I read Thinking in Systems a few years ago, in part because Bill Gates recommended it. (I had seen it elsewhere too, probably on Hacker News.)
As I recall, there are problems with the book, because the author actually passed away before it was finished.
The biggest problem IMO is that it doesn't adequately address modeling error. It barely mentions it at all. It simply introduces models that were simulated on a computer, and talks about their consequences. And I remember there being a tenuous connection to the original research, which is notable because I believe the author's group did a lot of it.
So I would be interested in some other high level / overview books on the same subject. I'm not sure I got a lot out of this book. I think the main thesis was to focus on "points of leverage" when trying to change systems. I think it is valuable to hammer that point home, but it's hardly novel, and it wasn't justified with practice. I felt like it was too focused on simulations, and confused the simulations with reality.
As I recall, there are problems with the book, because the author actually passed away before it was finished.
The biggest problem IMO is that it doesn't adequately address modeling error. It barely mentions it at all. It simply introduces models that were simulated on a computer, and talks about their consequences. And I remember there being a tenuous connection to the original research, which is notable because I believe the author's group did a lot of it.
So I would be interested in some other high level / overview books on the same subject. I'm not sure I got a lot out of this book. I think the main thesis was to focus on "points of leverage" when trying to change systems. I think it is valuable to hammer that point home, but it's hardly novel, and it wasn't justified with practice. I felt like it was too focused on simulations, and confused the simulations with reality.