I spend lots of time reading a variety of books: history, politics,
economics, biography, poker, physics, computer science...
I think the goal of my reading is to help me:
1. Satisfy my curiosity.
2. Understand reality better.
3. Make better decisions to further my impact.
Reading generally helps me understand what to accomplish and
why it's worthwhile. Another way of looking at reading is that it
provides good questions for me. With these questions, I can find
a more interesting way of interacting with reality (Weltanschauung).
The process of reading books is different from simple
information extraction. The difference is:
1. Information extraction expands what I know.
2. Reading helps me compress what I know, based on new insights.
The second point is interesting because it mirrors how LLMs work.
Compression seems to be a key to intelligence: information is
subjectively interesting when it offers a better way to compress
one’s worldview.
So, the difference between learning and understanding, in my view, is:
1. Learning expands the knowledge base.
2. Understanding compresses that knowledge into deeper insights.
3. Learning helps in specific situations, while understanding
provides a systematic framework.
Now, I've talked about the difference between information extraction
vs. reading, and learning vs. understanding. Next, I want to address
the core of this essay: is it possible to create a new, better way
of reading in the 21st century?
I believe the answer lies in:
1. Understanding the challenges of the 21st century.
2. Identifying the essence of reading books—what they aim to achieve.
3. Exploring the possibility of creating a new, better way of reading.
For the first question, the main issue today is the information explosion:
information on any subject grows exponentially, doubling every 10-15 months.
This trend has continued since the 1950s. The traditional solution has
been labor specialization.
School emphasizes specialized skills—how to do X—over independent
thinking about the WHAT and WHY. Now, with Gen-AI, there is a chance of
replacing those who only know HOW. Meanwhile, the What and Why will matter more than the How.
economics, biography, poker, physics, computer science...
I think the goal of my reading is to help me:
1. Satisfy my curiosity.
2. Understand reality better.
3. Make better decisions to further my impact.
Reading generally helps me understand what to accomplish and
why it's worthwhile. Another way of looking at reading is that it
provides good questions for me. With these questions, I can find
a more interesting way of interacting with reality (Weltanschauung).
The process of reading books is different from simple
information extraction. The difference is:
1. Information extraction expands what I know.
2. Reading helps me compress what I know, based on new insights.
The second point is interesting because it mirrors how LLMs work.
Compression seems to be a key to intelligence: information is
subjectively interesting when it offers a better way to compress
one’s worldview.
So, the difference between learning and understanding, in my view, is:
1. Learning expands the knowledge base.
2. Understanding compresses that knowledge into deeper insights.
3. Learning helps in specific situations, while understanding
provides a systematic framework.
Now, I've talked about the difference between information extraction
vs. reading, and learning vs. understanding. Next, I want to address
the core of this essay: is it possible to create a new, better way
of reading in the 21st century?
I believe the answer lies in:
1. Understanding the challenges of the 21st century.
2. Identifying the essence of reading books—what they aim to achieve.
3. Exploring the possibility of creating a new, better way of reading.
For the first question, the main issue today is the information explosion:
information on any subject grows exponentially, doubling every 10-15 months.
This trend has continued since the 1950s. The traditional solution has
been labor specialization.
School emphasizes specialized skills—how to do X—over independent
thinking about the WHAT and WHY. Now, with Gen-AI, there is a chance of
replacing those who only know HOW. Meanwhile, the What and Why will matter more than the How.
"The present growth of knowledge will choke itself off until we get
different tools. I believe that books which try to digest, coordinate,
get rid of the duplication... will be the things the future generations
will value... In the long-haul, books that leave out what's not essential
are more important than books that tell you everything... You just want
to know the essence."– Richard Hamming, You and Your Research
For the second question, as discussed earlier, I think the goal of reading
is to understand and come up with better questions. We should think of
books as a medium that helps us generate good questions rather than just
providing good solutions.
For the last question, I think GenAI has potential to make books better—
more effective at achieving the goals of understanding. Here are some
thoughts on why:
1. LLMs may struggle with generating original content but excel at remaking existing
existing content in simpler, more concise, and clear words. This alone is powerful.
2. LLMs offer personalized conversation and can answer questions with 80%
accuracy at any time—a rarity among real-world teachers.
3. GenAI could make complex concepts easier to understand with effective,
low-cost visualizations, often leading to new insights.
Why make better books? Books are tools that help us understand and ask
better questions. Can we create a new product with GenAI that succeeds
in education, focusing on What and Why, rather than How? Can we make books
that every leader and CEO reads to think better? And is it possible for
all kids to have a CEO-level teacher?
accuracy at any time—a rarity among real-world teachers.
3. GenAI could make complex concepts easier to understand with effective,
low-cost visualizations, often leading to new insights.
Why make better books? Books are tools that help us understand and ask
better questions. Can we create a new product with GenAI that succeeds
in education, focusing on What and Why, rather than How? Can we make books
that every leader and CEO reads to think better? And is it possible for
all kids to have a CEO-level teacher?