Alchemy by Rory Sutherland

What hackers pick instead

• The Cuckoo's Egg by Cliff StollReaders recommend this gripping, fun true story of tracking a hacker, often named as the book that sparked their interest in computing and security.40recommend
• Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil PostmanReaders recommend this short critique of how TV and visual media reshaped public discourse, saying its ideas still apply to social media and phones.36recommend
• The Anxious Generation by Jonathan HaidtRecommended for its scientific case that social media harms children, especially under 16; critics say its evidence is weak and its charts don't support its conclusions.24recommend
• Bullshit Jobs by David GraeberRecommended for framing jobs that add no real value, though critics say its economics is weak and it never names the jobs.20recommend
• Enshittification by Cory DoctorowPeople recommend it for clearly explaining how big platforms get worse over time, with many examples and useful antitrust context.19recommend

Every quote

The 9 most detailed of 9 comments. Each links to the original.

1. deeply interesting ideas I would not have notices if they hadn't been pointed out to me

   Recommends · Jun 2026 · in “The Doorman's Fallacy in Action”

2. this book was a real eye opener around how people actually make decisions

   Recommends · Mar 2026 · in “The Brand Age”

3. I would strongly recommend the book Alchemy by Rory Sutherland

   Recommends · Apr 2026 · in “Everything we like is a psyop”

4. people really need to read alchemy by roy Sutherland

   Recommends · Oct 2026 · in “90% of US working hours are spent on tasks not covered well by AI benchmarks”

5. This was a great read. It reminds me slightly of the book Alchemy by Rory Sutherland.

   Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “The Year of the 3D Printed Miniature (and Other Lies We Tell Ourselves)”

6. It will help improve the understanding of marketing and hows business operate.

   Recommends · Mar 2026 · in “Judge Orders Government to Begin Refunding More Than $130B in Tariffs”

7. DIY with Alchemy/Infura webhooks (option 2) is probably cleanest

   Recommends · Mar 2026 · in “Ask HN: How do you verify crypto payments in your app?”

8. This is exactly the point of Rory Sutherland's book Alchemy

   Recommends · Aug 2026 · in “Stop Eating Lady Gaga's Oreos”

9. centralized indexers like Alchemy or The Graph

   Criticizes · Feb 2026 · in “Ask HN: Who is hiring? (February 2026)”