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  • Mindware

  • Tools for Smart Thinking
  • By: Richard E. Nisbett
  • Narrated by: Joe Barrett
  • Length: 10 hrs and 17 mins
  • 4.1 out of 5 stars (178 ratings)
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Mindware cover art

Mindware

By: Richard E. Nisbett
Narrated by: Joe Barrett
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Summary

Many scientific and philosophical ideas are so powerful that they can be applied to our lives at home, work, and school to help us think smarter and more effectively about our behavior and the world around us. Surprisingly, many of these ideas remain unknown to most of us. In Mindware, the world-renowned psychologist Richard Nisbett presents these ideas in clear and accessible detail, offering a tool kit for better thinking and wiser decisions.

He has made a distinguished career of studying and teaching such powerful problem-solving concepts as the law of large numbers, statistical regression, cost-benefit analysis, sunk costs and opportunity costs, and causation and correlation, probing how best to teach others to use them effectively in their daily lives. In this groundbreaking book, he shows that a course in a given field - statistics or economics, for example - often doesn't work as well as a few minutes of more practical instruction in analyzing everyday situations.

Mindware shows how to reframe common problems in such a way that these powerful scientific and statistical concepts can be applied to them. The result is an enlightening and practical guide to the most powerful tools of reasoning ever developed - tools that can easily be used to make better professional, business, and personal decisions.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your My Library section along with the audio.

©2015 Richard E. Nisbett (P)2015 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"The most influential thinker, in my life, has been [Nisbett]." (Malcolm Gladwell, New York Times Book Review)

What listeners say about Mindware

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

A collection of statistical studies more than "tools for smart thinking"

Definitely not what I was expecting. The book was just a compendium of statistical studies and information rather than 0tools for smart thinking".

I tired to keep attention and interest for 2/3 of the book until I gave up.

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10 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Good lessons, but some examples are off.

Tools for rational thinking and healthy scepticism, to think about the many claims we hear around us more effectively... the theory is good, unfortunately the author fails to apply it in many of the examples given, that often end with abrupt, unsubstantiated, dubious claims by the author.
Still good, because this book helps you take the book itself with a grain of salt.

Narrator has a nasal voice, a bit annoying, but it didn't bother me much.

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8 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Enjoyable listen and content

I didn't give this 5 stars because I've just finished a few books that raised the bar for me. This recording was enjoyable to listen to with a good delivery, although the narrator took a little getting used to for me - that is a personal preference however.

The content itself was mostly engaging, a few moments when I had to concentrate not to tune a particular segment of list recitation out, but overall I enjoyed it.

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7 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Very interesting

Richard puts across a very practical and interesting collection of tools for better interoperating the barrage of information we get in everyday life.

However the book starts to become very in depth and feels like the author's ego is running wild with continuous self promotion and jaunts into partly irrelevant specialisms.

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7 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

An overall good listen

A good book, but the author at times stretches the truth to fit a politically correct narrative.

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4 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

I absolutely love this book.

It is a must read and makes so much sense. The performance it is also brilliant.

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3 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

interesting and thought provoking book.

this should be in everyone's library. thought provoking enlightened me on a few things. give it a try

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3 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Eyeopener

I'm impressed with the well structured and informative story. The author is using as stepping stones well known theories which he explains in everyday life contexts. Well worth the time to listen to the book.

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2 people found this helpful

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    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

gave up on second chapter

This is a generic book that just repackages the same insights we've heard a million times and tells them in a less engaging, more dry-academic way. The writing suggests this is a book for university students, and is mostly full of intro psych stuff. everyone's already heard about Kahneman and Tversky's stuff. and the author clearly isn't up to date on half this research as the Bargh priming studies have all been thoroughly debunked.

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1 person found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Very informative

I liked learning more about how people come about forming their decisions and opinions and how historical culture can impact modern thought in different parts of the world. It was also interesting being presented with the pros and cons of various schools of thought, and how they might become applicable in everyday circumstance.

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