Business magnate Bill Gates shares his five favourite books from 2016
Bill Gates has revealed his favourite books of 2016 in a blog post and accompanying video on his website Gates Notes.
The Microsoft co-founder wrote: “Reading books is my favourite way to learn about a new topic.”
He goes on to list and summarise his five favourite books from 2016, and provides links to longer reviews for four of them. Gates explains that he’s on “a big Wallace kick right now”, joking that the late writer’s collection of essays on tennis “will make you look super smart” on a train or plane as it will look as though you’re reading about physics instead.
“As much as I loved the book for its insights on the game, I loved it just as much for the writing itself,” Gates says. “I now understand why people talk about David Foster Wallace with the same kind of awe that tennis fans use to talk about a Roger Federer or Serena Williams. Wallace’s ability to use language is mind-blowing.” This book details how Knight was fresh out of business school when he borrowed $50 from his father to start the company that would become Nike. Gates calls it an “honest reminder” of the mistakes required for success in business, and praises Knight for making himself appear vulnerable.
“Knight opens up in a way few CEOs are willing to do. He’s incredibly tough on himself and his failings. He doesn’t fit the mould of the bold, dashing entrepreneur. He’s shy, introverted, and often insecure. He’s given to nervous ticks – snapping rubber bands on his wrist and hugging himself when stressed in business negotiations.” Gates read Mukherjee’s book for a guide to new genome-editing tech- nology and the ethical questions it poses.
“Within 10 years, it will be possible for clinicians to use genome editing to help people with diseases caused by a single faulty gene, such as cystic fibrosis – an unquestionably ethical use of this new technology. But what about making the repair in egg or sperm cells to save people from developing these diseases in later life?” Political scientist Archie Brown argues for cooperative figures of power, as opposed to those with the most dominant ways of speaking. Gates notes that Brown could not have predicted quite how resonant these ideas would be in 2016.
“Whereas most books about political leadership are chronologies, mapping the rise and fall of lead- ers over time, this one is more of a taxonomy. Throughout, Brown presents a new way to think about today’s challenges – and the people we entrust with solving them.”
Gretchen Bakke, a cultural anthropologist, reimagines the US electrical grid with new energy sources in mind.
”Even if you have never given a moment’s thought to how electricity reaches your outlets, I think this book would convince you that the electric grid is one of the greatest engineering wonders of the modern world. I think you would also come to see why modernising the grid is so complex and so critical for building our clean energy future. THE INDEPENDENT