Author:Nassim Nicholas Taleb
The phenomenal international bestseller that shows us how to stop trying to predict everything - and take advantage of uncertainty
What have the invention of the wheel, Pompeii, the Wall Street Crash, Harry Potter and the internet got in common? Why are all forecasters con-artists? Why should you never run for a train or read a newspaper?
This book is all about Black Swans: the random events that underlie our lives, from bestsellers to world disasters. Their impact is huge; they're impossible to predict; yet after they happen we always try to rationalize them.
'Taleb is a bouncy and even exhilarating guide ... I came to relish what he said, and even develop a sneaking affection for him as a person' Will Self, Independent on Sunday
'He leaps like some superhero of the mind' Boyd Tonkin, Independent
A fascinating study of how we are regularly taken for suckers by the unexpected
—— GuardianLike the conversation of a raconteur ... hugely enjoyable - compelling
—— Financial TimesIt has altered modern thinking
—— The TimesConfirms his status as a guru for every would-be Damien Hirst, George Soros and aspirant despot
—— Sunday TimesThe Black Swan changed my view of how the world works
—— Daniel Kahneman, author of Thinking, Fast and SlowGreat fun... brash, stubborn, entertaining, opinionated, curious, cajoling
—— Stephen J. Dubner, co-author of FreakonomicsThe most prophetic voice of all
—— GQAccessible and enlightening ... It's not Greenberg's way to preach; he's happier letting the facts speak for themselves
—— ObserverRequired reading for anyone who eats seafood ...Greenberg is an unfailingly entertaining writer, and his book arms you with the information you need to make intelligent choices when you are confronted by the ... offerings at the fish counter
—— AtlanticLucid, readable ... a story well told
—— Charles Clover , Sunday TimesAn elegantly composed and strikingly level-headed inquiry into our relationship with the fish we eat and the waters that sustain them
—— Tom Fort , Sunday TelegraphA powerful case for action ... combining on-the-ground and on-the-ocean reporting from the Yukon to Greece, from the waters off New England to the Mekong Delta, along with accounts of some stirring fishing trips, Greenberg makes a powerful argument ... marvellous exploration of that contradiction, a necessary book for anyone interested in what we take from the sea to eat, and how, and why
—— Sam Sifton , ScotsmanOren Harman's outstanding new biography of the American scientist George Price makes the case that Price's theoretical contributions to biology are among the most important of the twentieth century...Price was undoubtedly an opaque figure; Harman has approached his life with sensitivity and intelligence, providing a clearer window into this troubled mind
—— Tom Bailey , TLSMoving biography exploring a geneticst's understanding of human selflessness
—— The TimesAn energetic tale that presents not only the science but the history and politics which produced it
—— Islington Tribune