Books like 'How Infrastructure Works: Inside the Systems That Shape Our World'
Readers who enjoyed How Infrastructure Works: Inside the Systems That Shape Our World by Deb Chachra also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
technology urban politics pollution-climate-change
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Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson
Rated: 4.37 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsFrom the author of Steve Jobs and other bestselling biographies, this is the astonishingly intimate story of the most fascinating and controversial innovator of our era—a rule-breaking visionary who helped to lead the world into the era of electric vehicles, private space exploration, and artificial intelligence. Oh, and took over Twitter... -
![Material World: A Substantial Story of Our Past and Future by Ed Conway]()
Material World: A Substantial Story of Our Past and Future by Ed Conway
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 14 ratings'A compelling narrative of the human story' TIM MARSHALL, author of Prisoners of Geography'Lively, rich and exciting... full of surprises' PETER FRANKOPAN, author of The Silk Roads_____________Sand, salt, iron, copper, oil and lithium. They built our world, and they will transform our future.These are the six most crucial substances in human history... -
![Chocolate City: A History of Race and Democracy in the Nation's Capital by Chris Myers Asch, George Derek Musgrove]()
Chocolate City: A History of Race and Democracy in the Nation's Capital by Chris Myers Asch, George Derek Musgrove
Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsMonumental in scope and vividly detailed, Chocolate City tells the tumultuous, four-century story of race and democracy in our nation's capital... -
![A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction by Christopher W. Alexander, Sara Ishikawa]()
A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction by Christopher W. Alexander, Sara Ishikawa
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsAt the core of A Pattern Language is the philosophy that in designing their environments people always rely on certain ‘languages,’ which, like the languages we speak, allow them to articulate and communicate an infinite variety of designs within a formal system which gives them coherence.This book provides a language of this kind... -
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![Sustainable Energy - Without the Hot Air by David J.C. MacKay]()
Sustainable Energy - Without the Hot Air by David J.C. MacKay
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsAddressing the sustainable energy crisis in an objective manner, this enlightening book analyzes the relevant numbers and organizes a plan for change on both a personal level and an international scale—for Europe, the United States, and the world...Categorized as:
politics pollution-climate-change technology contemporary earth non-fiction outdoors university -
![Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming by Paul Hawken]()
Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming by Paul Hawken
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsIn the face of widespread fear and apathy, an international coalition of researchers, professionals, and scientists have come together to offer a set of realistic and bold solutions to climate change. One hundred techniques and practices are described here—some are well known; some you may have never heard of...Categorized as:
politics pollution-climate-change technology audiobook earth justice non-fiction outdoors -
![Happy City: Transforming Our Lives Through Urban Design by Charles Montgomery]()
Happy City: Transforming Our Lives Through Urban Design by Charles Montgomery
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsCharles Montgomery’s Happy City will revolutionize the way we think about urban life.After decades of unchecked sprawl, more people than ever are moving back to the city. Dense urban living has been prescribed as a panacea for the environmental and resource crises of our time...Categorized as:
urban politics technology non-fiction psychological audiobook philosophy contemporary -
![Crossings: How Road Ecology Is Shaping the Future of Our Planet by Ben Goldfarb]()
Crossings: How Road Ecology Is Shaping the Future of Our Planet by Ben Goldfarb
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsA New York Times Notable Book of 2023 and Editors' Choice • A Science News Favorite Book of 2023 • A Kirkus Reviews Best Nonfiction Book of 2023 • A Smithsonian Staff Favorite of 2023 • A New Yorker Best Book of 2023An eye-opening account of the global ecological transformations wrought by roads, from the award-winning author of Eager... -
![Recoding America: Why Government Is Failing in the Digital Age and How We Can Do Better by Jennifer Pahlka]()
Recoding America: Why Government Is Failing in the Digital Age and How We Can Do Better by Jennifer Pahlka
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 12 ratings“The book I wish every policymaker would read... -
![Ravenous: How to get ourselves and our planet into shape by Henry Dimbleby, Jemima Lewis]()
Ravenous: How to get ourselves and our planet into shape by Henry Dimbleby, Jemima Lewis
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsTHE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER'Brilliant - a must read' Tim SpectorYou may not be aware of this - not consciously, at least - but you do not control what you eat. Every mouthful you take is informed by the subtle tweaking and nudging of a vast, complex, global one so intimately woven into everyday life that you hardly even know it's there.The food system is no longer simply a means of sustenance... -
![The Third Plate: Field Notes on the Future of Food by Dan Barber]()
The Third Plate: Field Notes on the Future of Food by Dan Barber
