The Logic of Life: The Rational Economics of an Irrational World
Product Description
Life sometimes seems illogical. Individuals do strange things: take drugs, have unprotected sex, mug each other. Love seems irrational, and so does divorce. On a larger scale, life seems no fairer or easier to fathom: Why do some neighborhoods thrive and others become ghettos? Why is racism so persistent? Why is your idiot boss paid a fortune for sitting behind a mahogany altar? Thorny questions–and you might be surprised to hear the answers coming from an economist.
But Tim Harford, award-winning journalist and author of the bestseller The Undercover Economist, likes to spring surprises. In this deftly reasoned book, Harford argues that life is logical after all. Under the surface of everyday insanity, hidden incentives are at work, and Harford shows these incentives emerging in the most unlikely places.
Using tools ranging from animal experiments to supercomputer simulations, an ambitious new breed of economist is trying to unlock the s… More >>
The Logic of Life: The Rational Economics of an Irrational World
The book is much like Freakonomics, but I liked it better than Freakonomics. If you loved Freakonomics, you love Logic of Life.
Rating: 5 / 5
The most interesting part of the book is the theory on the reason why Neanderthals died out, losing competition to Homo sapiens. Neanderthals did not have division of labor, while Homo sapiens did. And the division of labor here specifically means division of labor between MEN and WOMEN. Division of labor, come to think of it, is such a basic social arrangement which improves work efficiency dramatically and has been employed since the earliest time in history.
But in the 21st century, in the name of gender equality, Western societies are trying feverishly to do away with any division of labor between men and women. They argue that division of labor between men and women, a.k.a. traditional gender roles, is what kept women at home and hindered their fuller actualization / realization as a human being. But just ask why would anyone want to force clumsy, smelly, hairy men to take care of newborn babies? Their skin is coarse, unsanitary, and their voices low – not what babies usually like. And why would anyone want to put women in military special forces, when they can’t lift heavy weapons by themselves? Their maybe some valid biological reasons, why across all societies and all ages, women are the ones who take care of babies, and men are the ones who went to fighting. Maybe, just like Neanderthals were, 21st century Western countries are on its way to extinction.
Rating: 5 / 5
The principle of the book is not very alien that human have logical and irrational qualities but the to use economics principle to explain many social phenomena is indeed intriguing
Rating: 5 / 5
If you enjoyed Freakonomics by Stephen Levitt you will love this book. The author will take you below the surface of reality and show why things are the way they are. This book does have some shocking things. (Like why oral sex increased dramatically among teenagers in the last few years:because of the fear of Aids). He explains why it costs so much to live in Manhattan versus rural areas, supply and demand, people chose to live in big cities for the opportunities that they provide. He also discusses that most of the time people make logical decisions based on reward and punishment. Yes even criminals the majority of the time think about the risk of getting caught and the severity of the punishment. The author backs up his conclusions with many notes and cites studies and facts to back up his conclusion. Why do CEOs and vice presidents make so much? Is anyone really worth the millions they make? The author argues no, a vice president’s compensation is more of an incentive to motivate all the assistant vice presidents to work very hard to achieve the next level than it is a reflection of the current VPs worth. The author believes that most corporations run more on a tournament system where the employees that are winners on promotions win big with pay and that is the underlying motivation for all instead of current pay.
I found the book very enjoyable and hard to put down. If you love free market capitalism, economics, or psychology you will enjoy this book. Also check out Tim Harfords other book The undercover economist for more interesting and thought provoking reading.
Rating: 5 / 5
I thought the book was very interesting – better than Freakonomics. Game theory as applied to everything and anything.
Rating: 4 / 5