Our lives are composed of millions of choices, ranging from trivial
to life-changing and momentous. Luckily, our brains have evolved a
number of mental shortcuts, biases, and tricks that allow us to
quickly negotiate this endless array of decisions. We don't "want
"to rationally deliberate every choice we make, and thanks to these
cognitive rules of thumb, we don't need to.
Yet these hard-wired shortcuts, mental wonders though they may be,
can also be perilous. They can distort our thinking in ways that
are often invisible to us, leading us to make poor decisions, to be
easy targets for manipulators...and they can even cost us our
lives.
The truth is, despite all the buzz about the power of gut-instinct
decision-making in recent years, sometimes it's better to stop and
say, "On second thought . . ."
The trick, of course, lies in knowing when to trust that instant
response, and when to question it. In "On Second Thought,
"acclaimed science writer Wray Herbert provides the first guide to
achieving that balance. Drawing on real-world examples and
cutting-edge research, he takes us on a fascinating, wide-ranging
journey through our innate cognitive traps and tools, exposing the
hidden dangers lurking in familiarity and consistency; the
obstacles that keep us from accurately evaluating risk and value;
the delusions that make it hard for us to accurately predict the
future; the perils of the human yearning for order and simplicity;
the ways our fears can color our very perceptions . . . and much
more.
Along the way, Herbert reveals the often-bizarre cross-connections
these shortcuts have secretly ingrained in our brains, answering
such questions as why jury decisions may be shaped by our ancient
need for cleanliness; what the state of your desk has to do with
your political preferences; why loneliness can literally make us
shiver; how drawing two dots on a piece of paper can desensitize us
to violence... and how the very typeface on this page is affecting
your decision about whether or not to buy this book.
Ultimately, "On Second Thought "is both a captivating exploration
of the workings of the mind and an invaluable resource for anyone
who wants to learn how to make smarter, better judgments every day.
"From the Hardcover edition."
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