Indexed episode7 mentions

Modern WisdomJul 25, 2019

#088 - Nat Eliason - The Five Best Books You've Never Read

Summary, books mentioned, transcript quotes, and timestamps for #088 - Nat Eliason - The Five Best Books You've Never Read on Modern Wisdom.

Guest

Nat Eliason

Books mentioned

Gödel, Escher, Bach Anti-Fragile Endurance+1 more

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#088 - Nat Eliason - The Five Best Books You've Never Read mentions Gödel, Escher, Bach by Douglas Hofstadter, Anti-Fragile by Nassim Taleb, Endurance by Alfred Lansing, and Denial of Death by Ernest Becker with timestamps, quotes, and episode context.

Gödel, Escher, Bach Anti-Fragile Endurance Denial of Death

3 books from this episode

Gödel, Escher, Bach

Douglas Hofstadter

It's one of the most intellectually challenging books I think I've ever read.

Anti-Fragile

Nassim Taleb

And we thought it might be fun to do a second episode on a book that we both really liked, Anti-Fragile by Nassim Taleb.

Endurance

Alfred Lansing

it's an absolutely insane book wow so i highly recommend that's probably like my favorite biography i've read it's really really incredible

Guest: Nat Eliason

Episode summary

Nat Eliason is the founder of GrowthMachine.com and the host of the Made You Think Podcast. Nat likes to read and think. Today we get to hear his five recommendations for books you probably won't have read, along with a description of his progressive summarisation system which he uses to note down and remember their key points. Also expect to learn Nat's thoughts on abortion, Trump, organic vs paid marketing, decentralisation and a lot more. Extra Stuff: Check out Nat's Podcast - https://madeyouthinkpodcast.com Nat's Company - https://www.growthmachine.com/ Follow Nat on Twitter - https://twitter.com/nateliason Check out Nat's website - https://www.nateliason.com/ Peak - https://amzn.to/2XZoK2l Endurance - https://amzn.to/2LEr3Bi Sovereign Individual - https://amzn.to/2K3dyrr Godel, Escher, Bach - https://amzn.to/2OhKpy7 The Denial Of Death - https://amzn.to/30VMZLL Check out everything I recommend from books to products and help support the podcast at no extra cost to you by shopping through this link - https://www.amazon.co.uk/shop/modernwisdom - Get in touch. Join the discussion with me and other like minded listeners in the episode comments on the MW YouTube Channel or message me... Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chriswillx Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/chriswillx YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/ModernWisdomPodcast Email: https://www.chriswillx.com/contact

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Gödel, Escher, Bach

Douglas Hofstadter

The host highlights 'Gödel, Escher, Bach' as a book that presents complex ideas across various disciplines. Despite i…

Card

Anti-Fragile

Nassim Taleb

The host mentioned 'Anti-Fragile' as a pivotal book that inspired a popular episode of his previous podcast, Nat Chat…

Card

Endurance

Alfred Lansing

The host mentions 'Endurance' to illustrate the extreme challenges faced by Shackleton and his crew, emphasizing the…

Card

Denial of Death

Ernest Becker

The host mentions 'Denial of Death' to explore how our discomfort with mortality influences our actions and pursuits…

Card

Thinking Fast and Slow

Daniel Kahneman

The host mentions 'Thinking Fast and Slow' to illustrate the challenges of reading dense material that can hinder ove…

Card

Infinite Jest

David Foster Wallace

The host mentioned 'Infinite Jest' while discussing the challenges of reading complex books. They noted that it is a…

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Peak

Anders Ericsson, Robert Pool

The host mentions the book 'Peak' in the context of discussing effective learning and information retention strategie…

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Book mentions7

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What is #088 - Nat Eliason - The Five Best Books You've Never Read about?

Summary, books mentioned, transcript quotes, and timestamps for #088 - Nat Eliason - The Five Best Books You've Never Read on Modern Wisdom.

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What are the main takeaways from #088 - Nat Eliason - The Five Best Books You've Never Read?

These are the strongest takeaways surfaced by the transcript, summary copy, and linked mentions for #088 - Nat Eliason - The Five Best Books You've Never Read.

The conversation centers on book recommendations.
A second recurring theme is discussing difficult books.
Referenced books include Gödel, Escher, Bach by Douglas Hofstadter and Anti-Fragile by Nassim Taleb.
The strongest audience signal points to Readers interested in interdisciplinary ideas and intellectual challenges and Listeners interested in deep literary analysis and personal development.

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Which books are mentioned in #088 - Nat Eliason - The Five Best Books You've Never Read?

Gödel, Escher, Bach by Douglas Hofstadter, Anti-Fragile by Nassim Taleb, and Endurance by Alfred Lansing are the clearest linked books in this episode, each tied back to transcript timestamps and quote cards.

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#088 - Nat Eliason - The Five Best Books You've Never Read keeps attracting summary-style searches because this page combines episode context, transcript quotes, book references, and direct jump links back into the audio.

