Do you love exploring trends and understanding how the world around you operates? Your inquisitive mind may enjoy a deep-dive into some fascinating data-focused books. We’ve gathered five of our favourite, entertaining reads for you to explore data’s use in our society, even if you’re just getting started on the subject.
Do you love exploring trends and understanding how the world around you operates? Your inquisitive mind may enjoy a deep-dive into some fascinating data-focused books.
We’ve gathered five of our favourite entertaining reads for you to explore data’s use in our society, even if you’re just getting started on the subject.
Big Data: A Revolution That Will Transform How We Live, Work, and Think - Vikto Mayer-Schonberger and Kenneth Cukier
It’s no news that big data is changing our lives, but the full scope of its reach has yet to be fully understood. Modern commodities like social media and credit cards collect more data about us than has ever been possible, and both corporations and governments benefit from this data.
Though published in 2013, Vikto Mayer-Schonberger and Kenneth Cukier’s eye-opening book discusses both the power and limitations of big data that we are still discovering today. You don’t need to have an extensive background in data analytics to glean some powerful insights, or even just enjoy this book.
How to Measure Anything: Finding the Value of Intangibles in Business -- Douglas W. Hubbard
You know you’re in for an informative read when you see Douglas W. Hubbard’s name on the cover. As the creator of the Applied Information Economics method and founder of Hubbard Decision Research, Hubbard is dedicated to sharing tools for problem solving in business and in life.
How to Measure Anything: Finding the Value of Intangibles in Business illustrates how to measure seemingly unmeasurable factors like customer satisfaction and organisational flexibility. Hubbard offers both in-depth explanations for data enthusiasts, and more approachable explanations for those just getting into the data world.
Blink -- Malcom Gladwell
Chances are you’ve already heard of the long-time journalist for The New Yorker and five-time New York Times best selling author. Malcolm Gladwell’s Blink offers a look into decision making and those blink-of-an-eye choices we make that may be more complex than they seem on the surface.
In this best-seller Gladwell dives into the concept of thin-slicing to find patterns and draw conclusions about a situation based on short interactions. He also introduces fascinating experts who can predict a marriage’s success and recognise a genuine or fake antique within seconds.
This is a great read for getting a better understanding of how we operate, without needing a lot of previous experience with the concepts.
The Lean Startup : How Today's Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses -- Eric Ries
For a more business-centric read, you might enjoy Eric Ries’ The Lean Startup. In this book Ries shares invaluable tips for making better and faster business decisions, while also reflecting on the actions of successful businesses.
The book is organised into the concepts of vision, steer, and accelerate for getting your startup off the ground and headed for success. Ries himself is a wildly successful entrepreneur, blogger, author, and speaker. His years of insight offer a rewarding challenge to change the way you think and operate in the business world.
Freakonomics : A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything -- Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner
Economist Steven D. Levitt and award-winning author and journalist Stephen J. Dubner joined forces to pen the widely-known and read Freakonomics to understand human drives. The two reveal that economists essentially study incentives, and use this premise to explore parenting, cheating, and even a dangerous crack gang.
Throughout the book the authors show how with the right data and question, you can find just about anything. If you aren’t already a data and economics enthusiast, you may become one after reading Freakonomics.
Want to do some research of your own? Have a look at our online Data Analytics degree courses and maybe you’ll be making the best seller’s list for your work, too!
