Ask HN: Greatest Living Thinkers Today

Am I the only one who finds the notion of (for example) Seth Godin on a list of "Greatest Living Thinkers" to be terrifying?

And would it be to much to ask to see, maybe, a philosopher or mathematician or two listed?

I wouldn't pretend to know. I know the people I consider to be the best in their respective fields, but I would never pretend that that equates to "thinking" because frankly, "thinking" is all-too-often a bullshit phrase that means nothing.

If I had to name some people I thought were really making a mark on the world (and my list is biased immensely towards artists), that list would include:

* David Lynch, who I think deserves to be on the list for Eraserhead alone;

* Mark Z Danielewski, one of the very few writers I know who manages both to be fascinating, deep, experimental, and a good read;

* Steve Jobs, who has done more for the high-end consumer market than anybody else I know and who has seemingly unfailing instincts;

* Nobuo Uematsu, who is easily my favorite modern composer and who manages to write unique yet powerfully thematic pieces consistently; and

* Philip Glass, who is an absolute master of his style of composition.

But I wouldn't say that these people are necessarily the greatest thinkers today. They're just the ones whose work fascinates me, the ones who I feel are innovating the most honestly within their field.

Tim Keller is pretty high on my list. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kxup3OS5ZhQ