Why am I passionate about this?

Art, technology, and science…I have been seamlessly traversing domains all my life. I grew up with twin interests in physical sciences and visual arts, finding beauty in math and art and seeing creativity as being one thing rather than something living in compartments. Art influenced my research in chaos and complexity, and blurring boundaries characterized my work as dean of engineering when creating educational/research initiatives in design, art, entrepreneurship, energy, and sustainability. I also received visible external recognition as a Guggenheim Fellow and member of both the National Academy of Engineering and the National Academy of Sciences, as well as the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.


I wrote...

The Nexus: Augmented Thinking for a Complex World--The New Convergence of Art, Technology, and Science

By Julio Mario Ottino, Bruce Mau,

Book cover of The Nexus: Augmented Thinking for a Complex World--The New Convergence of Art, Technology, and Science

What is my book about?

Today's complex problems demand a radically new way of thinking—one in which art, technology, and science converge to expand our…

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of Massive Change: A Manifesto for the Future of Global Design

Julio Mario Ottino Why did I love this book?

This book will inspire you, make you see possibilities, and widen your thinking.

The back cover’s proclamation, “It is not about the world of design, it is about the design of world”, says it all. The design of this book itself opened new frontiers; text and images interspersed as they had never been seen before, intertwining technologies, inventions, and pivotal events that are affecting humanity worldwide.

By Bruce Mau, Institute without Boundaries, Jennifer Leonard

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Massive Change as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Massive Change is a modern, illustrated primer on the new inventions, technologies, and events that are affecting the human race worldwide. This book is part of a broader research project by Bruce Mau Design, intended to provoke debate and discussion about the future of design culture - defined generally as the 'familiar objects and techniques that are transforming our lives'.

Through an original selection of essays, interviews and provocative imagery aimed at a broad audience, Massive Change explores the changing forces of design in the contemporary world and, from this angle, expands the definition of design to include the built…


Book cover of Lumen Naturae: Visions of the Abstract in Art and Mathematics

Julio Mario Ottino Why did I love this book?

This book will dazzle you. How is it that someone can see these seemingly hidden connections between math and modern art?

Modern mathematics and physics are on one side, modern art is on the other, and concepts of space, randomness, and even the universe itself are explored, with one side illuminating the other. A good number of the art pieces presented are from the author herself, which adds another layer of credibility to the entire presentation.

By Matilde Marcolli,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Lumen Naturae as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Exploring common themes in modern art, mathematics, and science, including the concept of space, the notion of randomness, and the shape of the cosmos.

This is a book about art—and a book about mathematics and physics. In Lumen Naturae (the title refers to a purely immanent, non-supernatural form of enlightenment), mathematical physicist Matilde Marcolli explores common themes in modern art and modern science—the concept of space, the notion of randomness, the shape of the cosmos, and other puzzles of the universe—while mapping convergences with the work of such artists as Paul Cezanne, Mark Rothko, Sol LeWitt, and Lee Krasner. Her…


Book cover of Critical Mass: How One Thing Leads to Another

Julio Mario Ottino Why did I love this book?

This book will educate you and show how ideas are connected to each other.

Could there be social science laws? What did social science borrow from physics and math? And, more surprisingly, what physics borrowed from social science when disciplines were just emerging? Complex systems serve as a backdrop for many of the stories. The history of science is far from rectilinear. That’s what makes the story fascinating.

By Philip Ball,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Critical Mass as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Is there a 'physics of society'? Philip Ball's investigation into human nature ranges from Hobbes and Adam Smith to modern work on traffic flow and market trading, across economics, sociology and psychology. Ball shows how much of human behaviour we can understand when we cease trying to predict and analyse the behaviour of individuals and look to the impact of hundreds, thousands or millions of individual human decisions, in circumstances in which human beings both co-operate and conflict, when their aggregate behaviour is constructive and when it is destructive. By perhaps Britain's leading young science writer, this is a deeply…


Book cover of Linked: How Everything Is Connected to Everything Else and What It Means for Business, Science, and Everyday Life

Julio Mario Ottino Why did I love this book?

This book will open your eyes and make you see the world with an augmented lens.

