Book report: Factfulness

Mariah Schley

BOOK OVERVIEW 

The book "Factfulness" is about the way that we perceive the world around us. One of the many ways that we do this is by putting things into categories this is done by the assumptions that we make. However, this system/ way of thinking is quite flawed because it only uses certain information to come to quick conclusions. By doing this we can miss out on very crucial information often leading to misinterpretation. This is one of the many reasons why it is so important that we view the information provided to us as a whole.

Many of us know that people use certain information to prove their own point but it's up to us to seek out both sides. By doing this we can avoid being misled by information that we see via the news, social media, television, etc. One of the many reasons why these forms of media use certain statistics is to catch the attention of the viewer. This allows them to obtain greater popularity. However, these statistics often make the world appear much worse than it is. This means that facts can often be used to distort and manipulate the viewer.

FAVORITE PART

I really enjoyed all the many ways that the authors encourage the reader to think outside of the box. The authors did this easily by suggesting that we reexamine the way that we think. We learned about this in lecture one. Here we discussed fast and slow ways of thinking. I really enjoyed how one of the first things that the authors in this book did was include the reader in the book. They were able to do this by having a small questionnaire included in the first chapter of the text. These questions got my brain working.

I also really enjoyed the visual charts and graphs that were depicted all throughout the book. I found that this added a nice touch in showing the importance of viewing information as a whole. I also found that these visual aspects of the book made it much easier to comprehend the text and the overall message.

REAL WORLD EXTENSION/ CREATIVE

I strongly believe that this concept can change the way we handle mental illnesses. Maybe one day instead of prescribing someone medications we could use effective strategies to improve patients’ way of thinking. By doing this many patients could live happier and healthier lives without the burden of expensive meds. This also provides patients with multiple different treatments which is often crucial for the success of the treatment in patients. Quite possibly changing the way we think can alleviate feelings of stress, anxiety, and depression.

CONCLUSION

This book really challenged me to think outside of the box. It led me to question everything that I thought I had known prior and reevaluate the world around me. The overall message of this book is to show people that things are not always what they may seem. This strongly relates to some of the information that we have learned in class. For example, in lecture 6 we learned about the many ways that our brains can mislead us into thinking certain ways. 

One of the many ways that we can overcome jumping to conclusions is by looking at all the facts. This book provided me with a better understanding of the world. I would highly recommend this book to everyone especially those interested in investing and marketing.