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Why We Fear the Things We Shouldn't--and Put Ourselves in Greater Danger
Dutton Adult
July 2008
On Sale: July 17, 2008
352 pages
ISBN: 0525950621
EAN: 9780525950622
Hardcover
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Non-Fiction
From terror attacks to the war on terror, real estate bubbles to the price of oil, sexual predators to poisoned food from China, our list of fears is ever-growing. And yet, we are the safest and healthiest humans in history. Irrational fear seems to be taking over, often with tragic results. For example, in the months after 9/11, when people decided to drive instead of fly--believing they were avoiding risk--road deaths rose by more than 1,500.
In this fascinating, lucid, and thoroughly entertaining examination of how humans process risk, journalist Dan Gardner had the exclusive cooperation of Paul Slovic, the world renowned risk-science pioneer, as he reveals how our hunter gatherer brains struggle to make sense of a world utterly unlike the one that made them. Filled with illuminating real world examples, interviews with experts, and fast-paced, lean storytelling, The Science of Fear shows why it is truer than ever that the worst thing we have to fear is fear itself.
 Media BuzzEarly Show - August 7, 2008
Diane Rehm Show - NPR - August 4, 2008
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