What do you think?
Rate this book
A Lei de Todas as Coisas
The real scientific reasons why everything always goes wrong
Start looking for Murphy's Law, and you'll find it everywhere. Buses go round in threes, the queue you join always goes slowest, when your hands are full your nose starts to itch, you think of several important things to remember just as you are falling asleep...
Can there ever be a rational explanation?
The answers turn out to be one part scientific fact to three parts psychology. The world has changed a lot in the last four thousand years, but our brains haven't. So, again and again, we find our reactions are just plain out of date.
Why do you take the same wrong turning time after time?
Why is the tuneyou hate most the one that you can't get out of your head?
Why, when you lose something, do you keep looking in the same place over and over?
And why is it suddenly there the fourth or fifth time you look?
Start looking for Murphy's Law, and you'll find it everywhere. Buses go round in threes, the queue you join always goes slowest, when your hands are full your nose starts to itch, you think of several important things to remember just as you are falling asleep...
Can there ever be a rational explanation?
The answers turn out to be one part scientific fact to three parts psychology. The world has changed a lot in the last four thousand years, but our brains haven't. So, again and again, we find our reactions are just plain out of date.
Why do you take the same wrong turning time after time?
Why is the tuneyou hate most the one that you can't get out of your head?
Why, when you lose something, do you keep looking in the same place over and over?
And why is it suddenly there the fourth or fifth time you look?
201 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2005
27 people are currently reading
272 people want to read
About the author
Richard Robinson
227 books11 followersLibrarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name
This profile may contain books from multiple authors of this name.
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name
This profile may contain books from multiple authors of this name.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
June 4, 2024
scientific but in a silly way
October 26, 2024
Une étrange livre sur les biais cognitifs qui parvient à parler du concept dans jamais citer le terme. A force de vulgariser et de donner des exemples amusants, l'auteur a oublié de mettre le minimum d'explications théoriques. On retrouve une pléthore d'exemples qui ne sont là que titre Illustration, ça manque cruellement d'explications.
L'auteur ou le traducteur utilisent des termes comme "science naïve" qui n'existent simplement pas.
En gros un livre distrayant qui aurait gagné a privilégier un peu plus de sérieux pour gagner en crédibilité.
L'auteur ou le traducteur utilisent des termes comme "science naïve" qui n'existent simplement pas.
En gros un livre distrayant qui aurait gagné a privilégier un peu plus de sérieux pour gagner en crédibilité.
August 9, 2017
This book was interesting. Right away, it acknowledges that Murphy's Law (not really a scientific law, by the way. More of a series of humorous sayings pretending to be scientific law) really lies more in how selective the human attention span and memory is. My copy has the subtitle "The scientific reasons why everything goes wrong" instead of "The science of Murphy's Law." If you enjoy a book full of illustrative examples, this book is for you.
May 17, 2024
Examples are scattered and not organized, was having a hard time finding connection between two consecutive sub chapters...
The explanation is good though, the author explained some common scenarios which we will have thought "if things can go bad, they will go bad" in a scientific way, and how our brain is actually playing tricks with us
The explanation is good though, the author explained some common scenarios which we will have thought "if things can go bad, they will go bad" in a scientific way, and how our brain is actually playing tricks with us
September 9, 2024
It turns out that bad things happen because we still have a stone-age brain that is not designed to cope with the modern world. A scientific approach to the question resulted in some funny bits, some bits worth reading again and some really boring bits.
November 25, 2024
The book is short. Multiple example. Most of our frustrations can be explained with the brain interpretation of several physics factor or emotions. We also understand the evolution of human beings and the development of typical answers to specific situations. Nice to read.
August 12, 2018
This is very interesting for various trivia and the known science behind it.
July 6, 2019
Algo sobre como a lei de Murphy nos envolve e como nós é que a fazemos existir. Interessante aí mas não como é expresso no livro.
February 21, 2020
Começa com interessantes explicações sobre o funcionamento do nosso cérebro e comportamento para acabar em explicações banais sem qualquer enriquecimento.
July 21, 2020
Not sure what to say here. I finished the book but it feels like it had no impact on my way of thinking, still interesting though.
April 2, 2021
Kniha je souborem biologických a fyziologických poznatků týkajících se fungování lidského těla a společnosti. Na těchto poznatcích pak autor vysvětluje "Murphyho zákony".
November 1, 2025
I finished this book only because it was for my book club. All of us rated it a zero
August 12, 2014
Richard Robinson’s delightful book is an exploration of the science behind Murphy’s Law (the truism that can be roughly stated as “if something can go wrong, it will”) – not just the simple probability tricks that fool our brains with such consistency – if we were any good at probabilities, there wouldn’t be a casino business – but also the many ways our brains can fool us.
