Thinking in Systems
#31 of 644 all-time
Thinking in Systems
Donella Meadows
23 people recommended it in 8 threads, 2018–2023.
What people on Hacker News said
useful for understanding that in modern life we have complex systems at work with emergent behavior that we didn't expect. Trying to isolate / model a single component of one of these systems is a flawed approach.
It changed how i think about everything. My career is based on this book. My interaction with people and groups of people is based on this book.
Once you start looking for positive and negative feedback loops in the world around you, it's hard to stop. In particular, Meadow's book is great because it also goes beyond +/- loops in isolation, and shows more complicated patterns, such as eroding goal patterns and traps that often cause public policy interventions to fail.
If you want to change the world this is the book to read.
I go back to "Thinking in Systems" once a year and analyze my life, my projects again with her framework. There is always something new to discover.
Donella's work was fantastic for providing definition to my thought patterns and improving the way I articulate and express myself.
Where it comes up
- Ask HN: What books changed the way you think about almost everything? 2019 · 9 recommendations
- Ask HN: Which books teach mental models? 2019 · 5 recommendations
- Ask HN: How do you synthesize books that you read? 2023 · 2 recommendations
- Ask HN: Which books do you consider real gems in your field of work/study? 2022 · 2 recommendations
- Ask HN: Books you read in 2018? 2018 · 2 recommendations
- Ask HN: Which books have made you a better thinker and problem solver? 2022 · 1 recommendation
- Ask HN: Books you plan to read in 2020? 2019 · 1 recommendation
- Ask HN: Which books have made you introspect? 2018 · 1 recommendation