Not entirely convincing, but carries the powerful message that “[t]his long nightmare of neglect and delay and denial needs...
Debut authors Olmsted and Blaxill argue that autism is a “man-made” disease triggered by environmental factors.
While this is a highly controversial subject—many public-health officials question whether the incidence of autism spectrum disorder is actually increasing (or an artifact of diagnosis), and they downplay the importance of environmental factors—the authors have amassed a compelling body of material that suggests that a “complex mix of genetic susceptibility, toxic chemistry and poorly understood events in childhood” are at the root of the disorder. Looking to the history of mercury poisoning, they found many clues to its possible role—occupational illnesses, people treated with medicinal mercury, infants receiving mega doses of vaccines that contain mercury preservative, water and atmospheric pollution, etc. One of the most dramatic instances they cite was the use of mercury’s toxic properties to treat syphilis. While significant side effects were observed—weakness, tremors and even the loss of teeth—more long-term effects were not recognized and were mistakenly attributed to the disease rather than mercury poisoning. Many children routinely given an over-the-counter mercury compound, Calomel, as a teething powder or purgative, suffered from symptoms similar to autism. Only in the late 1940s was a connection made between a mysterious disease, “acrodynia,” and mercury poisoning. Industrial pollution from mercury, toxic waste in oceans and bays that poison the fish we eat and atmospheric pollution from coal dust have been shown to have serious health effects. The use of mercury as a preservative in the vaccines routinely given to infants has begun to come under scrutiny, but the evidence is inconclusive. In the author’s view, the occurrence of autism may be triggered by a number of factors acting together, which trigger the disorder in children who have a genetic predisposition or a compromised immune system.
Not entirely convincing, but carries the powerful message that “[t]his long nightmare of neglect and delay and denial needs to end.”Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-312-54562-8
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Dunne/St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: June 3, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2010
Striking research showing the immense complexity of ordinary thought and revealing the identities of the gatekeepers in our...
A psychologist and Nobel Prize winner summarizes and synthesizes the recent decades of research on intuition and systematic thinking.
The author of several scholarly texts, Kahneman (Emeritus Psychology and Public Affairs/Princeton Univ.) now offers general readers not just the findings of psychological research but also a better understanding of how research questions arise and how scholars systematically frame and answer them. He begins with the distinction between System 1 and System 2 mental operations, the former referring to quick, automatic thought, the latter to more effortful, overt thinking. We rely heavily, writes, on System 1, resorting to the higher-energy System 2 only when we need or want to. Kahneman continually refers to System 2 as “lazy”: We don’t want to think rigorously about something. The author then explores the nuances of our two-system minds, showing how they perform in various situations. Psychological experiments have repeatedly revealed that our intuitions are generally wrong, that our assessments are based on biases and that our System 1 hates doubt and despises ambiguity. Kahneman largely avoids jargon; when he does use some (“heuristics,” for example), he argues that such terms really ought to join our everyday vocabulary. He reviews many fundamental concepts in psychology and statistics (regression to the mean, the narrative fallacy, the optimistic bias), showing how they relate to his overall concerns about how we think and why we make the decisions that we do. Some of the later chapters (dealing with risk-taking and statistics and probabilities) are denser than others (some readers may resent such demands on System 2!), but the passages that deal with the economic and political implications of the research are gripping.
Striking research showing the immense complexity of ordinary thought and revealing the identities of the gatekeepers in our minds.Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-374-27563-1
Page Count: 512
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Sept. 3, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2011
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These are not hard and fast rules, but Meyer delivers important reading for those engaged in international business.
A helpful guide to working effectively with people from other cultures.
“The sad truth is that the vast majority of managers who conduct business internationally have little understanding about how culture is impacting their work,” writes Meyer, a professor at INSEAD, an international business school. Yet they face a wider array of work styles than ever before in dealing with clients, suppliers and colleagues from around the world. When is it best to speak or stay quiet? What is the role of the leader in the room? When working with foreign business people, failing to take cultural differences into account can lead to frustration, misunderstanding or worse. Based on research and her experiences teaching cross-cultural behaviors to executive students, the author examines a handful of key areas. Among others, they include communicating (Anglo-Saxons are explicit; Asians communicate implicitly, requiring listeners to read between the lines), developing a sense of trust (Brazilians do it over long lunches), and decision-making (Germans rely on consensus, Americans on one decider). In each area, the author provides a “culture map scale” that positions behaviors in more than 20 countries along a continuum, allowing readers to anticipate the preferences of individuals from a particular country: Do they like direct or indirect negative feedback? Are they rigid or flexible regarding deadlines? Do they favor verbal or written commitments? And so on. Meyer discusses managers who have faced perplexing situations, such as knowledgeable team members who fail to speak up in meetings or Indians who offer a puzzling half-shake, half-nod of the head. Cultural differences—not personality quirks—are the motivating factors behind many behavioral styles. Depending on our cultures, we understand the world in a particular way, find certain arguments persuasive or lacking merit, and consider some ways of making decisions or measuring time natural and others quite strange.
These are not hard and fast rules, but Meyer delivers important reading for those engaged in international business.Pub Date: May 27, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-61039-250-1
Page Count: 288
Publisher: PublicAffairs
Review Posted Online: April 15, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2014
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