Things a Computer Scientist Rarely Talks About
by Donald Knuth · first published 2001
43% recommend57% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Lectures from Knuth covering his faith, hobbies and side projects, and how he applies mathematical ideas like Monte Carlo sampling to personal questions; suits readers curious about Knuth beyond his programming work.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
In the fall of 1999, computer scientist Donald E. Knuth was invited to give six public lectures at MIT on the general subject of relations between faith and science. The lectures were broadcast live on the Internet and watched regularly by tens of thousands of people around the world, and they have remained popular many months after the event. This book contains transcripts of those lectures, edited and annotated by the author. After an introductory first lecture, the second one focusses on the interaction of randomization and religion, since randomization has become a key area of scientific i
Affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
Related books
2015–20263:16
Donald Knuth
Recommended by 1 · mentioned by 71 recommend · 7 mention1 recommend · 71 recommend
2010–2026The Call of the Wild
Jack London
Recommended by 14 · mentioned by 3814 recommend · 38 mention14 recommend · 3814 recommend
2009–2026Surreal numbers
Donald Knuth
Recommended by 27 · mentioned by 4127 recommend · 41 mention27 recommend · 4127 recommend
2008–2026The Four Agreements
Don Miguel Ruiz
Recommended by 34 · mentioned by 4434 recommend · 44 mention34 recommend · 4434 recommend
2009–2026The Sovereign Individual
James Dale Davidson, William Rees-Mogg
Recommended by 23 · mentioned by 4923 recommend · 49 mention23 recommend · 4923 recommend
2010–2026Nonviolent Communication
Marshall B. Rosenberg, Deepak Chopra, Magiarí Díaz Díaz, Alan Rafael Seid Llamas
Recommended by 99 · mentioned by 14099 recommend · 140 mention99 recommend · 14099 recommend
2007–2026Coders at Work
Peter Seibel
Recommended by 126 · mentioned by 233126 recommend · 233 mention126 recommend · 233126 recommend
2015–2026Automate the Boring Stuff with Python
Al Sweigart
Recommended by 75 · mentioned by 8175 recommend · 81 mention75 recommend · 8175 recommend
…and Dennet. The Society of Mind, Minsky. Martin Gardner. http://www.amazon.com/Martin-Gardner/e/B000AP8X8G/ref=sr_ntt... Donald Knuth. http://www.amazon.com/Martin-Gardner/e/B000AP8X8G/ref=sr_ntt... Things a Computer Scientist Rarely Talks About, Knuth. e: The Story of a Number, Maor. The Pythagorean Theorem: a 4000-year history, Maor. Flatland, Abbot. Snowcrash, Stevenson. Johnny Mnemonic, Gibson.
on “Ask HN: What recreational books related to programming can you recommend?” ↗Two follow ups that would appeal to the HN crowd: Things a Computer Scientist Rarely Talks About [1] and 3:16 Bible Texts Illuminated [2], both by Donald Knuth. [1] https://cs.stanford.edu/~uno/things.html [2] https://cs.stanford.edu/~uno/316.html
on “Ask HN: Which non-technology book has influenced you the most and why?” ↗Knuth is a unique character. I read the more personal of his books last year, "Things a Computer Scientist Rarely Talks About". It's essentially a transcript of several open lectures he gave at Stanford on topics ranging from his hobbies and side-projects to his thoughts on the Bible and his Christian faith. I've been a staunch…
on “Donald Knuth’s 80th birthday will be celebrated by two events in Piteå, Sweden” ↗Regardless of your persuasion "Things a Computer Scientist Rarely Talks About" by Knuth is well worth a read. http://www.amazon.com/Things-Computer-Scientist-Language-Inf...
on “First Blog Post: Abstractions are Generous” ↗If you haven't read them, you would probably also like his 3:16 Bible Texts Illuminated and Things a Computer Scientist Rarely Talks About.
on “Knuth: Fantasia Apocalyptica” ↗The book where he discusses these is also wonderful: "Things a computer scientist rarely talks about". https://www.amazon.com/Things-Computer-Scientist-Rarely-Lect...
on “The Yoda of Silicon Valley” ↗Perhaps even more interesting is Knuth’s Things a Computer Scientist Rarely Talks About which goes into a bit more of his religious life and how he applies some mathematical techniques (particularly Monte Carlo–style random selection). The genesis of 3:16 (so to speak) is discussed as well.…
…avoid them. Also gave me some good language for working with others. - Coders at Work - hearing how some very experienced people thought about software was perspective altering for me in a good way. - Things a Computer Scientist Rarely Talks about - Knuth has a depth to him and his thinking that freed me to have depth in my own thinking. While not strictly a software engineering book, the integration of all areas of life was and is inspiring.
on “Ask HN: Name 3-5 books that had the most impact on your career and knowledge?” ↗"Things a Computer Scientist Rarely Talks About"? Highly recommended. Also, "3:16". These are about the operating system of the soul.
…a radioactive material; too much of it all together can go boom. But Prof Knuth's lesson for me was that I didn't have to leave my mind at the door outside when entering a church. I found his book, "Things a Computer Scientist Rarely Talks About", a series of talks that he gave at an MIT Symposium. And I don't, much. Talk about these things. And there's lots I don't like about church and the role we seem to press upon it. But compassion and…
on “Donald Knuth’s Christmas Lecture (2022)” ↗Speaking about Knuth audiofiles/podcasts, I recently created a RSS feed for the Knuth's "Things a Computer Scientist Rarely Talks About" audio files (https://j11g.com/knuth.xml). This way you can listen to it in your favorite podcast player. For example, I added the feed to Overcast: https://overcast.fm/p1120847-YM0aS7
on “Donald Knuth: Algorithms, Complexity, Life, and the Art of Programming [video]” ↗Speaking about Knuth audiofiles, I recently created a RSS feed for the Knuth's "Things a Computer Scientist Rarely Talks About" audio files (https://j11g.com/knuth.xml). This way you can listen to it in your favorite podcast player. For example, I added the feed to Overcast: https://overcast.fm/p1120847-YM0aS7
on “Donald E. Knuth: An Oral History (2018) [video]” ↗Two thoughts: 1. Great post. I hope Steve Yegge continues down this path (i.e. parts 2..n). I wonder if he's ever read Donald Knuth's "Things a Computer Scientist Rarely Talks About." 2. I had a betta once. It lived in a 20-gallon tank with two goldfish. The tank was on top of a bookcase by a window, so they had plenty of interesting trees and birds to watch (not to mention the…
on “A programmer's view of the Universe, part 1: The fish” ↗> It never fails to amaze me how otherwise very intelligent > and thoughtful people remain stuck believing in God. Hey! I'm a theist. Most of the time. I keep meaning to read Donald Knuth's "Things a Computer Scientist Rarely Talks About." Has anyone here read/listened to it? http://www-cs-faculty.stanford.edu/~uno/things.html "In the fall of 1999, computer scientist Donald E. Knuth was invited to give six public lectures at MIT on the…
on “Larry Wall on religion and Perl culture (1999)” ↗3:16 is a beautiful book, and the idea underlying it is a very nice one. Knuth also has a book called "Things a computer scientist rarely talks about", derived from a set of lectures he gave at MIT, which is mostly about the 3:16 project. I don't think it was exactly "a group of calligraphers under the leadership of Hermann Zapf". I think Knuth worked…
on “Dan McCracken died, peacefully in his sleep” ↗