Factfulness by Hans Rosling: A Book Review
Book: Factfulness: Ten Reasons We're Wrong About The World - And Why Things Are Better Than You Think
Authors: Hans Rosling, Ola Rosling, and Anna Rosling
We're used to the constant media portrayal, about how the world is only getting worse by the day, that there's no hope for us, and several other bad things that are constantly broadcasted across mass media. Nobody reports when things are normal. This is a fantastic book to see the world in a new light.
For example, nobody reports when there's no crime, and all is well. There's no need to in the first place, which is the point being made in this book. We're fed by media only when there's bad events. This is negativity bias, as defined by the Author. You can find more detailed examples in the book.
The author has given us a new perspective in understanding the changing world and measuring progress, through in-depth research on a range of subjects that impact our world and our image of it.
We don't need to see the world anymore in three segments; developed, developing, and under-developed. There's a new perspective that we need to consider. We can divide the world based on income levels: 1, 2, 3, and 4. The income is the primary driver of lifestyle. The crux of this book is learning about these four levels and how they matter more than ever.
People's lifestyle across these four levels, right from our alarm clocks to front doors, refrigerators, dining tables, the food we consume, how we dry our clothes, the type of footwear, and even types of toothbrushes and toilets have been captured by the Author's research organization GapMinder.
You'll find some extraordinary research and useful information when you catch up with the book or the associated website. Do explore DollarStreet on their website. There are several other tools and plenty of resources on the website that will blow your mind, and bring in a new global perspective. The entire book is backed up by research and the data teach us a lot about how we're wrong about many things.
You'll learn about various concepts, like the negativity instinct, fear instinct, the straight line instinct, urgency instinct and several other instincts and see the world in a whole new light. My takeaway from reading this book is that there's hope for us after all, and we're getting better in so many areas.
You'll learn about various concepts, like the negativity instinct, fear instinct, the straight line instinct, urgency instinct and several other instincts and see the world in a whole new light. My takeaway from reading this book is that there's hope for us after all, and we're getting better in so many areas.
My Rating: 4/5
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