Robinson begins by giving a little background to the brain itself, then moves onto our interactions with the world, and the misunderstandings that arise from them. We learn, for example, the way our eyes (and other senses) can so easily be fooled. Robinson misses one trick when talking about the way the moon appears so much bigger in the “real world” than it does on a photograph – the most amazing fact here is just how small the apparent size of the moon really is, about the same as the hole in a piece of punched paper, held at arms length (if you don’t believe it, try looking through such a hole at the moon) – but he still manages to point out just how easy our senses are to fool (and hence, sadly, why eye witnesses and anecdotes are pretty useless for either testimony in court, or scientific proof).
After taking on the senses, Robinson takes us through the faulty interference of memory, the way our natural tendency to look for patterns and connections can result in misunderstanding and “naive science”, often suggesting causality that doesn’t exist, emotional distortion (rather too much on this) and the impact of social context (it’s all “their” fault), which section would have been better if it didn’t perpetuate Richard Dawkins’ meme concept, popular with the general public, but largely ignored in scientific circles. A final section considers the “pure science” of Murphy’s law – that’s to say the maths, physics and more that mean that things go wrong in the real world even without a misunderstanding from our brains – for example, busses really do tend to bunch up and travel in small packs. All this is helped along by short quotes that reflect Murphy’s law in the particular arena under consideration.
The whole thing is neatly illustrated with a series of cartoons by Kate Charlesworth. These are fun, though both the illustrations and some of Robinson’s wording make it difficult to decide whether this book is aimed at adults or older children – we think it’s a great crossover title that can be appreciated by both.
Overall, entertaining and painlessly educational – what more can you ask of popular science – it’s great as a present, or as a refreshing read to take away the pain of a hard day at work.
Robinson begins by giving a little background to the brain itself, then moves onto our interactions with the world, and the misunderstandings that arise from them. We learn, for example, the way our eyes (and other senses) can so easily be fooled. Robinson misses one trick when talking about the way the moon appears so much bigger in the “real world” than it does on a photograph – the most amazing fact here is just how small the apparent size of the moon really is, about the same as the hole in a piece of punched paper, held at arms length (if you don’t believe it, try looking through such a hole at the moon) – but he still manages to point out just how easy our senses are to fool (and hence, sadly, why eye witnesses and anecdotes are pretty useless for either testimony in court, or scientific proof).
After taking on the senses, Robinson takes us through the faulty interference of memory, the way our natural tendency to look for patterns and connections can result in misunderstanding and “naive science”, often suggesting causality that doesn’t exist, emotional distortion (rather too much on this) and the impact of social context (it’s all “their” fault), which section would have been better if it didn’t perpetuate Richard Dawkins’ meme concept, popular with the general public, but largely ignored in scientific circles. A final section considers the “pure science” of Murphy’s law – that’s to say the maths, physics and more that mean that things go wrong in the real world even without a misunderstanding from our brains – for example, busses really do tend to bunch up and travel in small packs. All this is helped along by short quotes that reflect Murphy’s law in the particular arena under consideration.
The whole thing is neatly illustrated with a series of cartoons by Kate Charlesworth. These are fun, though both the illustrations and some of Robinson’s wording make it difficult to decide whether this book is aimed at adults or older children – we think it’s a great crossover title that can be appreciated by both.
Overall, entertaining and painlessly educational – what more can you ask of popular science – it’s great as a present, or as a refreshing read to take away the pain of a hard day at work.
March 12, 2017
Really interesting and fun book! Written by a scientist, it goes over the reality of perceived phenomena like Murphy's Law, which says that if anything can go wrong, it will. It separates the truths and the myths and provides insights as to what we think and why. There's even as short part at the end with the math, science, and technical explanations. Learned some things and had fun doing it!
June 16, 2016
Ce livre prétendument consacré à la Loi de Murphy, aurait du plus adéquatement s'appeler " comment la manière dont notre cerveau perçoit et traite les informations nous induit en erreur", ou, comme on aurait dit au XVIIème siècle, "le Démon de l'erreur". La référence insistante à la loi de Murphy "et c'est là que Murphy pointe son nez" est plutôt irritante et semble traduire le souhait de coller à la commande de l'éditeur.
A part cela, ce livre est une compilation plaisante d'informations scientifiques sur la manière dont nous percevons le monde moderne avec un cerveau façonné au Paléolithique, avec une capacité d'assimilation de l'information restée trop étroite pour toutes les données dont nous sommes bombardés, et une persistance des catégories archaïques. Il expose le rôle et le fonctionnement des différentes partis du cerveau, notamment l'amygdale et sa mémoire affective, et décline ensuite comment plein d'erreur et d'impressions fausses découlent de tout cela. Il se termine avec quelques explications tirées de science dure sur quelques phénomènes qui, effectivement, sont observables (les bus qui arrivent par trois, le rideau de douche qui colle à la peau). Le mélange de données scientifiques et de remarques humoristiques est un peu déstabilisant au début, mais les lecteurs américains ont sans doute plus l'habitude. La palme revient à cette citation l'Allen Ginzberg "vous ne pouvez pas gagner. Vous ne pouvez pas terminer ex aequo. vous ne pouvez pas quitter la partie". Et la remarque de l'auteur selon laquelle trois systèmes de croyances, le capitalisme, le socialisme et le mysticisme, s'attaquent chacun à l'un de ces trois constats.
