In this stunning new book, Malcolm Gladwell takes us on an intellectual journey through the world of "outliers"--the best and the brightest, the most famous and the most successful. He asks the question: what makes high-achievers different?
His answer is that we pay too much attention to what successful people are like, and too little attention to where they are from: that is, their culture, their family, their generation, and the idiosyncratic experiences of their upbringing. Along the way he explains the secrets of software billionaires, what it takes to be a great soccer player, why Asians are good at math, and what made the Beatles the greatest rock band.
Brilliant and entertaining, Outliers is a landmark work that will simultaneously delight and illuminate.
Price: $8.90
Which is more dangerous, a gun or a swimming pool? What do schoolteachers and sumo wrestlers have in common? Why do drug dealers still live with their moms? How much do parents really matter? How did the legalization of abortion affect the rate of violent crime?
These may not sound like typical questions for an econo-mist to ask. But Steven D. Levitt is not a typical economist. He is a much-heralded scholar who studies the riddles of everyday life—from cheating and crime to sports and child-rearing—and whose conclusions turn conventional wisdom on its head.
Freakonomics is a groundbreaking collaboration between Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner, an award-winning author and journalist. They usually begin with a mountain of data and a simple question. Some of these questions concern life-and-death issues; others have an admittedly freakish quality. Thus the new field of study contained in this book: freakonomics.
Through forceful storytelling and wry insight, Levitt and Dubner show that economics is, at root, the study of incentives—how people get what they want, or need, especially when other people want or need the same thing. In Freakonomics, they explore the hidden side of . . . well, everything. The inner workings of a crack gang. The truth about real-estate agents. The myths of campaign finance. The telltale marks of a cheating schoolteacher. The secrets of the Klu Klux Klan.
What unites all these stories is a belief that the modern world, despite a great deal of complexity and downright deceit, is not impenetrable, is not unknowable, and—if the right questions are asked—is even more intriguing than we think. All it takes is a new way of looking.
Freakonomics establishes this unconventional premise: If morality represents how we would like the world to work, then economics represents how it actually does work. It is true that readers of this book will be armed with enough riddles and stories to last a thousand cocktail parties. But Freakonomics can provide more than that. It will literally redefine the way we view the modern world.
Bonus material added to the revised and expanded 2006 edition
- The original New York Times Magazine article about Steven D. Levitt by Stephen J. Dubner, which led to the creation of this book.
- Seven “Freakonomics” columns written for the New York Times Magazine, published between August 2005 and April 2006.
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Appearance And Reality - The Existence Of Matter - The Nature Of Matter - Idealism - Knowledge By Acquaintance And Knowledge By Description - On Induction - On Our Knowledge Of General Principles - How A Priori Knowledge Is Possible - The World Of Universals - On Our Knowledge Of Universals - On Intuitive Knowledge - Truth And Falsehood - Knowledge, Error, And Probable Opinion - The Limits Of Philosophical Knowledge - The Value Of Philosophy - Bibliographical Note
Price: $3.79
This manual opens with a diagnostic test that includes explained answers to help students pinpoint their math strengths and weaknesses. In chapters that follow, detailed topic reviews cover polynomial, trigonometric, exponential, logarithmic, and rational functions; coordinate and three-dimensional geometry; numbers and operations; data analysis, statistics, and probability; and graphing calculators, their operations and applications. Six full-length model tests with answers, explanations, and self-evaluation charts conclude this manual.
Price: $9.00
Classic of science (and mathematical) fiction — charmingly illustrated by author — describes the journeys of A. Square and his adventures in Spaceland (three dimensions), Lineland (one dimension) and Pointland (no dimensions). A. Square also entertains thoughts of visiting a land of four dimensions — a revolutionary idea for which he is banished from Spaceland.
Price: $0.01
A fun little book which contains no exercises but rather simply explains the concepts, strategies, and vocabulary of algebra. What are polynomials and why do I care? What's a quadratic equation and how do I solve it? How do you multiply polynomials? What is the slope of a line? What are functions? The language is clear and often amusing. The authors assume the reader has no knowledge of algebra, and also assume he or she has forgotten how to multiply fractions and other preliminary processes. Not a stand-alone text, but a book to read on a Saturday afternoon before taking your first algebra class, it touches nearly all the concepts of a first year course. It has been used and praised by eighth grade students as well as college students. A wonderful refresher before taking a college entrance exam or graduate admissions test.
Price: $6.45
How did computers take over the world? In late 1945, a small group of brilliant engineers and mathematicians gathered at the newly created Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey. Their ostensible goal was to build a computer which would be instrumental in the US government's race to create a hydrogen bomb. The mathematicians themselves, however, saw their project as the realization of Alan Turing's theoretical 'universal machine'. In "Turing's Cathedral", George Dyson vividly re-creates the intense experimentation, incredible mathematical insight and pure creative genius that led to the dawn of the digital universe, uncovering a wealth of new material to bring a human story of extraordinary men and women and their ideas to life. From the lowliest iPhone app to Google's sprawling metazoan codes, we now live in a world of self-replicating numbers and self-reproducing machines whose origins go back to a 5-kilobyte matrix that still holds clues as to what may lie ahead.
Price: $24.91
These simple math secrets and tricks will forever change how you look at the world of numbers.
Secrets of Mental Math will have you thinking like a math genius in no time. Get ready to amaze your friends—and yourself—with incredible calculations you never thought you could master, as renowned “mathemagician” Arthur Benjamin shares his techniques for lightning-quick calculations and amazing number tricks. This book will teach you to do math in your head faster than you ever thought possible, dramatically improve your memory for numbers, and—maybe for the first time—make mathematics fun.
Yes, even you can learn to do seemingly complex equations in your head; all you need to learn are a few tricks. You’ll be able to quickly multiply and divide triple digits, compute with fractions, and determine squares, cubes, and roots without blinking an eye. No matter what your age or current math ability, Secrets of Mental Math will allow you to perform fantastic feats of the mind effortlessly. This is the math they never taught you in school.
Price: $5.14
If it’s on the SAT Math 1 or 2 Subject Tests, it’s in this book. Cracking the SAT U.S. & World History Subject Tests, 2011-2012 Edition brings you:
-Practical information on the what, when, where, and how of each SAT Math Subject Test
-Step-by-step strategies for solving even the hardest problems
-Comprehensive review of all essential content, including Algebra I & II, Geometry, Trigonometry, Probability, Matrices, and Pre-Calculus
-Practice problems with detailed information for every kind of problem on the test
-Planning and organization tips to get you all the way to test day!
Cracking the SAT Math 1 & 2 Subject Tests, 2011-2012 Edition also includes 4 full-length practice tests with detailed explanations (2 for each subject test).
Price: $11.29
