Book Review - Designing Data Intensive Applications by Martin Kleppmann

 

A tech book that sparks joy !

I personally don’t think a mere review of this book can do it any kind of justice given the sheer breadth of the topics it covers along with the in-depth technical details.

This book is a treasure trove of information, exploring complex concepts like distributed data storage, distributed transactions, challenges in replication, partitioning, consistency, batch processing, stream processing, concurrency, stale reads, database internals, B-trees, LSTM (the best explanation I have found so far), concurrent writes and handling conflict resolution, RAFT, Paxos, Avro, Thrift and Protocol Buffers, Byzantine Generals Problem, maintaining order of events with network failures and clock skew, consistent prefix reads, Elasticsearch with document-partitioned indexes and the list is seemingly endless !!!

I do consider that it has a steep learning/understanding curve and I am not even going to pretend that I truly profess to have complete understanding of all chapters.

Having said that I am eagerly anticipating the next edition of the book coming in Dec 2025 by O’Reilly Media!!!

This book’s foundational knowledge has caused the launch of a few thousand blogs/YouTube channels that have dissected every chapter of the book in depth.

Its core strength is that it is has a technology-agnostic approach when explaining concepts.

Each chapter begins with a clear definition of the concept, then comes the unravelling of its complexities one by one, much like a suspenseful mystery which disassembles the plot.

By the end of the chapter, you grasp the nuanced details that underpin each sanguine definition. A superb handling of the topic in the hands of an expert.

Reading the papers listed at the end of each chapter would have made finishing this book nearly impossible. I’ll consider this strategy for the 2025 book.

I don’t know any other tech book that I have enjoyed as much. A highly rewarding read.

A thank you to the reading club from discord with whom I read the book.

Book Review - Secret Pulse of Time by Stefan Klein

 

I picked up this book because I wanted the answer to this question -

Why does life go by faster and faster as we grow older?

None of the material I had absorbed on this topic seemed complete and were not satisfactory. My search though has ended with reading this book. I guess I needed something that would meander through biology, physics, neuroscience and philosophy along with practical wisdom.

Key Themes and Insights

Perception Shapes Time

• Time is not an absolute entity; rather, our experience of it is deeply influenced by our attention, emotions, and consciousness.
• Heightened awareness and engaging deeply with the present moment can make time feel richer and more expansive.
• Conversely, monotony and routine can shrink time in retrospect, making even long periods seem fleeting.

Biological Clocks and Inner Time

• Each of us operates on an internal biological clock, which may differ subtly from person to person.
• Inner time is distinct from mechanical and biological clocks, as it is shaped by the focus of our consciousness.

The Vicious Cycle of Stress and Time Pressure

• Stress and the perception of “not enough time” are self-reinforcing. A lack of control over our schedules can create a feedback loop of anxiety, which leads to undermining our ability to manage tasks effectively.
• Feeling in control of time, however, mitigates this stress and enhances our sense of well-being.

Attention and Distraction

• Our ability to concentrate is a cornerstone of how we experience time. Distractions and an overload of stimuli fragment our attention, making us feel like time is slipping away.
• Writing down intrusive thoughts and returning to tasks can help maintain focus and regain control.

Memory and Time’s Passage

• Time feels slower in youth because the brain commits more impressions to memory. As we age and experiences become repetitive, fewer memories are stored, making time appear to accelerate.
• New experiences and challenges enrich memory and can slow the subjective passage of time, even in later life.

Practical Strategies for Mastering Time

Klein offers practical advice to alter our relationship with time:

• Reward yourself for achieving intermediate goals to sustain motivation.
• Train your attentiveness to stay present, savoring the small moments of life.
• Incorporate activities like tai chi or rhythmic breathing to recalibrate your perception of time.
• Use memory aids such as journals and photographs to enrich and preserve meaningful experiences.

Final Thoughts

Time is as much a construct of our inner world as it is an external measure. 

View time not as a resource to be managed but as an aspect of existence to be savored.

Book Review - Slow Productivity by Cal Newport

TLDR; I like the many nuggets of wisdom from this book but would suggest to read this book only after reading Deep work because it refines on incorporating deep work into a sustainable life style.

To me Cal Newport’s book “Deep Work” was a seminal body of work and while I have read most of his other books nothing had quite the same impact on me as that book. I always feel I evaluate his other books in the shadow of that book and that colors my review.

Core Philosophy of Slow Productivity

Principles:

• Focus on fewer things.
• Work at a natural, sustainable pace.
• Prioritize quality over quantity.

Key Insights

Reevaluating Success

• We’ve become so used to the idea that the only reward for getting better is moving toward higher income and increased responsibilities that we forget that the fruits of pursuing quality can also be harvested in the form of a more sustainable lifestyle.

I personally think this has already resonated with the general populace. Many people aim to retire early or have enough financial independence to work hours that make sense to them. However it is still a point worth re-iterating.

The Essence of Meaningful Work

• Meaningful work lies in consistently returning to what matters, not in achieving perfection every time.

A task ‘done’ is better than ‘perfect’ - Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg.

Pitfalls of Pseudo-Productivity

• The pseudo-productivity mindset is uncomfortable with spreading out work on an important project, as time not spent hammering on your most important goals seems like time wasted.

It is almost as if any time spent thinking about something is time not spent well, unless there is tangible output from this activity. But critical thinking time is indispensable and may not always have a step by step connect-the-dots results that can be seen.

Embracing Sustainability

• Don’t rush your most important work. Allow it instead to unfold along a sustainable timeline, with variations in intensity, in settings conducive to brilliance.

The variations in intensity resonated with me.

Curbing Jittery Busyness

• We suffer from overly ambitious timelines and poorly managed workloads due to a fundamental uneasiness with ever stepping back from the numbing exhaustion of jittery busyness.

Mindful Project Selection with Overhead Tax Awareness

• When selecting new projects, assess your options by the number of weekly requests, questions, or small chores you expect the project to generate. Each new commitment carries hidden administrative costs (e.g., emails, meetings) that accumulate and strain your time. This overhead tax activates as soon as you take on a new responsibility.

Very relevant when accepting new projects.

Managing Small Tasks

• Small tasks can disrupt productivity if unchecked. Take proactive steps to minimize their impact.

There are days when it seems like one has done nothing even if one is busy the whole day. Because meaningful work is very different from having done a whole set of small tasks that is only busy work.

Focused Execution

Deep focus on a few tasks at a time leads to more valuable and efficient output than multitasking. Working with unceasing intensity is artificial and unsustainable.

Shallow vs. Deep Work

• In the absence of more sophisticated measures of effectiveness, we also gravitate away from deeper efforts toward shallower, more concrete tasks that can be more easily checked off a to-do list.

In his book ‘First things first’ Stephen Covey talks about the difference in being efficient vs being effective. For the most meaningful projects and deep work being effective matters more.

Practical Applications

1. Separate Work from Noise: Distill core tasks from surrounding distractions; what remains is often more manageable.
2. Rationalize To-Do Lists: Be conscious of the limits of your time and the cumulative burden of growing responsibilities.

By prioritizing fewer, higher-quality efforts and pacing work sustainably, slow productivity fosters accomplishment without burnout.