Numbers Don't Lie

10/10

Excellent book. I got it in excellent condition.

Bought this book as the author was some one who was recommended by Bill gates . Yes the book has many facts and figures about various sectors inventions and other things like population demographics . Sime where "kind of interesting". But majority put me to sleep. Yes stating data does not make them interesting regards sajith

Avoid. The author should disclose sponsored content: Bill Gates on the cover, vaccines and more complimenting Gates Foundation right at the beginning when speaking about vaccines. This book is propaganda and is super biased.

It’s been my experience that this author’s books read much like textbooks: detailed, objective, no chit-chat nor anecdotes, just the facts and also a bit dry, unless you love the subject matter. This book, I found, is not as extreme and, consequently, should be accessible to a much broader readership. The topics covered are many: from living on earth, to inventions, energy production and usage, food eaten, crops grown, electric cars and related technology and so much more. Each of the 71 chapters is about four pages long and usually includes an interesting plot/figure of some sort. In this book, there is a wealth of information about our world and how so many parts of it work. It is written very authoritatively by a highly knowledgeable author. This is a book that can be enjoyed by anyone and should be read, I believe, by everyone.

Finalmente lo recibí

Smil riesce a dare una panoramica spesso inedita sugli argomenti caldi del nostro tempo tra cui demografia, sanità, tecnologia, sostenibilità, innovazione. La novità dei suoi scritti nasce da una profonda conoscenza delle statistiche e della storia, senza la quale è difficile dare una lettura completa della realtà. Il libro è bello frizzante, anche perchè l'autore, forse "arrivato" ad una gloriosa carriera, si espone frequentemente, anche a costo di suscitare l'animo dei "politically correct".

This is a fantastic overview of data in a widely ranging areas of the world. Mostly topics are important areas and Smil does not shy away from some technical detail (many other overview books may omit good discussions on devices and manufacturing). I think the strength of the book and author is looking to past and present data, some extrapolations to the future and subjective views are more questionable (however these are not frequent). Overall, a great book that touches on an impressive range of areas with success, there will always be some disagreements when tackling such a broad area. However, that minor downside does not detract from the book and what it achieves, especially in comparison to books which try to do the same.

Numbers Don't Lie is a collection of thought-provoking short discussions by Professor Vaclav Smil, a brilliant teacher and prolific author. There are 71 short pieces about data and information, mostly focusing on trying to make sense of numerical information by analyzing the historical and international context; and thinking about different ways to understand the data. Even in just the Introduction, there were already some surprising facts and comparisons that got me thinking. For example I was surprised to learn that Nigeria, as Africa’s most populous country, only uses 35 gigajoules of energy per year; while France was using 35 gigajoules per year by 1880. There are comparisons like this throughout the book, with the goal of putting raw data into a more digestible context, or helping you see numerical comparisons from a different perspective. The book is divided into seven sections sections: People, Countries, Machines/Designs/Devices, Fuels/Electricity, Transport, Food, and Environment. In each section, Smil has several chapters that are each only a few pages. The chapters are each isolated stories about data, and don't really flow into each other like one cohesive narrative. This makes it easy to read a few, then put the book down and come back to it later, as you don't need the information from previous chapters to understand the next chapter. There were some great thought exercises in this book, and I loved how Smil was able to come up with creative analogies and comparisons to encourage thinking about information in different ways. The book is an easy read, and because the chapters are short and not bogged down in too many technical terms, it should appeal to a wide audience. Highly recommended!