Based on a wildly popular UC Berkeley course, how to use scientists’ tricks of the trade to make the best decisions and solve the hardest problems in age of uncertainty and overwhelming information.In our deluge of information, it’s getting harder and harder to distinguish the revelatory from the contradictory. How do we make health decisions in the face of conflicting medical advice? Does the research cited in that article even show what the authors claim? How can...

Based on a wildly popular UC Berkeley course, a primer on how to think critically, make sound decisions, and solve problems—individually and collectively—using scientists’ tricks of the trade.In our deluge of information, it's getting harder and harder to distinguish the revelatory from the contradictory. How do we make health decisions in the face of conflicting medical advice? Does that article on GMOs even show what the authors claim? How can we navigate the nex...

Two New York Times-bestselling psychologists explain the science of cons—and how we can avoid themFrom phishing scams to Ponzi schemes, fraudulent science to fake art, chess cheaters to crypto hucksters, and marketers to magicians, our world brims with deception. In Nobody’s Fool, psychologists Daniel Simons and Christopher Chabris show us how to avoid being taken in. They describe the key habits of thinking and reasoning that serve us well most o...

A brilliant takedown and exposé of the great con job of the twenty-first century—the metaverse, crypto, space travel, transhumanism—being sold by four billionaires (Peter Thiel, Mark Zuckerberg, Marc Andreesen, Elon Musk), leading to the degeneration and bankruptcy of our society.At a time when the crises of income inequality, climate, and democracy are compounding to create epic wealth disparity and the prospect o...

**A top scholar reveals the most complete picture to date of how early human speech led to the languages we use today **The invention of language began with the apelike calls of our earliest ancestors. Today, the world is home to thousands of complex languages. Yet exactly how, when, and why this evolution occurred has been one of the most enduring—and contentiously debated—questions in science. In The Language Puzzle, renowned archaeologist Steven Mithen puts forw...

In this illuminating book, the architect of some of the most famous ad campaigns of the last decade reveals how our perspective can be influenced by culture.In For the Culture, Marcus Collins argues that true cultural engagement is the most powerful vehicle for influencing behavior. If you want to get people to move, you must first understand the underlying cultural forces that make them tick.Collins uses stories from his own work as an award-winni...

**“A fascinating look into why people reveal what they do about themselves—and how we can all communicate better with others.” —Arthur C. Brooks, bestselling author of From Strength to StrengthA groundbreaking book on the surprising potential of revealing more of ourselves to others, from a celebrated Harvard Business School professor and expert on the psychology of personal disclosure decisions**We all know the feeling: that gut-wrenching post-conversation replay,...

An award-winning mathematician—he "made me smile and made me feel clever" (Peter Frankopan)—shows how we prove what’s true, and what to do when we can’tHow do we establish what we believe? And how can we be certain that what we believe is true? And how do we convince other people that it is true? For thousands of years, from the ancient Greeks to the Arabic golden age to the modern world, science has used different methods—logical, empirical, intuitive, and more—to...

A neuroscientist reveals the hidden calculations that shape our daily decisions―and how to make more fulfilling, impactful choices in our work, relationships, and lives.Amid the many competing priorities of our busy lives, it can feel difficult to make the right decisions―ones that feel aligned with the things we care about. Change can feel almost impossible. In this book, award-winning researcher Emily Falk reveals how we can transform our relationship with the da...

Popular science writer Philip Ball explores a range of sciences to map our answers to a huge, philosophically rich question: How do we even begin to think about minds that are not human?Sciences from zoology to astrobiology, computer science to neuroscience, are seeking to understand minds in their own distinct disciplinary realms. Taking a uniquely broad view of minds and where to find them—including in plants, aliens, and God—Philip Ball pulls the pieces together...

The gripping true story of an indigenous people running the world’s mightiest narco-state—and America’s struggle to thwart them.In Asia’s narcotics-producing heartland, the Wa reign supreme. They dominate the Golden Triangle, a mountainous stretch of Burma between Thailand and China. Their 30,000-strong army, wielding missiles and attack drones, makes Mexican cartels look like street gangs.Wa moguls are unrivaled in the region’s $60 billion meth trade and i...

Why policies should be based on careful consideration of their costs and benefits rather than on intuition, popular opinion, interest groups, and anecdotes. Opinions on government policies vary widely. Some people feel passionately about the child obesity epidemic and support government regulation of sugary drinks. Others argue that people should be able to eat and drink whatever they like. Some people are alarmed about climate change and favor aggressive government intervention. Others do...