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Wired for Survival
Book

Wired for Survival

The Rational (and Irrational) Choices We Make, from the Gas Pump to Terrorism

Margaret M. Polski
FT Press, 2008

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Editorial Rating

6

Qualities

  • For Beginners
  • Engaging

Recommendation

This book’s short length is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, neuroscientist Margaret M. Polski’s brevity and clarity make the book an accessible overview of how contemporary cognitive science views thinking and decision making. On the other hand, it is so brief that Polski leapfrogs through a great deal of material very quickly. Some readers may seek a more fully developed explanation of how economic events – like the power struggles between energy producers and energy consumers – relate to research in neuroscience. Issues such as how rationality affects cultural systems like liberal democracy deserve more attention. This lack of connective tissue makes this slender volume pretty episodic, but it also is rich with illustrations drawn from sources ranging from contemporary politics to the classic comedy of Monty Python. The result is enjoyable and useful, if a bit disjointed. getAbstract recommends Polski’s book to strategists who are planning for times ahead, to leaders who seek to understand their organizations, and to people who want to understand themselves.

Take-Aways

  • The way human beings rationalize their actions affects everything from your personal choices to world energy politics.
  • Being “wired for survival” governs how individuals think and how the world works.
  • Survival-based thinking shapes how political relationships shift as developing nations gain economic power and reclaim resources from the developed world.

About the Author

Margaret M. Polski, PhD, is an Affiliate Fellow at George Mason University’s Center for Neuroeconomics.

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