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsBarber explores the evolution of American food from the 'first plate,' or industrially-produced, meat-heavy dishes, to the 'second plate' of grass-fed meat and organic greens, and says that both of these approaches are ultimately neither sustainable nor healthy... -
![How Big Things Get Done: The Surprising Factors That Determine the Fate of Every Project, from Home Renovations to Space Exploration and Everything In Between by Bent Flyvbjerg, Dan Gardner]()
How Big Things Get Done: The Surprising Factors That Determine the Fate of Every Project, from Home Renovations to Space Exploration and Everything In Between by Bent Flyvbjerg, Dan Gardner
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe secrets to successfully planning and delivering projects on any scale—from home renovation to space exploration—by the world’s leading expert on megaprojects “This book is important, timely, instructive, and entertaining. What more could you ask for?”—Daniel Kahneman, Nobel Prize–winning author of Thinking, Fast and Slow “Over-budget and over-schedule is an inevitability... -
![Five Presidents: My Extraordinary Journey with Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, and Ford by Clint Hill, Lisa McCubbin Hill]()
Five Presidents: My Extraordinary Journey with Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, and Ford by Clint Hill, Lisa McCubbin Hill
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsA rare and fascinating portrait of the American presidency from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Mrs. Kennedy and Me and Five Days in November .Secret Service agent Clint Hill brings history intimately and vividly to life as he reflects on his seventeen years protecting the most powerful office in the nation. Hill walked alongside Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F... -
![What Can a Body Do?: How We Meet the Built World by Sara Hendren]()
What Can a Body Do?: How We Meet the Built World by Sara Hendren
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsNamed a Best Book of the Year by NPR and LitHubWinner of the 2021 Science in Society Journalism Book PrizeA fascinating and provocative new way of looking at the things we use and the spaces we inhabit, and a call to imagine a better-designed world for us all...Categorized as:
politics urban technology non-fiction disability social-commentary audiobook female-author -
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![Inventing Bitcoin: The Technology Behind The First Truly Scarce and Decentralized Money Explained by Yan Pritzker]()
Inventing Bitcoin: The Technology Behind The First Truly Scarce and Decentralized Money Explained by Yan Pritzker
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsBitcoin may well be the greatest invention of our time, and most people have no idea what it is, or how it works. Walking through its invention step by step, this short two hour read is critical before you invest.No technical expertise required! Read it, then share it with your loved ones.“It was much quicker and easier to understand than I expected [.. -
![Human Transit: How Clearer Thinking about Public Transit Can Enrich Our Communities and Our Lives by Jarrett Walker]()
Human Transit: How Clearer Thinking about Public Transit Can Enrich Our Communities and Our Lives by Jarrett Walker
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsPublic transit is a powerful tool for addressing a huge range of urban problems, including traffic congestion and economic development as well as climate change. But while many people support transit in the abstract, it's often hard to channel that support into good transit investments. Part of the problem is that transit debates attract many kinds of experts, who often talk past each other... -
![Vaccinated: One Man's Quest to Defeat the World's Deadliest Diseases by Paul A. Offit]()
Vaccinated: One Man's Quest to Defeat the World's Deadliest Diseases by Paul A. Offit
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsMaurice Hilleman's mother died a day after he was born and his twin sister stillborn. As an adult, he said that he felt he had escaped an appointment with death. He made it his life's work to see that others could do the same... -
![Unsettled: What Climate Science Tells Us, What It Doesn’t, and Why It Matters by Steven E. Koonin]()
Unsettled: What Climate Science Tells Us, What It Doesn’t, and Why It Matters by Steven E. Koonin
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratings“Surging sea levels are inundating the coasts.”“Hurricanes and tornadoes are becoming fiercer and more frequent.”“Climate change will be an economic disaster.”You’ve heard all this presented as fact. But according to science, all of these statements are profoundly misleading... -
![How Buildings Learn: What Happens After They're Built by Stewart Brand]()
How Buildings Learn: What Happens After They're Built by Stewart Brand
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsBuildings have often been studied whole in space, but never before have they been studied whole in time. How Buildings Learn is a masterful new synthesis that proposes that buildings adapt best when constantly refined and reshaped by their occupants, and that architects can mature from being artists of space to becoming artists of time. From the connected farmhouses of New England to I.M... -
![Streetfight: Handbook for an Urban Revolution by Janette Sadik-Khan, Seth Solomonow]()
Streetfight: Handbook for an Urban Revolution by Janette Sadik-Khan, Seth Solomonow
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsAn empowering road map for rethinking, reinvigorating, and redesigning our cities, from a pioneer in the movement for safer, more livable streetsAs New York City’s transportation commissioner, Janette Sadik-Khan managed the seemingly impossible and transformed the streets of one of the world’s greatest, toughest cities into dynamic spaces safe for pedestrians and bikers... -
![Strong Towns: A Bottom-Up Revolution to Rebuild American Prosperity by Charles L. Marohn Jr.]()
Strong Towns: A Bottom-Up Revolution to Rebuild American Prosperity by Charles L. Marohn Jr.
