Why Choose This Book?: How We Make Decisions

by Read Montague

To the list of writers connecting mainstream readers and cutting-edge science—Malcolm Gladwell, Steven Johnson, James Surowiecki—add Read Montague, with this exploration of what exactly determines the choices we make.

With a new perspective on the science of decision-making from the researcher at the center of the computational neuroscience revolution, Why Choose This Book? shows what the latest brain science reveals about the crucial events of everyday experience—the choices we make. From how we decide what we consume to what kind of art we like, and even the romantic, ethical, and financial choices we make, Read Montague guides the reader through a new approach to the mind with an accessible style that is both entertaining and illuminating. In taking apart the mindÂ's decision-making machinery, Montague first illustrates how our brains are like computers that are slow, small, fuzzy, and cheap—and began with goals like food, water, and sex. Second, he reveals how simple goals like these then turn into ideas like beauty, love, and terror with a life of their own. Finally, he explains how a value system in our heads controls those ideas so we can make good decisions—and how that physical system can break down leading to bad decisions, addictions, mental illness, and even large economic disasters.

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction, Science, Neuroscience, Brain, Philosophy

352 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2006

Reviews

[Jerecho · Rating 2 out of 5]

Why choose this book??? That's a big question. Why this one? Any book is worth reading. But it depends on the reader how he or she perceive a book. Some books can be frustrating, some can make you smile, some you just read because it make time fast-by.

With this book you should have patience because it's a hard book to read. I have to use the fast reading technique to finish this book. This book has a lot of going around the bush before it arrive to something or the things it want to convey.

The world has a lot of things to explore. We use a little part of our brain in our day to day lives. Life is not easy but if some things like book can make it easier we should invest on it. But decision always are hard to make. With this book you're going to explore neuroscience or the science of the brain.

So why choose this book? Maybe the answer lies on the decision you are going to make. I choose mine and my decision is 2 stars for the humors and a lot of small and big things that goes around the authors' brain.

[Nathan · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is a tough book to read. It's a bit wordy, and circles around taking time to get to the point. At only fifty pages into it, I'm considering not finishing it.

And I stopped reading it (September 2007)

[Trey]

I started reading this a few years ago and never finished it, but I'm going to give it another shot. I'll update this review when I've got more to say.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

For a technical view of how we arrive at a choice among many decisions (even those we're are consciously aware of making) this is fairly quick read. The ideas aren't new but they are presented in a mostly accessible manner. Those who generally don't like or want to read about science, math, logic, social psych - steer clear. It probably won't interest you. If books like The Tipping Point and Blink interst you, you may like this book as well though Montague delves more deeply into technical language. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys works like Steven Johnson's Mind Wide Open.

[Adih Respati · Rating 5 out of 5]

Because our brain works slowly (one million time slower than computer), it saves much much more heat and energy thus lives longer --and we live longer, too. Consistent with this effieciency principle, most of our decisiong-making is done automatically, without energy-consuming consciousness.

Some disorder may happen: addiction (reward-predicting brain module is deceiving decision making); parkinson (reward-predicting brain module is going static thus making no decicion making).

I enjoy the jokes, too.

[Angie Boyter]

I've tried to get into this book twice now, and it just doesn't work for me. I want to argue with him on almost every page, starting with page one and his anecdote about the Enigma cipher machine. I feel as if I OUGHT to like it---it is a subject of interest to me and has blurbs by two of my favorite author-scientists, Steve Pinker and Antonio Damasio.
So I give up.I will not rate it because I only read slightly less than half.

[Cristina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent introduction to computational neuroscience and provides a great overview of how decisions are made by the brain. I found it widely accessible and would be a good read for anyone interested in learning more about how we choose and about the highly relevant and emerging field of computational neuroscience.

[Jeffrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

1. Rabbits should try to incorporate uncertainty in their darting strategies.

[George]

Recommended by Dr. Chris Perricone. Seems interesting so far.