Society

This book has fascinated me. When I first held it in my hands I thought: “Oh it’s too big” but I think I read it in 4 days or maybe less. I just couldn’t stop reading. Harari explains the history of our species step by step in such an interesting way. It helped me to understand a lot of things in society especially the part when he speaks about the language and why it evolved.

In his second book, Harari concentrates on the past and the future of the human race. He specifically emphasizes new inventions in Biotechnology and Information technology which will shape our future. The question is if we will end up as some “Homo Deus” – a godlike creature who has superpowers and never die. The explained ideas are very interesting, but it also scared me a little bit because this isn’t something I wish to happen.

In his third book, Harari talks about risks and chances for humanity in the 21st century. He emphasizes different aspects, like politics, religion, and technology. He always presents positive scenarios but also negative scenarios. I found this book truly inspiring!

This is one of the best books I have ever read. Hans Rosling spent his entire life working in global health and has also delivered a TED talk. In the book, he explains why most people think that the world is a far worse place than it really is. You will learn so much about education, health, climate change, and politics.

The question of whether Humans are a kind of evil is one of the most important questions and has been answered by many people at different times with different outcomes. Two very famous people are Hobbes and Rousseau. Meanwhile, Hobbes writes in “Leviathan” that Humankind is naturally evil and needs civilization in order to become kind Rousseau argues the opposite in “Du contrat social”. He argues that we are kind naturally and it’s the civilization that has corrupted us. In the book, Bregman explains a lot of interesting stories indicating that we are actually good and discredits a lot of stories that indicate that we are bad (like the Lord of the Flies or the Experiment).

This book is mind-blowing and will totally change your perspective on probabilities. In the book, Taleb writes about “Black Swans” – unpredictable events and that they are much more likely to happen than we expect them. He explains the logic behind our false assumptions. This book gave me so many new perspectives and ideas.

In this book, Bill Gates presents several problems and solutions that we are facing concerning climate change. The ideas are very interesting especially because Bill Gates knows a lot about this topic because his foundation donates a lot of money for climate change projects and he has worked with the greatest people in this field.

In this book, Melinda Gates speaks about her work at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, especially her projects for women. She talks about the problems that women face nowadays. In the book, she tells the stories of several women and how they have been helped through contraception, paid work, equal rights, etc.

A book on colonialism and exploitation of an entire continent. The book talks about the Spanish and Portuguese invasion and the control over Latin America by the USA. It talks about almost all countries - from the North of Mexico to the South of Argentina and Chile. Very interesting

The Khyber Pass is a mountain pass between what is today Afghanistan and Pakistan. It has always been a gate that linked Central Asia and Persia with the Indian subcontinent. Numerous civilizations have passed through the pass, starting from the Greeks, Alexander the Great, Persians, Mongols, Genghis Khan, the British, etc. Numerous religions, like Islam and Buddhism, have spread through the Pass, and numerous Empires, like the Moghul Empire, were built around it. The book traces the history of this very interesting piece of land. I really loved it!

A short history through time is a book on physics and philosophy and how everything came into being starting from the big bang (or whatever was there before) until today. I really like how it is written, that even someone like me who doesn’t know much about physics understood almost everything.

This book talks about different strategies to solve conflict without violence. I really liked it. It also gives different examples of when and how this method was used or could be used in a fictive conflict. 

This is one of the most insightful books I have ever read. It explains morality and conflict so well and how different people have different values and measurements for what is morally correct and not. It also explains that one group is not right over another as most of us think. I wish everyone in the world would read this book!

In this book, the authors explain why many countries are going back to dictatorships after having lived a period of democracy. It is explained in a very good way and gives lots of examples of countries that are facing this issue.

In this book, Edward Said explains what the “Orient” is and how it is a term created by Western people to make people from these areas more “exotic”. Very interesting in my opinion and more people should read these kinds of books.

This book is a collection of 16 essays about India written by Nobel Prize winner Amartya Sen. The subjects of the essays are very different from Gender, Inequalities, Religion, or Calendars. I got so much more information about the country and its history.

In this book, a story of a man who dies is told. He meets 5 different people in heaven, that had to do something with his life. Some of them he knew, others he didn’t. It is so beautiful and gives you a totally different perspective on life and death.

In this 5000-year-old book from China San Tzu explains war tactics. Although it can be used mostly for armed conflict some of the insights are true for each kind of conflict. That was what I liked about the book.

Die Autorin schreibt in sehr verständlicher Weise über das wichtige Thema des Rassimus. Das Buch ist extrem strukturiert und er gibt sehr viele Zusatzmaterialien auf der Website des Buches, wie z.B. Dokumentarfilme etc. Außerdem gibt es im Buch interaktive Fragen, die man sich während des Lesens stellen kann.

In diesem Buch beschreibt Frank Thelen die 10x Mindset Methode und wie man sie im Business und Leben anwenden kann. Er erklärt auch, welche Fortschritte wir mit ihrer Hilfe im 21. Jahrhundert erwarten können in den Bereichen Transport, Lebensmittel, KI, Biotechnologie usw. Sehr spannend.

In diesem Buch wird über das Gehirn geschrieben und zu wie viel es eigentlich fähig ist – auch im Alter noch. Hüther schreibt über Erziehung und Lernen und beseitigt sehr viele Mythen, die zu diesem Thema bestehen.

Dr. de Liz ist Gynäkologin und teilt in diesem Buch ihr Wissen über den weiblichen Körper. Sie schreibt über alle möglichen Themen (Periode, Sex, Verhütung, Hormone Krankheiten, Schwangerschaft) und klärt Mythen auf. Ich fand es wirklich sehr interessant und habe viel neues gelernt.

Dieses Buch hat mir sehr gut gefallen. Es geht um die „Zero Waste“ Philosophie, mit der  manche Menschen auf der Welt wirklich sehr wenig Müll produzieren. Melanie Berger gibt praktische Tipps dies im eigenen Leben anzuwenden – bezogen auf die Kategorien Essen, Kleidung, Kosmetik etc.