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🤔 I think Taleb and NKS (Wolfram) are unlikely first-consciousness books. I suspect they’re second or third consciousness. Probably for those who are consciously terminal-locking into a hedgehog mindset ~ 25-30. Include in this set: Ivan Illich, C. Alexander, Charlie Munger…
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Replying to @vgr
pleasantly surprised to see GEB in the list btw ) also, NKS and/or Taleb?
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Hmm. Borges is an odd case. In between the thinking and vibing portals. I was introduced to him via GEB like many engineers, but Borges has probably stayed with me much more than Hofstadter himself.
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Crap, yes. Sapiens is in the set now. ~2014 inductee into sophomore portal (also for older techies and VCs who apparently skipped adolescence because they were too busy killing it 🤣)
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Replying to @vgr
Wait, I got it. Sapiens?
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That’s basically it. HHG is (or can be) nihilism 101 and people who are uncritically attached/attracted to the idea of being/doing ‘good’ see HHG fandom as a red flag of moral degeneration or something.
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Replying to @vgr
What do you mean by "a read flag for good people"? I'd introduce a child to HHGG and GEB because they're good fun and give them language to practice juggling metaphors and abstractions. But would avoid Ayn rand, Pirsig or anything with strong claims on morality and virtue!
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I was wondering if there are Act 2 portal books, for the post mid-life crisis 42+ set, and it struck me that by 42 you’re too fragmented for books to have that big an effect. So the portal is now-or-never activities. If you don’t start now you’ll physically become incapable soon.
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That’s one reason I’m getting into maker shit now. 20y ago there would have been expectations of doing something actually impressive like inventing a significant robot thing. Otoh If I wait eyesight/dexterity might get too poor to get through learning curve. Now or never.
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I’ll also guess that beyond a certain age it’s impossible to *write* portal works unless you’ve already started. Without looking I’ll guess that these authors had at least started their major works before they turned 40.
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Can see that. I read Glass Bead Game a few years ago and could tell 19-year-old me would have missed the satire and unironically gone on a yak shave to invent the game. I did read Siddhartha as a teen, but that one’s kinda a weird misfire for Indian readers. Uncanny valley.
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Replying to @vgr
I wonder about Herman Hesse on this list , especially siddharta and steppenwolfe — read them around the time I read the others on this list and I remember them having a similar impact on me
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Moral of the story: Every 19-year-old is unique in the same way, every 42-year-old is a cliche in their own way.
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