Synopsis Excerpt Buy the Book Praise Media Mentions Foreign Covers   WHY WE MAKE MISTAKES Coming in paperback February 9th! We misremember our high school grades. We give our friends gift cards they'll never use. We think we'd be happier if we lived in California (we wouldn't) and we think we should stick with our first answer on tests (we shouldn't). Why do we make mistakes? And could we do a little better? We human beings have design flaws. Our eyes play tricks on us, our stories change in the retelling, and most of us are fairly sure we're way above average. In Why We Make Mistakes, journalist Joseph T. Hallinan sets out to explore the captivating science of human error—how we think, see, remember and forget, and how this sets us up for wholly irresistible mistakes. In his quest to understand our imperfections, Hallinan delves into psychology, neuroscience and economics, with forays into aviation, consumer behavior, geography, football, stock-picking, and more. He discovers that some of the same qualities that make us efficient also make us error-prone. We learn to move rapidly through the world, quickly recognizing patterns—but overlooking details. Which is why 13-year-old boys discover errors that NASA scientists miss—and why you can't find the beer in your refrigerator. Why We Make Mistakes is enlivened by real-life stories—of weathermen whose predictions are uncannily accurate and a witness who sent an innocent man to jail—and offers valuable advice, such as how to remember where you've hidden something important. You'll learn why multi-tasking is a bad idea, why men make errors women don't, and why most people think San Diego is west of Reno (it's not). Why We Make Mistakes will open your eyes to the reasons behind your mistakes—and have you vowing to do better the next time. Read an excerpt Broadway Books hardcover, February 2009, ISBN: 978-0767928052 Broadway Books paperback, February 2010, ISBN: 978-0767928069   BUY THE BOOK   Praise "What an eye-opener! If you're someone who has trouble remembering the names of people (or common objects), if you seem to forget things almost immediately after you learn them, if your memory of past events frequently turns out to be drastically at odds with the facts, relax: you're not alone. It's a truism that we all make mistakes, but Hallinan is more interested in why we make them, in what quirks of our mental makeup allow—and even frequently encourage—us to misremember important events, forget passwords, mistake strangers for friends, buy more groceries than we actually need, fall for optical illusions, and so on. Turns out these aren't sign of illness. Just the opposite: our minds behave this way because our brains are wired this way. Hallinan cites numerous studies and experts (there is a lengthy bibliography), but he keeps the book from becoming a stodgy recitations of facts and statistics through the frequent use of illustrative examples and snappy prose. He also throws in a few big surprises, such as the revelation that multitasking is a myth (we don't do several things at once—we switch between various tasks without really focusing on any of them). A vastly informative, and for some readers vastly reassuring, exploration of the way our minds work."    —Booklist "Yup, people make mistakes all the time. In his engaging book, Joseph Hallinan entertains us while simultaneously informing us. There have been decades of science devoted to understanding real human behavior, much of it buried in the complex terminology of technical journals. Hallinan brings the science to life, showing how it applies in everyday life to everyday people."    —Don Norman, Northwestern University, author of The Design of Everyday Things and The Design of Future Things   Media Mentions Neuronarrative: "Pulitzer Prize winning author Joe Hallinan wanted to reach the root of our error-prone natures, and to get there he delved into psychology, neuroscience, marketing, sports, geography, finance and economics." Read about it here. CBS Sunday Morning: "...But "trivial mistakes" are no trivial matter for Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Joseph T. Hallinan. His new book's call to action: banish blunders." Read about it here. The Independent (London): "Why We Make Mistakes attracted winning reviews on its publication last month, with one critic predicting that it would change the face of mainstream behavioural science... Hallinan's book offers the possibility of decoding all that is wrong with our lives, righting the wrongs and scheming to rule the world. He offers solutions. After all, the best way to avoid making mistakes, he says, is to understand why we make them." Read more here. Scientific American Mind: "Why We Make Mistakes is an eye-opening account of our brain's imperfections and a frightening report of how little we do as a society to keep these shortcomings from becoming dangerous. It will make you think twice about answering your cell phone next time it rings while you are on the road." Read more here. USA Today: "...it was the book's subtitle that intrigued me... How We Look Without Seeing, Forget Things in Seconds, and Are All Pretty Sure We Are Way Above Average. He had written a book about my life. I was quite flattered. Maybe it's your life, too. I can boast that I am way above average in the password category. I use the same word for everything. And I chose it quickly. Years ago. It has never failed me. Of course, if someone discovers what it is, they pretty much have access to my whole world. So be it. At least I still do, too." Read more here. Readers Digest: "...We're prone to making mistakes under circumstances that, in most cases, we're not even aware of. For example, the color of an object can completely skew our judgment of it. Hallinan cites studies showing that the color of a particular pill can affect our perception of its potency..." Read more here.