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The Irrational Ape
- Narrated by: David Robert Grimes
- Length: 14 hrs and 4 mins
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Publisher's summary
THE IRISH TIMES TOP FIVE BESTSELLER
'A beautifully reasoned book about our own unreasonableness' Robin Ince
In 1983, the reasoning of one unsung Russian narrowly averted nuclear war, proving that critical thinking can save the world. Today, facing unprecedented tides of disinformation, we’re frequently misled, to our detriment. The Irrational Ape explores the reasons why we get things so wrong, illustrated with incredible stories from the comical to the catastrophic.
With a cast including murderous popes, conspiracy theorists, snake-oil salesmen, dubious celebrities and superstitious pigeons, The Irrational Ape delves into how reasoning errors, skewed perceptions and even our own psychology render us so susceptible to falsehood – and how we can improve our reasoning to ensure we avoid being taken in.
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What listeners say about The Irrational Ape
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- George Falco De Mats
- 08-07-22
Why it matters...
The book is an excellent explanation of why we react superstitiously and emotionally, why we tend to ignore or select evidence to please our views. It debunks a lot of myths, skewed perceptions and beliefs.
But it is the elegant, simple and yet clear-cut way the author arguments that is the best. Few people can explain so eloquently why truth matters and how dangerous it is to ignore it. Unfortunately, this excellent book is likely to only convince the already convinced: Belief is deaf to argument - because it KNOWS...
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- Michalis Petrou
- 11-14-22
Why people believe stupid things
With the recent meteoric rise of conspiracy theories and alternative truths, this book is well positioned to explain why this is so. The author is excellent in explaining the different types of ways people get fooled into believing things that do not make much sense.
If you are like me and you are struggling to understand why people believe things that are clearly, in your experience, not true, then this book will help you get a better understanding of the situation through many recent controversies, learnings from history as well as the author's many experiences.
I highly recommend this book and it was 14 hours well spent!
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