The Number Bias

Author: Sanne Blauw

Stock information

General Fields

  • : $29.99 AUD
  • : 9781529342741
  • : Hodder & Stoughton
  • : Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
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  • : 0.3
  • : March 1920
  • : 1.8 Centimeters X 23.3 Centimeters X 15.4 Centimeters
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  • : 29.99
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  • : books

Special Fields

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  • :
  • : Sanne Blauw
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  • : Paperback
  • : 2007
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  • : 513.5
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  • : 208
  • : KCY
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Barcode 9781529342741
9781529342741

Description

Even if you don't consider yourself a numbers person, you are a numbers person. The time has come to put numbers in their place. Not high up on a pedestal, or out on the curb, but right where they belong: beside words.


It is not an overstatement to say that numbers dictate the way we live our lives. They tell us how we're doing at school, how much we weigh, who might win an election and whether the economy is booming. But numbers aren't as objective as they may seem; behind every number is a story. Yet politicians, businesses and the media often forget this - or use it for their own gain.


Sanne Blauw travels the world to unpick our relationship with numbers and demystify our misguided allegiance, from Florence Nightingale using statistics to petition for better conditions during the Crimean War to the manipulation of numbers by the American tobacco industry and the ambiguous figures peddled during the EU referendum.


Taking us from the everyday numbers that govern our health and wellbeing to the statistics used to wield enormous power and influence, The Number Bias counsels us to think more wisely.


"A beautifully accessible exploration of how numbers shape our lives, and the importance of accurately interpreting the statistics we are fed. The Number Bias will give even the most maths-averse reader the tools they need to navigate our data-rich world." - Angela Saini, author of Superior 


"The Number Bias combines vivid storytelling with authoritative analysis to deliver a warning about the way numbers can lead us astray - if we let them." - Tim Harford