American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer

A few that I've read recently and liked: Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely Mostly about cognitive biases. Helps you think better by knowing your shortcomings. Whole Earth Discipline by Stewart Brand About protecting the environment, but with interesting takes on nuclear power, GMOs, cities and slums, etc. Good Calories, Bad Calories by Gary Taubes Made me re-think a lot of things about food. Despite the "pop-science" title, this is a well researched book that looks at countless studies from the past 150 years. American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheier by Martin Sherwin and Kai Bird A biography of Robert Oppenheimer. Fascinating man. The Blank Slate by Steven Pinker A must read. Evolutionary psychology.

American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and Martin Sherwin. - Captivating and well researched. This book not only captures the life of a genius, but also exposes the politics and propaganda of WWII, the Cold War and nuclear proliferation (which were conveniently omitted from my government-set high school curriculum), as well as raising issue of morality and the ethical responsibilities of scientists. Interested in start-ups? They don't come bigger than the Manhattan Project. Most of the guys in Los Alamos at the time were in their 20s. Two books by Alexander Solzhenitsyn, A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich and For The Good of the Cause. - Both are brilliant. Solzenitsyn's language is powerful and descriptive yet simple and concise. Since reading his books, I consciously look at the entropy of other writers. Ambedkar and Buddhism by Sangarakshita - An interesting account of the life of a great man, who's philosophy should be read by anyone who hails from the Indian sub-continent. A Fraction of The Whole by Steve Toltz.…

The key thing is to differentiate between a biography and a hagiography.Oppenheimer is a must read let it be "American Prometheus" or my favorite "http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0195166736/qid=1151026828/s... (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0195166736/qid=1151026828/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/002-5599574-8264820?s=books&v=glance&n=283155)". This guy is awe-inspiring in almost every sense of the word.Despite reading all biographies you still feel a sense of enigma about his personality. Try understanding why the american government revoked his top secret clearance despite being "da man" at Los Alamos. He could walk into any deep technical discussion and lead them through their blocking situations.He can write poetry and amazingly well read about other cultures and still finding time to deliver more than expected results. Thats one heck of a biography to write..