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Don't trust your gut : using data to get what you really want in life / by Stephens-Davidowitz, Seth,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."In Don't Trust Your Gut, economist, former Google data scientist, and New York Times bestselling author Seth Stephens-Davidowitz reveals just how wrong we really are when it comes to improving our own lives. We consult friends and family, make sense of confusing "expert" advice online, maybe we read a self-help book to guide us. In the end, we usually just do what feels right, pursuing high stakes self-improvement-such as who we marry, how to date, where to live, what makes us happy-based solely on what our gut instinct tells us. But what if our gut is wrong? Biased, unpredictable, and misinformed, our gut, it turns out, is not all that reliable. And data can prove this. Telling fascinating, unexpected stories with these numbers and the latest big data research, Stephens-Davidowitz exposes that, while we often think we know how to better ourselves, the numbers disagree. Hard facts and figures consistently contradict our instincts and demonstrate self-help that actually works-whether it involves the best time in life to start a business or how happy it actually makes us to skip a friend's birthday party for a night of Netflix on the couch. From the boring careers that produce the most wealth, to the old-school, data-backed relationship advice so well-worn it's become a literal joke, he unearths the startling conclusions that the right data can teach us about who we are and what will make our lives better."
Subjects: Self-help publications.; Big data; Data mining; Decision making;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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The life-changing science of detecting bullshit / by Petrocelli, John V.,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."Expanding upon his viral TEDx Talk, psychology professor and social scientist John V. Petrocelli reveals the critical thinking habits you can develop to recognize and combat pervasive false information that harms society in The Life-Changing Science of Detecting Bullshit. Bullshit is the foundation of contaminated thinking and bad decisions leading to health consequences, financial losses, legal consequences, broken relationships, and wasted time and resources. No matter how smart we believe ourselves to be, we're all susceptible to bullshit-and we all engage in it. While we may brush it off as harmless marketing sales speak or as humorous, embellished claims, it's actually much more dangerous and insidious. It's how Bernie Madoff successfully swindled billions of dollars from even the most experienced financial experts with his Ponzi scheme. It's how the protocols of Mao Zedong's Great Leap Forward resulted in the deaths of 36 million people from starvation. Presented as truths by authority figures and credentialed experts, bullshit appears legitimate, and we accept their words as gospel. If we don't question the information we receive from bullshit artists to prove their thoughts and theories, we allow these falsehoods to take root in our memories and beliefs. This faulty data affects our decision making capabilities, sometimes resulting in regrettable life choices. But with a little dose of skepticism and a commitment to truth seeking, you can build your critical thinking and scientific reasoning skills to evaluate information, separate fact from fiction, and see through bullshitter spin. In The Life-Changing Science of Detecting Bullshit, experimental social psychologist John V. Petrocelli provides invaluable strategies not only to recognize and protect yourself from everyday bullshit, but to accept your own lack of knowledge about subjects and avoid in engaging in bullshit just for societal conformity. With real world examples from people versed in bullshit who work in the used car, real estate, wine, and diamond industries, Petrocelli exposes the red-flag warning signs found in the anecdotal stories, emotional language, and buzzwords used by bullshitters that persuade our decisions. By using his critical thinking defensive tactics against those motivated by profit, we will also learn how to stop the toxic misinformation spread from the social media influencers, fake news, and op-eds that permeate our culture and call out bullshit whenever we see it"--
Subjects: Critical thinking.; Reasoning.; Decision making.;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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The AI con : how to fight big tech's hype and create the future we want / by Bender, Emily M.,1973-author.; Hanna, Alex,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."Is artificial intelligence going to take over the world? Have big tech scientists created an artificial life-form that can think on its own? Is it going to put authors, artists, and others out of business? Are we about to enter an age where computers are better than humans at everything? The answer to these questions, linguist Emily M. Bender and sociologist Alex Hanna make clear, is "no," "they wish," "LOL," and "definitely not." This kind of thinking is a symptom of a phenomenon known as "AI hype." Hype looks and smells fishy: It twists words and helps the rich get richer by justifying data theft, motivating surveillance capitalism, and devaluing human creativity in order to replace meaningful work with jobs that treat people like machines. In The AI Con, Bender and Hanna offer a sharp, witty, and wide-ranging take-down of AI hype across its many forms. Bender and Hanna show you how to spot AI hype, how to deconstruct it, and how to expose the power grabs it aims to hide. Armed with these tools, you will be prepared to push back against AI hype at work, as a consumer in the marketplace, as a skeptical newsreader, and as a citizen holding policymakers to account. Together, Bender and Hanna expose AI hype for what it is: a mask for Big Tech's drive for profit, with little concern for who it affects"--