Networks are everywhere; in biology, social systems, economics, and technologies, and the study of networks connects mathematics, physics, computer sciences, biology, and social sciences, producing fascinating connections. This book brings together all this, highlighting the interconnections between ideas and technical work in different areas and telling us how networks emerge, and how they evolve.

By Albert-laszlo Barabasi,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Linked as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A cocktail party. A terrorist cell. Ancient bacteria. An international conglomerate. All are networks, and all are a part of a surprising scientific revolution. In Linked , Albert-Laszlo Barabasi, the nation's foremost expert in the new science of networks, takes us on an intellectual adventure to prove that social networks, corporations, and living organisms are more similar than previously thought. Barabasi shows that grasping a full understanding of network science will someday allow us to design blue-chip businesses, stop the outbreak of deadly diseases, and influence the exchange of ideas and information. Just as James Gleick and the Erdos-Renyi model…


Book cover of Creativity: The Psychology of Discovery and Invention

Julio Mario Ottino Why did I love this book?

This book will capture your imagination and dazzle your senses with deep scholarship.

Deep exploration of creative outputs at their maximum states, the state of “flow”, condensing Csikszentmihalyi’s thirty years of research and nearly one hundred interviews with exceptionally creative people, spanning science, business, and art, in all of their dimensions. Creativity in art, technology, and science, perceived by many as being different types of creativity, revealed, at its core, to be the same.

By Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked Creativity as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

“Although the benefits of this study to scholars are obvious, this thought-provoking mixture of scholarly and colloquial will enlighten inquisitive general readers, too.” —  Library Journal (starred review)

The classic study of the creative process from the bestselling author of Flow.

Creativity is about capturing those moments that make life worth living. Legendary psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (“The leading researcher into ‘flow states.’”  — Newsweek) reveals what leads to these moments—be it the excitement of the artist at the easel or the scientist in the lab—so that this knowledge can be used to enrich people's lives. Drawing on nearly one hundred…


Explore my book 😀

The Nexus: Augmented Thinking for a Complex World--The New Convergence of Art, Technology, and Science

By Julio Mario Ottino, Bruce Mau,

Book cover of The Nexus: Augmented Thinking for a Complex World--The New Convergence of Art, Technology, and Science

What is my book about?

Today's complex problems demand a radically new way of thinking—one in which art, technology, and science converge to expand our creativity and augment our insight. Creativity must be combined with the ability to execute; the leaders and innovators of the future will have to understand this balance and manage such complexities as climate change and pandemics. The place of this convergence is the nexus.

In this provocative and visually striking book, Julio Mario Ottino and Bruce Mau offer a guide for navigating the intersections of art, technology, and science.

Book cover of Massive Change: A Manifesto for the Future of Global Design
Book cover of Lumen Naturae: Visions of the Abstract in Art and Mathematics
Book cover of Critical Mass: How One Thing Leads to Another

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The Curious Reader's Field Guide to Nonfiction

By Anne Janzer,

Book cover of The Curious Reader's Field Guide to Nonfiction

Anne Janzer

New book alert!

What is my book about?

So many books, so little time! If you're a nonfiction fan, this field guide may help you make better choices about what to read.

Just like a field guide helps you identify plants or birds, this book helps you navigate the rich world of nonfiction. You’ll uncover how your favorite authors break down complex topics, keep you hooked, and forge those deep, personal connections that make their work unforgettable.

Practice spotting techniques "in the wild" and track your responses in the Field Notes. Record your own preferences and favorites in the Field Observations. With this guide by your side, you'll…

The Curious Reader's Field Guide to Nonfiction

By Anne Janzer,

What is this book about?

Attention nonfiction book lovers, this guide is for you!

If your nightstand is stacked with histories or essays, how-to guides or science books, The Curious Reader’s Field Guide to Nonfiction is going to be your new favorite companion.

Just like a field guide helps you identify plants or birds, this book helps you navigate the rich world of nonfiction. You’ll uncover how your favorite authors break down complex topics, keep you hooked, and forge those deep, personal connections that make their work unforgettable.

More than just a guide—a reading companion

This isn’t just a book you flip through—it’s an interactive…


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