Rated: 4.27 of 5 stars · 15 ratingsA new way forward for sustainable quality of life in cities of all sizesStrong Towns: A Bottom-Up Revolution to Build American Prosperity is a book of forward-thinking ideas that breaks with modern wisdom to present a new vision of urban development in the United States... -
![Power And Prediction: The Disruptive Economics of Artificial Intelligence by Ajay Agrawal, Joshua Gans]()
Power And Prediction: The Disruptive Economics of Artificial Intelligence by Ajay Agrawal, Joshua Gans
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsDisruption resulting from the proliferation of AI is coming. The authors of the bestselling Prediction Machines describe what you can do to prepare.Banking and finance, pharmaceuticals, automotive, medical technology, retail. Artificial intelligence (AI) has made its way into many industries around the world... -
![Project Japan. Metabolism Talks... by Rem Koolhaas, Hans-Ulrich Obrist]()
Project Japan. Metabolism Talks... by Rem Koolhaas, Hans-Ulrich Obrist
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsBack to the future Visionary architecture in postwar Japan “Once there was a nation that went to war, but after they conquered a continent their own country was destroyed by atom bombs... then the victors imposed democracy on the vanquished... -
![Walkable City Rules: 101 Steps to Making Better Places by Jeff Speck]()
Walkable City Rules: 101 Steps to Making Better Places by Jeff Speck
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsNearly every US city would like to be more walkable—for reasons of health, wealth, and the environment—yet few are taking the proper steps to get there. The goals are often clear, but the path is seldom easy. Jeff Speck’s follow-up to his bestselling Walkable City is the resource that cities and citizens need to usher in an era of renewed street life... -
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![Right of Way: Race, Class, and the Silent Epidemic of Pedestrian Deaths in America by Angie Schmitt, Charles T. Brown]()
Right of Way: Race, Class, and the Silent Epidemic of Pedestrian Deaths in America by Angie Schmitt, Charles T. Brown
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe face of the pedestrian safety crisis looks a lot like Ignacio Duarte-Rodriguez. The 77-year old grandfather was struck in a hit-and-run crash while trying to cross a high-speed, six-lane road without crosswalks near his son’s home in Phoenix, Arizona. He was one of the more than 6,000 people killed while walking in America in 2018... -
![Not the End of the World: How We Can Be the First Generation to Build a Sustainable Planet by Hannah Ritchie]()
Not the End of the World: How We Can Be the First Generation to Build a Sustainable Planet by Hannah Ritchie
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratings‘Truly essential’ MARGARET ATWOODFeeling anxious, powerless or confused about the future of our planet? This book will transform how you see our biggest environmental problems – and how we can solve them.It’s become common to tell kids that they’re going to die from climate change... -
![Order without Design: How Markets Shape Cities by Alain Bertaud]()
Order without Design: How Markets Shape Cities by Alain Bertaud
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsAn argument that operational urban planning can be improved by the application of the tools of urban economics to the design of regulations and infrastructure. Urban planning is a craft learned through practice. Planners make rapid decisions that have an immediate impact on the ground—the width of streets, the minimum size of land parcels, the heights of buildings... -
![Better Buses, Better Cities: How to Plan, Run, and Win the Fight for Effective Transit by Steven Higashide]()
Better Buses, Better Cities: How to Plan, Run, and Win the Fight for Effective Transit by Steven Higashide
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsImagine a bus system that is fast, frequent, and reliable—what would that change about your city? Buses can and should be the cornerstone of urban transportation. They offer affordable mobility and can connect citizens with every aspect of their lives. But in the US, they have long been an afterthought in budgeting and planning... -
![The Internet of Money Volume Two by Andreas M. Antonopoulos]()
The Internet of Money Volume Two by Andreas M. Antonopoulos
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe Internet of Money Volume Two is the spectacular sequel to the cult classic and best seller The Internet of Money Volume One by Andreas M. Antonopoulos... -
![World Without End: An Illustrated Guide to the Climate Crisis by Christophe Blain]()
World Without End: An Illustrated Guide to the Climate Crisis by Christophe Blain
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA rich and colorful French graphic novel that has become a word-of-mouth sensation and transformed the way hundreds of thousands of people think about climate change.There is no green energy. Nor pink, nor black. Nor clean nor dirty, for that matter...Categorized as:
politics pollution-climate-change technology non-fiction comics outdoors 21st-century
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