Victoria Levchenko’s Reviews > How to Feed the World: The History and Future of Food > Status Update

While I enjoy a data-backed argument, I find Smil too far in the “If I can find this number, then my argument is valid” camp. I’m forever concerned about people immersed in statistics & numbers, but rarely consider methodologies, systems, and biases. Especially in ambitious projects like this.

Easiest to spot in his counterpoints. He picks a data point rather like a rabbit out of a hat and calls it a day.