Factfulness (ten Reasons We're Wrong About The World - And Why Things Are Better Than You Think)

By (author) Rosling Hans; By (author) Rosling, Ola; By (author) Anna Rosling Rönnlund
Short description/annotation

''A hopeful book about the potential for human progress when we work off facts rather than our inherent biases.'' BARACK OBAMA

Timely, short and essential, FACTFULNESS reveals the power of facts in a post-truth world, by late international sensation Hans Rosling (''a true inspiration'' - Bill Gates) and his long-term collaborators Ola and Anna.

Description

''A hopeful book about the potential for human progress when we work off facts rather than our inherent biases.'' BARACK OBAMA

''One of the most important books I''ve ever read - an indispensable guide to thinking clearly about the world.'' BILL GATES

*#1 Sunday Times bestseller * New York Times bestseller * Observer ''best brainy book of the decade'' * Irish Times bestseller * Guardian bestseller * audiobook bestseller *

Factfulness: The stress-reducing habit of only carrying opinions for which you have strong supporting facts.

When asked simple questions about global trends - why the world''s population is increasing; how many young women go to school; how many of us live in poverty - we systematically get the answers wrong. So wrong that a chimpanzee choosing answers at random will consistently outguess journalists, Nobel laureates and investment bankers.

In Factfulness, Professor of International Health and a man who can make data sing, Hans Rosling, together with his two long-time collaborators Anna and Ola, offers a radical new explanation of why this happens, and reveals the ten instincts that distort our perspective.

It turns out that the world, for all its imperfections, is in a much better state than we might think. But when we worry about everything all the time instead of embracing a worldview based on facts, we can lose our ability to focus on the things that threaten us most.

Inspiring and revelatory, filled with lively anecdotes and moving stories, Factfulness is an urgent and essential book that will change the way you see the world.

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A hopeful book about the potential for human progress when we work off facts rather than our inherent biases.
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One of the most important books I''ve ever read-an indispensable guide to thinking clearly about the world.
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A powerful antidote to pervasive pessimism and populist untruths.
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Factfulness ... , a light-hearted but data-rich book, calibrates our view of the world and explains how our cognitive processes can lead us astray
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Wonderful... a passionate and erudite message that is all the more moving because it comes from beyond the grave... His knack for presentation and delight in statistics come across on every page. Who else would choose a chart of "guitars per capita" as a proxy for human progress?
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An immensely cheering book in these anxious times.
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An assault both on ignorance and pessimism . . . helping countries improve their governance and public health and opening them up to the rule of law and market exchange works. But not by some sort of magic. Because we act. And to this, as Rosling argues, we first have to understand the world we live in.
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A wonderful guide to an improving world, as well as being a well-stocked source of sound advice as to how to think about factual and statistical claims . . . The book is a pleasure to read - simple, clear, memorable writing - and when you''ve finished you''ll be a lot wiser about the world. You''ll also feel rather happier . . . Factfulness - the relaxing peace of mind you get when you have a clearer view of how