The Right Stuff by Tom Wolfe

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 4 most detailed of 5 comments. Each links to the original.

1. if you watch it you'd maybe gain an understanding for why astronauts do these things

   Recommends · Mar 2026 · in “Artemis II is not safe to fly”

2. has a lot of interesting stuff on this wrt the first astronauts

   Recommends · Jul 2026 · in “DARPA, U.S. Air Force fly AI-controlled F-16”

3. a stellar book about Project Mercury

   Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “Project Mercury and the Sofar Bomb”

4. They mostly were test pilots prior.

   Recommends · Apr 2026 · in “Artemis II safely splashes down”