How To Think: Understanding the Way We Decide, Remember and Make Sense of the World

by John Paul Minda

This book will get you thinking about thinking.

We understand more about the brain than ever before and we also have more tools than ever before to help us think. This book will show you how your brain works, how your mind works, why we all make certain mistakes in thinking and why that's not always a bad thing.

In order to understand how people behave, you need to understand how people think. And if you want to understand how people think, you need to have a basic understanding of cognitive psychology, cognitive science and cognitive neuroscience. This book explains cognition and the links between the brain, the mind and behaviour in a clear and straightforward way.

Through interesting case studies and research examples, Minda shows how the brain is involved in mental activity, how memory works, how language affects thought, how good (and bad) decisions are made, and why we make predictable errors in our thinking. With practical applications for everyday life, this a book that helps us become better thinkers, better learners and better problem-solvers. In the current era of big data, algorithms and AI, Minda argues that knowing about how humans think-how you think-is more important than ever before.

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction

368 pages, Paperback

Published March 15, 2022

Reviews

[JP · Rating 3 out of 5]

What is this book all about?

Your memory is not yours.   
Your present memories are more of an edited one. 
The recalling experiences will not be the same as the one you experienced before...
if someone reveals to you the same experience, it will be totally different. 
A general argument is..

Even their experience is also not a real one coz it even got edited as per their perception. Hence no one will reveal the real-time experienced through memories.

Hence we all see through our perception and 
You will be amazed to find how your mind captures the incoming information through your eyes, how it gets stored and how it reveals when called...

Different behaviors of yours, are products of your present mind.
Memories and behaviors are subject to alterations hence you are not the same person compared to yesterday.
The book contains lots of information about 'Mind and Thinking' but nothing new.
The flaw of the book is written in the format of lecturing. 

Author should learn to write precisely because too much detailing will get boring to the reader because we want information not proof. 
The proof can be added in notes at the end of the book.

It's more of a refresh of all other books you studied about the brain & mind. 

[Sambasivan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exceptional primer on the process of thinking along with deep insights on how our memory works. How language plays a critical role in our thinking. And how we finally decide.

[Marc Joanisse · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great science book! Manages to capture the state of the art in what we know about the mind and brain, and is hilarious to boot.

[Anissa Rezy · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's quite interesting. I get many information from this. But sometimes there are too many and i cant wrap my head around it. It will be nice to have like summary or something that will help us think more efficiently

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

We all have stories that play out over and over again in our minds; like stories "from your back pocket" that you want to share with friends and family because they are simply so enjoyable to relay. "How to Think" is a book that does just that. And more. It's a collection of intricately written chapters on many, many aspects of the brain and the mind. Weaving in science, psychology, current events, stories from everyday experience and case studies, "How to Think" literally "makes you think." Is the mind like a dishwasher? Is it more like a computer? Why does the moon seem larger on the horizon? How does misinformation spread so easily? How can your child remember where they left their backpack at school? How did your toddler remember a specific memory and recall it later on? Why is multi-tasking so ineffective, yet we keep on doing it? Once in the throes of HTT, you will find yourself quite literally thinking about thinking. At random or perhaps not so random moments, you will find yourself trying to determine why it is you're doing the things that you (and others) do. You'll reflect on the things you read in HTT that explain why you're thinking that way. And, as you read about the mind, it helps you become a better thinker. What could be cooler than that? More than just vacation or airplane reading (I mean, you want more than that out of a book, right?), HTT will blow your mind. It will engage you, mystify you, and inspire you. Highly recommended reading for any season.

[Zahida Zahoor · Rating 1 out of 5]

A first year psychology academic book disguised as a popular science book. Dull as dish water, even with the story of the author's family and friends and annotes about the COVID pandemic