Thinking, Fast and Slow...

 On August 1st, 2015, we gathered at my house to discuss Thinking, Fast and Slow, by Daniel Kahneman.  Here is a review from Amazon:

Drawing on decades of research in psychology that resulted in a Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences, Daniel Kahneman takes readers on an exploration of what influences thought example by example, sometimes with unlikely word pairs like "vomit and banana." System 1 and System 2, the fast and slow types of thinking, become characters that illustrate the psychology behind things we think we understand but really don't, such as intuition. Kahneman's transparent and careful treatment of his subject has the potential to change how we think, not just about thinking, but about how we live our lives. Thinking, Fast and Slow gives deep--and sometimes frightening--insight about what goes on inside our heads: the psychological basis for reactions, judgments, recognition, choices, conclusions, and much more.

This was a long one!  Not everyone finished.  It was a bit of a slog, but it has some great research and discussion.  For example, in one experiment, parole judges were more likely to grant parole when they were not hungry.

I found the book extremely fascinating and a little depressing; we think we make so many of our choices in life based on rational, sound, thinking... but often we don't realize the ways in which our environment and so many other things are helping form those choices.

Liz was Skyping from Texas and unfortunately the screen shot got cut off!