ESI Library, April 23: the 3+2 books recommended by Ana M. Fernández

We anticipate the day of the book that will be celebrated on Sunday, April 23. The section of 3+2 books for the month of April is led by Ana María Fernández Saez, PhD in Computer Engineering, Associate Professor at the Escuela Superior de Informática (UCLM), and researcher at the ALARCOS group. As usual, the protagonist of this section proposes five books, three of which are directly related to Computer Science, and another two that are not. These are the books that Ana recommends and why:

Tech books (3)

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1. Data: A Guide to Humans (Phil Harvey, Noelia Jiménez Martínez).

It is a very interesting book that teaches us why data is so important in today's world. It shows how companies (and governments) make Big Data with all the information that is available about us on the internet and use it for their own purposes. Does that sound like that of Instagram showing you advertising for something that seems SUPER suitable for you? Well, it's no coincidence. In addition, this book delves into a "utopia" in which the use of data does not forget the needs/feelings of the people from whom the data comes in order to extract the maximum benefit from it.

2. Design patterns applied to JAVA (Stephen Stelting, Olav Maasen), Ed. Prentice Hall.

It is a very practical book, which clarifies the famous design patterns with many easy-to-understand examples. When I was studying, design patterns were unknown until the last year. Learning to use them beforehand can help to avoid "bad vices" that are very difficult to remove later. In my case, during my studies I learned the theory of patterns in order to pass, but when I entered the world of work I had to understand them very well in order to put them correctly into practice. This book was a great help to me.

3. SQL optimization in Oracle (Javier Morales Carreras).

It is a book that I find super interesting and necessary for any programmer who works with Oracle databases. Problems related to the optimization of SQL statements and database resources can arise in this type of job, and this book is a great help since it deals with very specific aspects that are usually only seen in specialized courses (and that are usually expensive). It is an almost 100% practical book and very easy to follow.

Non-tech books (2)

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1. Physics and Eggplants: The invisible beauty of the Universe (Andrés Gomberoff), Ed. Debate.

In small chapters, it explains in a simple and entertaining way different sections of physics: heat, structure of the atom, appearance of the different elements, colors, wave-particle duality, black holes, importance of basic research, etc.

2. Brief answers to the big questions (Stephen Hawking), Ed. Critica.

It tries to provide answers in a simple way to those questions so complex that they can go around our heads at some time. He puts a lot of humor into it and also explains in the most entertaining and simple way possible some questions whose physical basis is far from being easily understandable.

Other book recommendations from Biblioteca ESI

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[+] March 2023, 3+2 books recommended by Luis Cabañero

[+] February 2023, 3+2 books recommended by Elena Toothless

[+] January 2023, 3+2 books recommended by Raúl Barba

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