The hidden half : how the world conceals its secrets / Michael Blastland.

By: Blastland, Michael [author.]Material type: TextTextPublisher: London : Atlantic Books, 2019Copyright date: ©2019Description: 295 pages ; 23 cmContent type: text Media type: unmediated Carrier type: volumeISBN: 9781786497772 (hardback)Subject(s): Knowledge, Theory of | Curiosities and wonders | Popular cultureDDC classification: 121 Summary: Why does one smoker die of lung cancer but another live to 100? The answer is 'The Hidden Half' - those random, unknowable variables that mess up our attempts to comprehend the world. We humans are very clever creatures - but we're idiots about how clever we really are. In this entertaining and ingenious book, Blastland reveals how in our quest to make the world more understandable, we lose sight of how unexplainable it often is. The result - from GDP figures to medicine - is that experts know a lot less than they think. Filled with compelling stories from economics, genetics, business, and science, The Hidden Half is a warning that an explanation which works in one arena may not work in another. Entertaining and provocative, it will change how you view the world.
Tags from this library: No tags from this library for this title. Log in to add tags.
Star ratings
    Average rating: 0.0 (0 votes)
Holdings
Item type Current library Call number Status Date due Barcode
wnor- Book Wundowie
Wundowie Adult Non Fiction
121 BLA (Browse shelf(Opens below)) Available 31111075601516

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Why does one smoker die of lung cancer but another live to 100? The answer is 'The Hidden Half' - those random, unknowable variables that mess up our attempts to comprehend the world. We humans are very clever creatures - but we're idiots about how clever we really are. In this entertaining and ingenious book, Blastland reveals how in our quest to make the world more understandable, we lose sight of how unexplainable it often is. The result - from GDP figures to medicine - is that experts know a lot less than they think. Filled with compelling stories from economics, genetics, business, and science, The Hidden Half is a warning that an explanation which works in one arena may not work in another. Entertaining and provocative, it will change how you view the world.

There are no comments on this title.

to post a comment.