The Rational Optimist
Books | Business & Economics / Entrepreneurship
3.8
Matt Ridley
“A delightful and fascinating book filled with insight and wit, which will make you think twice and cheer up.” — Steven PinkerIn a bold and provocative interpretation of economic history, Matt Ridley, the New York Times-bestselling author of Genome and The Red Queen, makes the case for an economics of hope, arguing that the benefits of commerce, technology, innovation, and change—what Ridley calls cultural evolution—will inevitably increase human prosperity. Fans of the works of Jared Diamond (Guns, Germs, and Steel), Niall Ferguson (The Ascent of Money), and Thomas Friedman (The World Is Flat) will find much to ponder and enjoy in The Rational Optimist.For two hundred years the pessimists have dominated public discourse, insisting that things will soon be getting much worse. But in fact, life is getting better—and at an accelerating rate. Food availability, income, and life span are up; disease, child mortality, and violence are down all across the globe. Africa is following Asia out of poverty; the Internet, the mobile phone, and container shipping are enriching people's lives as never before.An astute, refreshing, and revelatory work that covers the entire sweep of human history—from the Stone Age to the Internet—The Rational Optimist will change your way of thinking about the world for the better.
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More Details:
Author
Matt Ridley
Pages
480
Publisher
Harper Collins
Published Date
2010-06-15
ISBN
0062025376 9780062025371
Ratings
Google: 4
Community ReviewsSee all
"Ridley gives a compelling argument for how Exchange and Specialization are keys to innovation and progress. Think about how many previous innovations that goes into one new innovation of today and think about what would happen if the innovators of today did not have access to all innovations of previous generations. <br/><br/>Ridley also points out the massive drawbacks of fossil fuels but also that if we took away all fossil fuels, 99% of the world's population would have to be slaves to serve up the energy needs that the remaining 1% use today. <br/><br/>As can probably be deducted from the title, he also talks a lot about the merits of being an optimist which I fully agree with. One observation was how pessimists usually get all the headlines even though optimists have been right far more often.<br/><br/>To sum up, the first 100 pages had many great points and examples of how society has progressed over time; for example, he states that a car at full speed today pollutes less than a parked car did in 1970 due to leaks. Then there are 50 pages about farming which gave me very little, possibly due to my lack of knowledge in the area. The final 200 pages were better with many interesting tidbits about many different subjects looked at from a ‘big picture’ perspective. <br/><br/>Overall, a good and well–researched book that could have been even better had it been some 100 pages shorter.<br/>"
D G
Daniel Glaser