Books

Reading Room

Books and essays worth keeping open.

A compact shelf inspired by Develata's books section: philosophy for clean thinking, research craft for Ph.D. life, and a little mathematics for calibration.

Logic

Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus

Ludwig Wittgenstein · philosophy of language

A terse ladder of propositions about language, logic, and the limits of what can be said.

Read on Project Gutenberg
Method

Novum Organum

Francis Bacon · scientific method

A foundational text on inductive inquiry, observation, and the habits that distort judgment.

Read on Project Gutenberg
Math

Euclid's Elements

Euclid · geometry

Definitions, postulates, and proofs in their most durable form, with a clean online edition.

Read the online edition
Research

You and Your Research

Richard Hamming · research taste

A classic talk on choosing important problems, building taste, and taking research seriously.

Read the essay
Ph.D.

The Ph.D. Grind

Philip J. Guo · graduate school memoir

A short, candid memoir about the emotional and technical texture of a CS Ph.D.

Read the PDF
Writing

The Usefulness of Useless Knowledge

Abraham Flexner · curiosity-driven research

A defense of open-ended inquiry and the long arc between curiosity and practical value.

Read the PDF