Algorithms to Live By

Everyday choices pile up: which apartment to take, where to park, how to sort a crowded inbox, how far ahead to plan. This nonfiction book from 2016 takes those problems and asks how computers solve the same kinds of puzzles.

The authors are Brian Christian, who writes about science and technology, and Tom Griffiths, who works as a cognitive scientist. Their argument is that the rules of thumb behind computer decisions hold practical wisdom for people too, and that human and machine reasoning share more ground than most of us assume.

The method is to start from a familiar situation, such as looking for a spouse or a parking spot, and show how computing approaches it. Each chapter moves between the human problem and its computational counterpart, so the ideas stay tied to ordinary life.

It is written for general readers who are curious about computational thinking, and no programming background is needed. The tone is entertaining and intelligently presented, though it suits readers who are comfortable with numbers and ideas from computing. Henry Holt published it in April 2016, and it has since been translated into many languages.