by Randomness and The Black Swan) are awesome and they are talking about big catastrophic events like the current one. This pandemic is a classic Black Swan…
on “Ask HN: Book recommendations for understanding financial systems?” ↗Really excellent list. Might add that Nassim Taleb's Incerto series (while an effort at times) offers insights that dovetail nicely with the startup journey.
on “Start-up Book List” ↗…programmer, and I've often found that improving my ability to write clearly translates directly to programming well: On Writing Well is the best – and warmest – book I've read on writing nonfiction. 3. Incerto, NN Taleb This series forced me to revisit several assumptions. Something that still resonates is valuing anything – particularly books – that has aged well across several years, because it's clearly…
on “Ask HN: Best books you read in the past decade?” ↗…Taleb’s books than I ever did in those years in college. So if you want to make sense of the economy, start with learning how much of it doesn’t make sense. Start with Nassim Taleb’s books (any book of The Incerto will suffice).
on “Ask HN: What are you reading to make sense of the economy?” ↗…allergic reaction to Taleb. They find him pompous, insufferable, unscientific, unoriginal and the rest. To each his own but it would behoove anyone who generally cares about how the world works to give the Incerto a read with an open mind. BTW he is hugely bullish on the value of startups to both individuals and society (Anti-Fragile and Skin In the Game).
on “The World in 2036: Nassim Taleb looks at what will break, and what won't (2010)” ↗The book that fully crystalized this for me were the books by Nassim Taleb (his Incerto series). These books completely and utterly changed my life. If you read the descriptions it may not seem directly related to what I'm talking about but he gives you a complete and fully articulated…
on “Everything I know about elite America I learned from Fresh Prince and West Wing” ↗