The Knowledge Illusion: The myth of individual thought and the power of collective wisdom

'Sloman and Fernbach hammer another nail into the coffin of the rational individual . . . positing that not just rationality but the very idea of individual thinking is a myth'Yuval Harari, bestselling author of Sapiens and Homo Deus

The human mind is both brilliant and pathetic. We have mastered fire and have stood on the moon, and yet every one of us is fundamentally ignorant, irrational and prone to making simple mistakes every day.

In this groundbreaking book, cognitive scientists Steven Sloman and Philip Fernbach show how our success as a species is down to living in a rich community of knowledge, in which we can draw on information and expertise outside our own heads. And without any idea that we are even doing it.
Utilizing cutting-edge research, The Knowledge Illusion explains why we think we know more than we do, why our beliefs are so hard to change and why we are so prone to making mistakes. By providing a blueprint for successful ways to work collaboratively to accomplish amazing things, this book reveals why the key to human intelligence lies in the way we think and work together.

'Fascinating . . . Filled with insights on how we should deal with our individual ignorance and collective wisdom' Steven Pinker

'A blueprint for an enlightened society' Barry Schwartz, author of The Paradox of Choice

'Important and radical . . . This is psychology at its best' Paul Bloom, author of Against Empathy