We all tell ourselves we’ll have a bit more time to read over the holidays, so let’s make it easier to fulfill that promise to ourselves by selecting books that will really grip our attention, and hold it tightly. We’ve selected some books that came out this year that we think you’ll love and learn from. Let’s prepare for a technologically filled future by taking the time to absorb interesting information slowly.

Ultralearning: Master Hard Skills, Outsmart the Competition, and Accelerate Your Career

by Scott H. Young

Whichever position we find ourselves in, as an employee or leader, we’re constantly confronted with how rapidly we need to develop our skills. So how do you learn, and ensure your career is future-proof? Young provides learning strategies anyone can, and should, apply to improve independently. If you have ambitions and need to get ahead of the curve, this book will teach you how to reach those goals.

Human Compatible: Artificial Intelligence and the Problem of Control

by Stuart Russell

How are humans and AI going to coexist? Is it even possible to exploit all of the possibilities, and coexist successfully? Russell tackles these questions and states that we have to start from scratch when it comes to AI. We’re already finding so many uses in this technology, but misuses as well, and the future is uncertain. To alleviate that uncertainty, Russell suggests going back to the drawing board, and avoid creating superhuman AI that would take control, but instead designing machines that follow our pursuits, and are selfless by nature. This book will certainly entice anyone interested in AI.

Artificial Intelligence: A Guide for Thinking Humans

by Melanie Mitchell

Another book about AI, but with a different perspective. Mitchell seeks to answer some pressing questions about the abilities of AI, and describes what is in store for us. Yet next to that, she emphasizes the human creators behind them, and the goals they set out to achieve. If you’re looking for an interesting read that discusses the history of AI, its current possibilities and limitations, and provides nuance to the fears that AI currently inspires, this is the book for you.

Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men

by Caroline Criado-Pérez

There’s been a lot of talk in both tech and manufacturing industries about the representation of women and systemic problems in our society that need to be tackled. But where are the data proving this? This book has them all, or rather, the lack thereof. Criado-Pérez tells us where there are crucial gaps in our data, in our knowledge, that show how women’s needs are not always being considered in many aspects of our work. For example in testing: crash test dummies are based on the average man, medicine trials (even for medication that is primarily given to women) are often tested exclusively on men. This book is a true eye-opener, and shows how men and women alike need to team up and work together towards an equal society.

Have you read any of these books, or do you have any other essentials on your reading list for the holidays?

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