Brian Christian & Tom Griffiths' Algorithms to Live By: The Computer Science of Human Decisions Summary

This is a Summary of Brian Christian & Tom Griffiths' Algorithms to Live By: The Computer Science of Human Decisions

A fascinating exploration of how insights from computer algorithms can be applied to our everyday lives, helping to solve common decision-making problems and illuminate the workings of the human mind.

All our lives are constrained by limited space and time, limits that give rise to a particular set of problems. What should we do, or leave undone, in a day or a lifetime? How much messiness should we accept? What balance of new activities and familiar favorites is the most fulfilling? These may seem like uniquely human quandaries, but they are not: computers, too, face the same constraints, so computer scientists have been grappling with their version of such issues for decades. And the solutions they've found have much to teach us.

In a dazzlingly interdisciplinary work, acclaimed author Brian Christian and cognitive scientist Tom Griffiths show how the algorithms used by computers can also untangle very human questions. They explain how to have better hunches and when to leave things to chance, how to deal with overwhelming choices and how best to connect with others. From finding a spouse to finding a parking spot, from organizing one's inbox to understanding the workings of memory, Algorithms to Live By transforms the wisdom of computer science into strategies for human living.

Available in a variety of formats, this summary is aimed for those who want to capture the gist of the book but don't have the current time to devour all 368 pages. You get the main summary along with all of the benefits and lessons the actual book has to offer. This summary is intended to be used with reference to the original book.