This book is amazing:

https://www.amazon.com/Elements-Computing-Systems-second-Pri...

It's a bit basic in terms of compilers but it does teach a lot of useful things.

The Elements of Computing Systems: Building a Modern Computer from First Principles [0] [1]

Easily one of the most interesting and engaging textbooks I've read in my entire life. I remember barely doing any work for my day job while I powered through this book for a couple weeks.

Also, another +1 to Operating Systems: Three Easy Pieces [2], which was mentioned in this thread. I read this one cover to cover.

Lastly, Statistical Rethinking [3] really did change the way I think about statistics.

[0] https://www.nand2tetris.org/

[1] https://www.amazon.com/Elements-Computing-Systems-second-Pri...

[2] https://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~remzi/OSTEP/

[3] https://xcelab.net/rm/statistical-rethinking/

If you think this is cool and would like to follow these steps yourself, here are my recommendations:

* Turing Complete on Steam (if you're into video games): https://store.steampowered.com/app/1444480/Turing_Complete/ * The Elements of Computing Systems (if you'd rather follow along step by step in a book):https://www.amazon.com/Elements-Computing-Systems-second-Pri...

Code is my favorite technical book of all time [1]. Charles does an amazing job of building a computer up from basic principles "two young boys who want to communicate after their parents tell them to go to bed at night" all the way to modern (for 1999) computers. He layers abstraction on top of abstraction all the way to a working computer. My only (slight) disappointment in the book is that he tries to cover operating systems -> object oriented programming in a couple of chapters at the end. That could have been a multi-volume series in its own right.

It goes really well with Elements of Computing Systems (2nd ed) [2] which I kind of think of as a "lab manual" where you get to build a computer from first principles.

[1] https://www.amazon.com/Code-Language-Computer-Hardware-Softw...

[2] https://www.amazon.com/Elements-Computing-Systems-second-Pri...

From Nand To Tetris, the Book: https://www.amazon.com/Elements-Computing-Systems-second-Pri...

* How to Code: Simple Data and How to Code: Complex Data on edX. Taught by Gregor Kiczales, of Common Lisp and CLOS fame. Uses Racket and graphical programs to teach.

https://www.edx.org/course/how-to-code-simple-data

https://www.edx.org/course/how-to-code-complex-data

* The From Nand to Teris project, The Elements of Computing Systems: Building a Modern Computer from First Principles book, and/or Coursera course. Builds a hardware stack for a CPU and then a software stack (assembler, VM, high-level language).

https://www.nand2tetris.org/

https://www.coursera.org/learn/build-a-computer

https://www.coursera.org/learn/nand2tetris2

https://www.amazon.com/Elements-Computing-Systems-second-Pri...

* The How to Design Programs book. What the edX course above is based upon.

https://htdp.org/

https://www.amazon.com/How-Design-Programs-Introduction-Prog...

* Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs (SICP). Uses Scheme. One can use Racket with the `#lang sicp` language.

https://mitpress.mit.edu/sites/default/files/sicp/index.html

https://www.amazon.com/Structure-Interpretation-Computer-Pro...

YouTube playlist of the course by the authors: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLE18841CABEA24090

* Thinking as Computation: A First Course. Uses Prolog to solve problems of thinking.

https://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Computation-First-Course-Pre...

https://www.cs.toronto.edu/~hector/PublicTCSlides.pdf

* Turtle Geometry: The Computer as a Medium for Exploring Mathematics (shares an author with SICP). Uses Logo to explore turtle geometry/graphics. Can use any modern Logo implementation.

https://www.amazon.com/Turtle-Geometry-Mathematics-Artificia...

https://direct.mit.edu/books/book/4663/Turtle-GeometryThe-Co...

* Starting Forth. Uses Forth.

https://www.forth.com/starting-forth/

https://www.amazon.com/Starting-Forth-Leo-Brodie-ebook/dp/B0...

* Learning Processing: A Beginner's Guide to Programming Images, Animation, and Interaction and also The Nature of Code: Simulating Natural Systems with Processing. Uses Processing and p5.js (the JavaScript version of Processing).

http://learningprocessing.com/

https://natureofcode.com/

https://www.amazon.com/Learning-Processing-Beginners-Program...

https://www.amazon.com/Nature-Code-Simulating-Natural-Proces...

The author's YouTube channel: https://youtube.com/c/TheCodingTrain

https://processing.org/

The book that did this for me:

The Elements of Computing Systems: Building a Modern Computer from First Principles (Nisan and Schocken)

https://www.amazon.com/Elements-Computing-Systems-second-Pri...