Subjects: Artificial intelligence; Critical thinking.; Technological innovations; Artificial intelligence; Technological innovations;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Cork dork : a wine-fueled adventure among the obsessive sommeliers, big bottle hunters, and rogue scientists who taught me to live for taste / by Bosker, Bianca,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index.Professional journalist and amateur drinker Bianca Bosker didn't know much about wine--until she discovered an alternate universe where taste reigns supreme, a world of elite sommeliers who dedicate their lives to the pursuit of flavor. Astounded by their fervor and seemingly superhuman sensory powers, she set out to uncover what drove their obsession, and whether she, too, could become a "cork dork." With boundless curiousity, humor, and a healthy dose of skepticism, Bosker takes the reader inside underground tasting groups, exclusive New York City restaurants, California mass-market wine factories, and even a neuroscientist's fMRI machine as she attempts to answer the most nagging question of all: What's the big deal about wine? What she learns will change the way you drink wine--and, perhaps, the way you live--forever.
Subjects: Bosker, Bianca.; Wine and wine making; Sommeliers.;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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How the world really works : the science behind how we got here and where we're going / by Smil, Vaclav,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."An essential analysis of the modern science and technology that makes our twenty-first century lives possible--a scientist's investigation into what science really does, and does not, accomplish. We have never had so much information at our fingertips and yet most of us don't know how the world really works. This book explains seven of the most fundamental realities governing our survival and prosperity. From energy and food production, through our material world and its globalization, to risks, our environment and its future, How the World Really Works offers a much-needed reality check--because before we can tackle problems effectively, we must understand the facts. In this ambitious and thought-provoking book we see, for example, that globalization isn't inevitable--the foolishness of allowing 70 per cent of the world's rubber gloves to be made in just one factory became glaringly obvious in 2020--and that our societies have been steadily increasing their dependence on fossil fuels, such that any promises of decarbonization by 2050 are a fairy tale. For example, each greenhouse-grown supermarket-bought tomato has the equivalent of five tablespoons of diesel embedded in its production, and we have no way of producing steel, cement or plastics at required scales without huge carbon emissions. Ultimately, Smil answers the most profound question of our age: are we irrevocably doomed or is a brighter utopia ahead? Compelling, data-rich and revisionist, this wonderfully broad, interdisciplinary guide finds faults with both extremes. Looking at the world through this quantitative lens reveals hidden truths that change the way we see our past, present and uncertain future"--
Subjects: Science and civilization.; Technology and civilization.; Science; Technological innovations;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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The spider : inside the criminal web of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell / by Levine, Barry,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index.Who was Jeffrey Epstein? A Pulitzer Prize-nominated journalist unearths never-before-reported details in the most comprehensive account yet of the disgraced financier's life, death, and criminal web, including the role of Ghislaine Maxwell. By now, the basic contours of Jeffrey Epstein's horrendous crimes--his decades-long serial abuse of young women and underage girls--are familiar. But for all that has been written about Epstein since his shocking death in a lower Manhattan jail cell, an astonishing amount remains unknown. A shy Brooklyn kid turned renegade financier, Jeffrey Epstein never wanted to play by the rules of polite society. He was elusive in life and he has remained just as elusive in death. What is known is that he had amassed nearly $600 million by the time of his death. That fortune allowed Epstein to pursue a privileged, secretive life, jetting between his fortress-like homes in Manhattan, New Mexico, and Little St. James, his private island. Behind these closed doors, Epstein socialized with scientists and world leaders and preyed on powerless young women. In this dogged work of reporting, Barry Levine shines a light into the darkest corners of Epstein's world. Featuring rare and never-before-seen photographs, The Spider exposes how Epstein operated and evaded justice for so long-and how he drew so many others into his criminal web.
