How Risky Is It, Really?, David Ropeik
How Risky Is It, Really?, David Ropeik
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How Risky Is It, Really?
Why Our Fears Don't Always Match the Facts

Author: David Ropeik

Narrator: TJ Johnson

Unabridged: 7 hr 49 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 05/19/2020


Synopsis

"Clear, balanced, and lively." -- Steven Pinker, bestselling author of How the Mind Works
ARE YOU AFRAID OF THE "RIGHT" RISKS?

Do you worry more about radiation from nuclear power or from the sun?

Are you more afraid of getting cancer than heart disease?

Are you safer talking on your cell phone or using a hands-free device when you drive?

Do you think global warming is a serious threat to your health?

GET THE FACTS BEHIND YOUR FEARS-AND DISCOVER . . . HOW RISKY IS IT, REALLY?

International risk expert David Ropeik takes an in-depth look at our perceptions of risk and explains the hidden factors that make us unnecessarily afraid of relatively small threats and not afraid enough of some really big ones. This read is a comprehensive, accessible, and entertaining mixture of what's been discovered about how and why we fear-too much or too little. It brings into focus the danger of The Perception Gap: when our fears don't match the facts, and we make choices that create additional risks.

This book will not decide for you what is really risky and what isn't. That's up to you. HOW RISKY IS IT, REALLY? will tell you how you make those decisions. Understanding how we perceive risk is the first step toward making wiser and healthier choices for ourselves as individuals and for society as a whole.

TEST YOUR OWN "RISK RESPONSE" IN DOZENS OF SELF-QUIZZES!

Reviews

Goodreads review by Erik on December 20, 2015

A fascinating read on how we measure risk both from a physiological and psychological view point. I really enjoyed reading about the actual biochemical reactions that were going on inside my brain when I suddenly need to determine the risk of things around me. Along the way there are little quizzes......more

Goodreads review by Nicole on December 08, 2010

This was a very interesting book! I found myself talking to my husband and family about it, and questioning my own beliefs about risk.......more

Goodreads review by Alan on April 04, 2020

Half a Book A very good discussion of the subtitle (why our fears don't always match the facts). A little weak in the "how risky is it really" .And for good reason. Because a person's reaction to risk is rarely based on "good reason" but rather on the welter of emotions that prove that whoever stuck......more

Goodreads review by Chad on October 09, 2022

The fundamental lesson here is a good one: realizing that because we feel more fearful about one thing than another doesn't necessarily mean we SHOULD be more afraid of that. The book is filled with many examples. It also strives to look into why we fear one thing more than another: novelty, sensati......more

Goodreads review by Alan on February 17, 2020

How Risky is it really, is a pragmatist's approach toward risk perception. I found myself bending the corners of page after page, underlying sentences and writing notes in the columns. We are not social animals that survive on intellect alone, but rather are influenced by both intellect and our rept......more