Rationality : what it is, why it seems scarce, why it matters
Pinker, Steven, 1954-2022
Books, Manuscripts
In the 21st century, humanity is reaching new heights of scientific understanding - and at the same time appears to be losing its mind. How can a species that discovered vaccines for Covid-19 in less than a year produce so much fake news, quack cures and conspiracy theorising? In this book, Steven Pinker rejects the cynical cliché that humans are simply an irrational species - cavemen out of time fatally cursed with biases, fallacies and illusions. After all, we discovered the laws of nature, lengthened and enriched our lives and set the benchmarks for rationality itself. Instead, he explains, we think in ways that suit the low-tech contexts in which we spend most of our lives, but fail to take advantage of the powerful tools of reasoning we have built up over millennia: logic, critical thinking, probability, causal inference, and decision-making under uncertainty.
Main title:
Rationality : what it is, why it seems scarce, why it matters / Steven Pinker.
Author:
Pinker, Steven, 1954-, author
Imprint:
London : Penguin Books, 2022.
Collation:
432 pages : illustrations (black and white) ; 20 cm
Notes:
Originally published: New York: Viking, 2021.Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN:
9780141989860 (pbk)
Dewey class:
153.42153.42 PIN
Language:
English
BRN:
3283419