A survival guide to the misinformation age: scientific habits of mind

Description

"This book inoculates readers against the misinformation epidemic by cultivating scientific habits of mind. From dissolving our fear of numbers and demystifying graphs to elucidating the key concepts of probability and the use of precise language and logic, David J. Helfand wages a provocative battle against sloppy thinking while making science both accessible and entertaining."--Back cover.;Information, misinformation, and our planet's future -- A walk in the park -- What is science? -- A sense of scale -- Interlude 1. Numbers -- Discoveries on the back of an envelope -- Insights in lines and dots -- Interlude 2. Logic and language -- Expecting the improbable -- Lies, damned lies, and statistics -- Correlation, causation ... confusion and clarity -- Definitional features of science -- Applying scientific habits of mind to Earth's future -- What isn't science -- The triumph of misinformation, the perils of ignorance -- The unfinished cathedral -- Appendix. Practicing scientific habits of mind.