Book Discussion - Houston Central Market - Oct 16th 7pm - THINKING FAST AND SLOW by Daniel Kahneman - 2nd of 3 discussions

[Alice Aman]

Hi everyone -

 If you missed our discussion last month, it's not too late.  Next week, Oct 16th at 7pm-9pm in the Community Room in Houston Central Market (on Weslayan and Westheimer), we will have our second discussion of THINKING FAST AND SLOW by Daniel Kahneman.  Text we will cover includes Chapters 15-27 (approx 144 pages)  

 I'm enjoying and finding humor in some of his language such as in Chaper 19:

  "The sense making machinery of System 1 makes us see the world as more tidy, simple, predictable, and coherent than it really is.  The illusion that one has understood the past feeds the further illusion that one can predict and control the future.  These illusions are comforting." 

  Though I'm not finding humor or enjoyment in reading the passages in Part 2 where he explains the difficulties in considerable detail of humans trying to think statistically.  I think I would appreciate reading that didn't require so much of my System 2 to be on board.  If you are like me, I hope you are able to gloss over the minutia.  I plan to try to cover the main points on this topic in general terms but don't plan to give any quizzes.  So if you get bogged down, keep moving on because he does resume discussing topics that are more enlightening to our System 1 or at least that is my opinion.     

 Hope you can join us!

  --Alice A.

  http://www.houstonbookclubs.org/HoustonNonfiction

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Upcoming Discussions:

September 18, 2013 THINKING FAST AND SLOW by Daniel Kahneman [publ 2013] 512 pages  

2002 Nobel Memorial Prize winner in Economic Sciences, author is notable for his work on the psychology of judgment and decision-making, behavioral economics and hedonic psychology (i.e. the study of what makes experiences and life pleasant or unpleasant). This book is a tour of the mind and a study of the two systems that drive the way we think. System 1 is fast, intuitive, and emotional; System 2 is slower, more deliberative, and more logical. --Alice leading discussions.

   Sept 18 THINKING FAST AND SLOW by Daniel Kahneman  

Assignment: Intro and Chapters 1-14 (approx 155 pages)

   Oct 16 THINKING FAST AND SLOW by Daniel Kahneman (cont'd)  

Assignment: Chapters 15-27 (approx 144 pages)

   Nov 20 THINKING FAST AND SLOW by Daniel Kahneman (cont'd) 

Assignment: Chapters 28-38, Conclusion, Appendix 1 and 2 (approx 149 pages) FINISH

December 18, 2013 THE PRICE OF INEQUALITY: HOW TODAY'S DIVIDED SOCIETY ENDANGERS OUR FUTURE by Joseph Stiglitz [publ 2013] 560 pages  

Author is an American economist, professor at Columbia University, winner of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences (2001) and numerous other prestigious positions. Stiglitz is one of the most frequently cited economists in the world and in 2011 he was named by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. From the book jacket: "In The Price of Inequality Stiglitz lays out a comprehensive agenda to create a more dynamic economy and fairer and more equal society" --Kathy leading discussions.

  Dec 18 THE PRICE OF INEQUALITY by Josephy Stiglitz  

Assignment: Preface(s) and Chapter 1-3 (approx 160 pages)

  Jan 15 THE PRICE OF INEQUALITY by Josephy Stiglitz (cont'd) 

Assignment: Chapter 4-6 (approx 130 pages)

  Feb 19 THE PRICE OF INEQUALITY by Josephy Stiglitz (cont'd) 

Assignment: Chapters 7-10 (approx 131 pages) FINISH