Algorithms To Live By : The Computer Science Of Human Decisions

探討如何將電腦科學中的演算法原理應用到日常生活與人類決策中。作者結合心理學、認知科學與計算機科學，說明演算法不僅是電腦解題的工具，更是我們在面對生活難題時可借鑑的思考模型。

本書涵蓋多種實用議題，透過演算法的視角來處理生活中的決策與權衡，例如：

➤最佳停下時機（Optimal Stopping）：如何判斷在眾多選項中何時停止尋找並做出決定，如招聘或約會。
➤探索與利用的平衡（Explore-Exploit Trade-off）：何時探索新機會，何時利用已知資源。
➤排序與組織：提升查找效率的策略。
➤快取管理：如何在有限記憶空間中有效保留重要資訊。
➤工作排程與切換成本：如何管理多任務與優先順序。
➤貝氏定理（Bayes's Rule）：結合先驗知識與新資訊做出推論。
➤放寬問題限制：在無解或計算困難的情況下，尋求「夠好」的近似解。
➤隨機性與資源管理：利用隨機策略在不確定環境下取得良好結果。
➤網絡與遊戲理論：理解互動系統與多方利益的決策動態。

書中強調，雖然演算法能為複雜問題提供指導，但現實生活中決策仍存在不確定性和失敗風險。重要的是採用合理的策略來面對時間與資源限制，並學習在不完美中作出最佳抉擇。該書還指出，人類在面對計算難題時，常能透過直覺和簡化模型達成驚人的表現。

此書獲得廣泛好評，被譽為一本能讓人重新認識「演算法」不僅屬於科技領域，更是生活智慧的指導手冊。

A fascinating exploration of how computer algorithms can be applied to our everyday lives. What should we do, or leave undone, in a day or a lifetime? Exploring how insights from computer algorithms can be applied to our everyday lives, 'Algorithms To Live By' helps to solve common decision-making problems and illuminate the workings of the human mind. When should you switch between different tasks, and how many tasks should you take on in the first place? How much messiness should you accept? What balance of new activities and familiar favourites is the most fulfilling? When computers face constraints of time and space, they too must untangle very human questions: how to have better hunches, when to leave things to chance, how to deal with overwhelming choices and how best to connect with others.

And the solutions they've found have much to teach us. Acclaimed author Brian Christian and cognitive scientist Tom Griffiths show how the algorithms developed for computers can be applied from finding your spouse to finding a parking spot, from organizing your inbox to understanding the workings of memory. Where you have a dilemma, they