Calling Bullshit: The Art of Scepticism in a Data-Driven World

Carl T. Bergstrom

Jevin D. West

Penguin Books, Ltd.

The world is awash in bullshit, and we're drowning in it. Politicians are unconstrained by facts. Science is conducted by press release. Startup culture elevates bullshit to high art. These days, calling bullshit is a noble act.\nBased on their popular, eponymous, course at the University of Washington, professors Carl Bergstrom and Jevin West catalogue bullshit in its many forms, explaining where bullshit arose in our evolutionary past and why it is ubiquitous today. Calling Bullshit offers readers the tools to see through the obfuscations, deliberate and careless, that dominate every realm of our lives. In this lively guide Bergstrom, a computational biologist, and West, a statistician, teach us that calling bullshit is crucial to a properly functioning social group, whether it be a circle of friends, a community of academics, or the citizenry of a nation.

Calling Bullshit

Allen Lane.

Evolution

Lee Alan Dugatkin

Evolution 2e Med Upd Eb+iq Reg Cr (second Edition, Media Update)

Evolution makes the big themes in evolutionary biology accessible by introducing them early and integrating them thoroughly. Extensive, in-depth, current research examples, an emphasis on problem solving, and a stunning art program engage students, helping them to understand fundamental concepts and processes.

Science & Math

Mathematics

W.W.Norton

It's not just fake news. Bullshit is everywhere. Now, two science professors give us the tools to dismantle misinformation and think clearly in a data-saturated world.\nThe world is awash in bullshit, and we're drowning in it. Politicians are unconstrained by facts. Science is conducted by press release. Startup culture elevates bullshit to high art. These days, calling bullshit is a noble act.\nBased on Carl Bergstrom and Jevin West's popular course at the University of Washington, Calling Bullshit is a modern handbook to the art of skepticism. Bergstrom, a computational biologist, and West, an information scientist, catalogue bullshit in its many forms, explaining and offering readers the tools to see through the obfuscations, deliberate and careless, that dominate every realm of our lives. They instruct readers to ask:\n- Who is saying it? 
- How do they know? 
- What do they have to gain by persuading me? 
- Are the numbers or results too good or too dramatic to be true? 
- Is the claim comparing like with like or apples and oranges? 
- Is it confirming your personal bias?\nIn this lively guide to everything from misleading statistics to "fake news," Bergstrom and West help you recognize bullshit whenever and wherever you encounter it--in data, in conversation, even within yourself--and explain it to your crystal-loving aunt or casually racist uncle. Now more than ever, calling bullshit is crucial to a properly functioning community, whether it be a circle of friends, a network of academics, or the citizenry of a nation.

Random House]

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Books by Carl T. Bergstrom