ESCP Europe

Item type

Book

Language

English

Publication year

2008

ISBN

978-0-316-02756-4

Life often seems to defy logic. When a prostitute agrees to unprotected sex, or a teenage criminal embarks on a burglary, or a smoker lights another cigarette, we seem to be a million miles from what we would call rational behaviour. None of this makes sense or does it? Tim Harford thinks it does. And by weaving stories from locations as diverse as a Las Vegas casino and a Soho speed-date together with insights from an ingenious new breed of economist, he aims to persuade you that we are all, in fact, surprisingly logical. Reading this book, youll discover that the unlikeliest of people racists, drug addicts, revolutionaries and rats comply with economic logic, always taking account of future costs and benefits, even if they dont quite realise it. It even explains why your boss is overpaid. Always entertaining and often provocative, The Logic of Life is an astonishing guide to the hidden logic of the world around you. from book jacket.

Introduction --- 1. Introducing the logic of life --- 2. Las Vegas --- 3. Is divorce underrated? --- 4. Why your boss is overpaid --- 5. In the neighbourhood --- 6. The dangers of rationalism racism --- 7. The world is spiky --- 8. Rational revolutions --- 9. A million years of logic --- Notes --- Index..