Subjects: Biographies.; True crime stories.; Epstein, Jeffrey, 1953-2019.; Maxwell, Ghislaine.; Capitalists and financiers; Corruption; Sex offenders; Sex scandals.;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Unearthed. by Hall, Andy,film director.; Jardine, Rachel,film director.; Curiosity Stream (Firm),dst; Kanopy (Firm),dst;
Originally produced by Curiosity Stream in 2022.Homicide detective Rod Demery and scientist Professor Turi King investigate history's most intriguing murders to find long-lost killers.Mode of access: World Wide Web.
Subjects: Documentary films.; History, Modern.; Social sciences.; Documentary films.; Television series.; Motion pictures.; History.; Murder.; History, Ancient.; True crime stories.; Detective and mystery films.; Documentary television programs.;
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Lost Tombs of Notre Dame. by Tran, Florence,film director.; Boffey, Mercer,actor.; PBS (Firm),dst; Kanopy (Firm),dst;
Mercer BoffeyOriginally produced by PBS in 2024.After the Notre Dame fire in 2019, two mysterious coffins were found buried beneath its floor. Where did they come from and who was inside? Follow scientists and historians as they investigate what their stories reveal about this iconic cathedral. From NOVA.Mode of access: World Wide Web.
Subjects: Documentary films.; Social sciences.; Balts (Indo-European people).; Foreign study.; History, Modern.; Documentary films.; History.; Archaeology.; France.;
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Climate injustice : why we need to fight global inequailty to combat climate change / by Otto, Friederike,author.; Pybus, Sarah,translator.; David Suzuki Institute,sponsoring body.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."Climate change does not affect everyone equally. While many scientists focus on studying climate change as a physics problem, Friederike Otto, one of the world's most renowned climate scientists, sees it as a symptom of the global crisis of inequality, not its cause. In this ambitious, fast-paced book, she offers concrete examples of how extreme weather events caused by climate change reveal uncomfortable truths about the failures of political and social infrastructures around the world. Comparing eight extreme weather events ... including heat waves in North America, floods in Pakistan, droughts in Madagascar, and wildfires in Australia ... Otto reveals how climate change is affecting the world's most vulnerable, whether they are women working on farms in Ghana during heat waves, or elderly people who died during floods in Germany. In particular, Otto examines the Global North's extractionist view of the Global South, a view that ensures elites are protected while others bear the brunt of the climate disaster. Climate Injustice shares the stories of real people, shining a light on the real damage inflicted on real lives. Above all, it shows how racism, colonialism, sexism, and climate change are interconnected, and how positive changes on one level can lead to positive effects on another. Authored by the co-founder of World Weather Attribution, a cutting-edge scientific method that pinpointed the role of climate change in extreme weather events for the first time, Climate Injustice offers a groundbreaking view on the fires, floods, heatwaves, and storms that are wreaking havoc at an alarming pace. Inequality and injustice are at the core of what makes climate change a problem for humanity. Fairness and global justice must therefore be at the core of the solution. Climate justice concerns everyone."-- Provided by publisher.
Subjects: Climate justice.; Equality; Climatic changes; Climatic extremes;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Ten trips : the new reality of psychedelics / by Mitchell, Andy,author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index.The more we learn about psychedelics, the less we seem to understand them. In this engrossing, sometimes hilarious, always dramatic chronicle, a neuropsychologist deflates the hype, explores the limitless possibilities, and reveals a much-needed perspective about psychedelics, giving us a scientist's first-person experiment with ten different compounds in ten different settings.
Subjects: Hallucinogenic drugs.; Hallucinogenic drugs; Hallucinogenic drugs; Hallucinogenic drugs;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Results 11 to 20 of 56 | « previous |