Science of Fear by Dan Gardner

I heard this author on the radio for about three minutes, and within ten more minutes had this book loaded on my Kindle.

The Science of Fear is about risk. How we assess it as human beings, and how that leads to the things we fear. It is fascinating and full of facts and great stories. It even makes me laugh - not only at the mistakes others make in their thinking, but the ones I make too. (My wife Lori found it odd that I was laughing out loud at a book about fear - I don't think it was any sort of proof of my heroism!).

It explores the science of how we think, why we think, and the shortcuts we all use when we think. It also explores how and why we make decisions. The examples are from advertising, medicine, politics and much more. This book gives me much to think about in terms of how we are persuaded, and gives us tools to help us think more critically.

If you enjoy books that help you understand the world around you better (think Made to Stick, The Tipping Point, The World is Flat and others), this book should earn a place on your reading list. If your focus is more narrow on thinking and decision making skills, I still believe it is well worth the read.

I'll put it this way, I'm glad my radio was on in the car that morning.

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