A part cela, ce livre est une compilation plaisante d'informations scientifiques sur la manière dont nous percevons le monde moderne avec un cerveau façonné au Paléolithique, avec une capacité d'assimilation de l'information restée trop étroite pour toutes les données dont nous sommes bombardés, et une persistance des catégories archaïques. Il expose le rôle et le fonctionnement des différentes partis du cerveau, notamment l'amygdale et sa mémoire affective, et décline ensuite comment plein d'erreur et d'impressions fausses découlent de tout cela. Il se termine avec quelques explications tirées de science dure sur quelques phénomènes qui, effectivement, sont observables (les bus qui arrivent par trois, le rideau de douche qui colle à la peau). Le mélange de données scientifiques et de remarques humoristiques est un peu déstabilisant au début, mais les lecteurs américains ont sans doute plus l'habitude. La palme revient à cette citation l'Allen Ginzberg "vous ne pouvez pas gagner. Vous ne pouvez pas terminer ex aequo. vous ne pouvez pas quitter la partie". Et la remarque de l'auteur selon laquelle trois systèmes de croyances, le capitalisme, le socialisme et le mysticisme, s'attaquent chacun à l'un de ces trois constats.
April 4, 2011
Este libro es exactamente el tipo de libro que debería encantarme, pero la verdad es que me irrita muchísimo. No tengo ningún problema con el aspecto "técnico" del libro, por así decirlo. Creo que el autor está en lo correcto la mayor parte del tiempo. Lo que me molesta muchísimo es su actitud hacia los seres humanos, hacia nuestro cerebro del paleolítico, hacia nuestros atavismos de la evolución. ¡El autor no nos baja de "científicos ingenuos"! Sí, sufrimos de disonancia cognitiva. Sí, nuestra psicología del sentido común es chapucera. ¿Y qué? En lo que Robinson no repara ni una sola vez es que, a pesar de todas nuestras fallas, a pesar de que una y otra vez somos el target de la ley de Murphy, de alguna forma hemos logrado que las cosas funcionen más o menos bien.
October 27, 2015
I really enjoyed this book. Psychology, science and "old school" wisdom blended together well with enough humor to make it a worthwhile read that anyone could grasp. After all, everyone is subjected to those cruel Laws of Murphy. It while the structure flowed really well, it was also easy to pick up and put down at a moment's notice, making it work really well for those short breaks during work.
I highly reccomend it!
I highly reccomend it!
January 3, 2017
Un livre qui explique le pourquoi du comment on en arrive à cette fameuse 'loi' de l'emmerdement maximum.
On a quelques arguments qui permettent de mieux comprendre cela, et qui sont parfaitement sérieux (assez étonnant, on s'attend à de la déconne permanente, eh non pas forcément), et ensuite beaucoup d'exemples étayent cette loi.
Un livre vraiment intéressant, et très divertissant qui vaut son achat, ou tout du moins sa lecture !!!
On a quelques arguments qui permettent de mieux comprendre cela, et qui sont parfaitement sérieux (assez étonnant, on s'attend à de la déconne permanente, eh non pas forcément), et ensuite beaucoup d'exemples étayent cette loi.
Un livre vraiment intéressant, et très divertissant qui vaut son achat, ou tout du moins sa lecture !!!
July 26, 2011
One of Murphy's Laws that this book misses is "if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is"...such as the title of the book. Obviously, most of Murphy's Laws can be explained away just by thinking about it logically......dur! The answer to most is attention, which is mentioned very, very briefly. The majority of the book is 'evolution, evolution, evolution'....blah blah blah.
March 12, 2011
Meh? I am not much of a pessimist and for me the world is always a shining beacon of opportunity and enjoyment. So this is an unnecessary psychological approach to in my opinion an unimportant subject. My bad for reading it.
May 9, 2015
#50 a book you started but never finished
2015 Reading Challenge
2015 Reading Challenge
May 1, 2013
All about Murphy's law and other nuances of life. Read it!
April 7, 2014
Chissà cosa mi aspettavo... Il libro non è altro che una sintesi di come lavora il nostro cervello e di sommarie spiegazioni alle più banali leggi di Murphy. Mi è piaciuto? A tratti, direi.
January 23, 2016
It's a lesson in the physics of common sense. A short read, if yo like this stuff. I do.
March 24, 2016
Fun read.
September 16, 2016
interesting
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews