Data Science Reading List for May 2020
By: Luke Posey
Tags: Startup, Books, Data Engineering, Data Science, Reading

Data Science Reading List for May 2020

This month’s Data Science reading list.

Note: I am not affiliated with any of the authors in this article. These are simply books that I’m excited to share with you. There are no referrals or a cent going in my pocket from the authors or publishers mentioned. Enjoy!

Welcome to this month’s reading list!

I wanted to add some fiction in here to make an important point. I’ve noticed myself and lot of tech and data friends struggling to disconnect between work and other aspects of life. This change to remote work has been a shock for many of us. Working at a desk 10 feet from where you sleep, 10 feet from where you cook meals, and 10 feet from where you brush your teeth can be a real shock.

Once quitting time rolls around it’s usually pretty healthy to completely disconnect from work. If you let work leak into every aspect of your life your work will quickly become your identity. While we as Data Science folks tend to be especially passionate about our work, there comes a time when it’s necessary to completely disconnect. We need to always take time to interface with our creative side. And you might be surprised, when you start taking more time away from your work, your focused work becomes higher quality.

All this to say, don’t read too many business and technical books in your free time. If you’re only going to read one type of book — make it fiction! Read something fun. Engage your creative side. Whatever genre suits you, re-explore it. You won’t regret it.

On to the list!

Designing Data-Intensive Applications

This is a terrific read for the Data Engineers and Software Engineers among us.

There isn’t a ton of system thinking on the Data Science side. I would say pick this one up if you’re interested in learning more about how the data systems you use every day work.

LINK

Springer Released 65 Technical Books For Free

Most people have had this link shoved in their face already… But in case you haven’t!

Springer released 65 Statistics, ML, etc books for free a few weeks ago. It’s an awesome move on their part. So if you are looking for a particular reference book this is a great list to check before going out and making a purchase…

LINK

Monetizing Innovation

Had this one recommended to me by a fellow founder. He had another founder recommend it to him who said his business’s pricing model was largely influenced by this book.

I’m all about practicality when it comes to business books so I had to check it out. So far it’s lived up to my expectations. 225 pages of mostly value. Lots of diagrams and data-driven explanations for various pricing and product decisions. LINK

Dune

Dune is a book I’ve had recommended to me more times than I can recall. Hopefully it lives up to the hype. From family who read it decades ago to friends who read it recently, I’ve had it recommended time and time again. Started it last week.

Read more fiction, people! And recommend me some fiction to read as well; I’ve fallen away from fiction in favor of business and technical books which is a shame. Let’s unlock our creative side and read more fiction! LINK