>there is indeed a huge logical error at the heart of the whole enterprise but it was not discovered until much later by Kurt Gödel.

Which leads us to our next borderline impenetrable book, Gödel, Escher, Bach by Douglas Hofstadter.

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m-hodges 4 hours ago | parent | next [-]

I read GEB cover to cover and haven’t stopped thinking about it for years. Not a brag, a nudge that it’s not impenetrable and more people should read it.

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eru an hour ago | parent | next [-]

I read it cover to cove back in the day and enjoyed it. But I'm not sure more people should read it today.

If they do and enjoy it, good for them! But many parts haven't aged all that well.

However, I can still very warmly recommend 'The Pleasures of Counting' to this very day.

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buildsjets 2 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

I’m working on it every day during lunch break. Good old hardcopy.

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anthonygd 3 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

I read it on my honeymoon 25 years ago. That book sticks with you.

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debo_ an hour ago | parent [-]

Are you still married?

	▲	bryanrasmussen 20 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		finally we shall be able to answer the age old question - does Gödel, Escher, Bach: an Eternal Golden Braid stick with you better than a spouse!

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voxadam 3 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

It's been years since I cracked open a copy, maybe I should give it another shot.

	▲	floxy 2 hours ago \| parent [-]
		If you want to get to the meat of the issue, without the extraneous stuff, you might also tackle: Godel's Theorem Simplified. https://www.amazon.com/Godels-Theorem-Simplified-Harry-Gensl...

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scubbo 3 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

I'm surprised to hear that that was your perspective! I felt that it dealt with otherwise-opaque topics in a very approachable way.

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analog31 4 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

GEB was one of the books that inspired me to study math in college. It made math come to life in way that my high school courses didn't.

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annzabelle 2 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

My brother's favorite book in 6th grade was Godel, Escher, Bach.

Why, yes, he works as a compiler engineer.

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eru an hour ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Eh, that's just a pop-science tome. Nothing impenetrable about it.

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4 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

[deleted]

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suslik 2 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

> Gödel, Escher, Bach by Douglas Hofstadter.

I gave that book to my mathematician grandma, and she found it so boring she couldn’t finish it - “All this stuff was known for decades”. True anecdote.

	▲	eru an hour ago \| parent [-]
		Well, it's a pop-sci tome, not a research article. However, it is pretty dated these days.