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Top triggers

book recommendations(1)discussing difficult books(1)discussion of book episodes(1)fear of death(1)intellectually challenging books(1)skill acquisition and learning(1)struggles with reading habits(1)

Mention sentiment

Highly Recommended(3)Passing Reference(2)Critical Analysis(1)Deep Dive(1)

Audience signals

Readers interested in interdisciplinary ideas and intellectual challengesListeners interested in deep literary analysis and personal developmentIndividuals interested in personal development and resilienceIndividuals interested in psychology and existential philosophy.Readers looking to develop better reading habitsReaders interested in challenging literature

Books Mentioned

The full list below is ranked by how useful each mention is to a listener: stronger recommendation language, clearer quote context, and better timestamp support rise first.

Gödel, Escher, Bach

Douglas Hofstadter

Best for Readers interested in interdisciplinary ideas and intellectual challengesOften cited around intellectually challenging books

“It's one of the most intellectually challenging books I think I've ever read. The writing is very easy, but it requires grasping and trying to work with ideas from math, physics, logic, biology, and tricky philosophical ideas.”

View mention details

Sentiment: Highly Recommended

Trigger: intellectually challenging books

For: Readers interested in interdisciplinary ideas and intellectual challenges

Key quote: “It's one of the most intellectually challenging books I think I've ever read.”

The host highlights 'Gödel, Escher, Bach' as a book that presents complex ideas across various disciplines. Despite its challenging content, the writing style is accessible, making it a worthwhile read for those willing to engage deeply with its concepts.

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Anti-Fragile

Nassim Taleb

Best for Listeners interested in deep literary analysis and personal developmentOften cited around discussion of book episodes

“The podcast discusses a previous episode where they talked about the book 'Anti-Fragile' by Nassim Taleb, which was very popular among listeners.”

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Sentiment: Highly Recommended

Trigger: discussion of book episodes

For: Listeners interested in deep literary analysis and personal development

Key quote: “And we thought it might be fun to do a second episode on a book that we both really liked, Anti-Fragile by Nassim Taleb.”

The host mentioned 'Anti-Fragile' as a pivotal book that inspired a popular episode of his previous podcast, Nat Chat. This episode's success led to the creation of the Made You Think podcast, focusing on in-depth discussions of challenging books.

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Endurance

Alfred Lansing

Best for Individuals interested in personal development and resilienceOften cited around skill acquisition and learning

“Nat Eliason mentions 'Endurance', the story of Shackleton and his crew, as an incredible biography about survival in Antarctica.”

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Sentiment: Highly Recommended

Trigger: skill acquisition and learning

For: Individuals interested in personal development and resilience

Key quote: “it's an absolutely insane book wow so i highly recommend that's probably like my favorite biography i've read it's really really incredible”

The host mentions 'Endurance' to illustrate the extreme challenges faced by Shackleton and his crew, emphasizing the importance of perseverance and direct effort in achieving goals. This story serves as a powerful metaphor for the dedication required in skill acquisition, contrasting the allure of shortcuts with the reality of hard work.

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Denial of Death

Ernest Becker

Best for Individuals interested in psychology and existential philosophy.Often cited around fear of death

“It's basically just about what we do is about or is in some way related to our uncomfortableness with death and trying to create these pyramids, these sculptures that will outlast us.”

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Sentiment: Deep Dive

Trigger: fear of death

For: Individuals interested in psychology and existential philosophy.

Key quote: “I do think that our fear of the end drives so much of what people do.”

The host mentions 'Denial of Death' to explore how our discomfort with mortality influences our actions and pursuits in life. They connect this theme to a discussion about optimizing life and the search for happiness as a means to cope with the fear of death.

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Thinking Fast and Slow

Daniel Kahneman

Best for Readers looking to develop better reading habitsOften cited around struggles with reading habits

“The speaker discusses their struggle to get through 'Thinking Fast and Slow', highlighting its length and complexity.”

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Sentiment: Critical Analysis

Trigger: struggles with reading habits

For: Readers looking to develop better reading habits

Key quote: “Thinking Fast and Slow is a perfect example. And it's like, it's so long as well.”

The host mentions 'Thinking Fast and Slow' to illustrate the challenges of reading dense material that can hinder overall reading progress. They express frustration over their inability to finish the book, highlighting how it affects their reading habits negatively.

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Infinite Jest

David Foster Wallace

Best for Readers interested in challenging literatureOften cited around discussing difficult books

“The podcast mentions an episode queued up that tackles 'Infinite Jest', described as a super weird, thousand-page book with complex structure.”

View mention details

Sentiment: Passing Reference

Trigger: discussing difficult books

For: Readers interested in challenging literature

Key quote: “It's a super, super weird, like thousand page book with 200 pages of end notes.”

The host mentioned 'Infinite Jest' while discussing the challenges of reading complex books. They noted that it is a lengthy and confusing novel, but the experience of finishing it is rewarding.

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Peak

Anders Ericsson, Robert Pool

Best for Individuals interested in personal development and learning strategiesOften cited around book recommendations

“Nat Eliason recommends 'Peak' as the best book on learning and skill acquisition, emphasizing its usefulness over more popular hacky learning books.”

View mention details

Sentiment: Passing Reference

Trigger: book recommendations

For: Individuals interested in personal development and learning strategies

Key quote: “So stay until the end and find out exactly what Nat thinks you should sink your teeth into as your next read, which you might not have seen on the New York Times bestseller.”

The host mentions the book 'Peak' in the context of discussing effective learning and information retention strategies. It serves as an example of the type of insightful literature that can enhance one's understanding of mastery and skill development.

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