The Book Report

Grammar of the Film Language by Daniel Arijon is an evergreen text for learning the technical ins and outs of what directors, cinematographers, and editors go through to get their ideas on screen. I read this book hoping to learn the technical language for composing scenes in motion pictures. I thought it would help, considering many image and video-generating AIs have better outputs when the user describes the scene rather than explaining it. I've always looked at pictures from the point of ...

I just finished reading "Squares and Sharps, Suckers and Sharks: The Science, Psychology & Philosophy of Gambling" by Joseph Buchdahl, a well-researched book that tackles probabilities, uncertainties, and the world of gambling from all angles. The author is meticulous with his research, and the simple truth he reveals is one that many gamblers, traders, and investors have tried to deny at least once: no one beats the money game. As I read through the book, I couldn't help but think of Warren ...

Hyperion, a sci-fi novel by Dan Simmons published in the 90s, offers a captivating vision of humanity's distant future and its complex relationship with a mysterious AI deity on the planet Hyperion. As the AI buzzword dominates the tech industry, it's intriguing to see how Simmons explored similar themes decades ago. Large Language Models (LLMs) have recently showcased their potential and limitations, sparking media speculation about the societal implications of these chatbots. Some bold pred...

In the Blink of an Eye: A Perspective on Film Editing (second edition) by Walter Murch is an essential read for anyone in media—and that includes anyone with a social media account. In his seminal work, Murch explores the fundamentals of film editing, offering insights into why motion pictures captivate us. He also touches on film in the digital age, providing an interesting commentary, especially considering this book was published in the 90s right when Hollywood was moving to the digital eq...

Systematics: The Systems Bible by John Gall (Third Edition) is a must-read for those who want to live in this silicone 21st century. The writer reframes our day-to-day lives into systems - mechanical, electrical, and bureaucratic: all of them follow axioms of systematics. I'll give you an example for today's digital currencies or in the book he calls 'token system':An even more challenging example is the TOKEN SYSTEM, with which mankind has been having trouble ever since the Phoenicians inven...

The Logic of Sports Betting by Ed Miller and Mathew Davidow is an essential read for anyone looking to understand the mechanics behind sports betting. The authors expertly break down the logic into three core components: the book, the bets, and the winnings. They cover the basics, such as who creates the betting lines, where these lines come from, and how many books are involved—reminding us that anyone can start a betting book. Miller and Davidow delve into the relationships between the key ...

Learning about mathematics. Language of Mathematics by Catalin Barboianu is a wonderful and eye-opening book for those curious to learn an introductory answer to the question: What's math? Math, simply put, is logic. Barboianu sets the foundations by first speaking of symbols, axioms, and systems. This is crucially important because having a conversation of logic requires understanding what we use before using logic. Similar to a cooking recipe, the ingredients are listed first before the rec...

Hijacking Bitcoin: The Hidden History of BTC by Roger Ver is a great resource for understanding the - 15 years in the making - lore of Bitcoin. This book tells the block size wars from the other side—not the small blockers, the RPi node runners (the economic nodes), and the Bitcoin purists promoting decentralization—but from the side that used BTC to start businesses. It sheds light on the political intrigue tying together the miners, the online community, the core developers, and the entrepr...

"The Cryptopians: Idealism, Greed, Lies, and the Making of the First Big Cryptocurrency Craze" by Laura Shin is a crucial read for those onboarding to ETH and the broader crypto industry. The book chronicles the major figures who drove blockchain, decentralization, and cryptocurrencies to their current prominence. It traces Vitalik Buterin's journey from his early days as a writer for Bitcoin Magazine to launching and promoting Ethereum, which became the second-largest decentralized network b...