Book · recommended on 8 episodes
Exhalation
Ted Chiang ISBN 9781101972083
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Ted Chiang ISBN 9781101972083
Find it on AmazonAffiliate link — we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
This book by Ted Chiang has come up 8 times across 2 different shows: Lex Fridman, Tim Ferriss. 8 of those mentions were genuine on-air recommendations, not just passing references. The people who brought it up: Kevin Rose, Michael Littman, Tim Ferriss. The earliest mention we indexed is from 2020-04-27 and the most recent from 2025-04-17. Every occurrence below links to the episode page and to the exact second it was said on YouTube.
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR • Nine stunningly original, provocative, and poignant stories, two published for the very first time, all from the mind of the incomparable author of Stories of Your Life and Others Tackling some of humanity’s oldest questions along with new quandaries only he could imagine, these stories will change the way you think, feel, and see the world. They are Ted Chiang at his best: profound, sympathetic, revelatory. Ted Chiang tackles some of humanity’s oldest questions along with new quandaries only he could imagine.
“Then a second collection came out, Exhalation ... And the second is just unbelievably good.”— Tim Ferriss
The guest here is Rich Barton: Serial entrepreneur and investor who founded Expedia (incubated inside Microsoft), Zillow, Glassdoor, and Avvo, and sits on the boards of Netflix and others; known for 'provocation marketing' and building consumer-facing digital marketplaces. Expedia and Zillow founder Rich Barton on taking big swings, spinning out companies, and his provocation-marketing playbook.
“I'll usually steer them to, say, Ted Chiang short stories like Exhalation is his second collection.”— Tim Ferriss
The guest here is Claire Hughes Johnson: Former COO of Stripe (and prior Google executive); author of Scaling People: Tactics for Management and Company Building. Stripe's former COO Claire Hughes Johnson on radical ownership, saying hard truths, renegotiating commitments, and building self-awareness as a leader.
“one sci-fi book to recommend is exhalations by ted chang a bunch of short stories”— Michael Littman
The guest here is Michael Littman: Computer science professor at Brown University researching and teaching machine learning, reinforcement learning, and AI. A prolific maker of computer-science parody songs and a former TurboTax commercial cameo, he has had a front-row seat to RL's history since the 1980s. Brown professor Michael Littman on reinforcement learning, why he is unmoved by AI doom, AlphaGo, and the social subtlety of self-driving cars.
“ted chang's work he has a compilation of short stories called exhalation ... these are really really really incredible stories”— Tim Ferriss
The guest here is Yuval Noah Harari: Historian and best-selling author of Sapiens, Homo Deus, and 21 Lessons for the 21st Century, considered one of the world's most influential public intellectuals. A longtime Vipassana meditation practitioner who has now adapted Sapiens into a graphic novel series. Yuval Noah Harari on meditation, the fictional stories that bind humanity, suffering as a test of reality, and the existential risks ahead.
“he has a new collection called exhalation that i highly recommend to people and then ken liu”— Tim Ferriss
The guest here is Brad Feld: Early-stage investor and entrepreneur since 1987, co-founder of Foundry Group and Techstars, and author of multiple books in the Startup Revolution series. He is also an OCD/depression mental-health advocate, art collector, and 50-state marathon runner based in Boulder, Colorado. VC Brad Feld tells Tim Ferriss how unplugging rituals, therapy, and openness about depression sustained him through entrepreneurial chaos.
“His most recent collection is Exhalation, which I thought could not possibly equal his previous collection, and it maybe surpassed it”— Tim Ferriss
The guest here is Janna Levin: Tow Professor of Physics and Astronomy at Barnard College of Columbia University and director of sciences at Pioneer Works. She studies black holes, extra dimensions, and gravitational waves, and is an award-winning author of books including Black Hole Blues and A Madman Dreams of Turing Machines. Physicist Janna Levin on the finite universe, extra dimensions, time travel, and reframing life's obstacles as the path itself.
“exhalation 100% agrees yes fantastic series of short fiction books that are amazing highly recommend”— Kevin Rose
The guest here is Kevin Rose: Kevin Rose is a serial entrepreneur, investor at True Ventures, and Tim Ferriss's longtime friend and co-host of The Random Show. He joins Tim for this live, boozy quarantine-edition conversation. Tim Ferriss and Kevin Rose drink wine and riff on quarantine life, books, investing, anxiety, and binge-watching during early COVID-19.
“Ted Chiang exhalation is his latest his latest collection is just incredible ... so that is a top recommendation”— Tim Ferriss
The guest here is Brian Koppelman: Screenwriter, novelist, director, and producer best known for co-creating Showtime's Billions and co-writing Rounders and Ocean's Thirteen. He also hosts The Moment podcast and was the tenth-ever guest on The Tim Ferriss Show. Brian Koppelman on giving and taking feedback, beating creative and personal stuckness, building serendipity, and the art behind making art.
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