精選書評：The Knowledge Illusion

作者：Steven Sloman and Philip Fernbach
出版社：Macmillan

預估閱讀時間：02:10
文章難度： ★★★★★

● 作者認為，雖然人的大腦縝密複雜，但思考仍經常循著某種規則。
● 人類無法真正獨立思考，因而經常做出離譜的判斷。
● 書中提出科學論點，並以實際的範例佐證，並用清晰易懂的風格敘述。

Have you ever wondered how every single one of us humans, a frequently kind and intelligent species, can occasionally use cognitive logic that is so wrong? The writers of The Knowledge Illusion, Steven Sloman and Philip Fernbach, would say that one major reason for this is that “individual thinking” is a false idea, and that instead thinking and the work of creating, transmitting, and preserving ideas is instead a “team sport”. The writing is begun with two spectacular stories of major failures of logic in American history, both of which are related to the famous Manhattan Project (WW2-era American nuclear program) and outline in excruciating detail the cognitive mistakes made by seeming intellectual giants!

你是否曾經懷疑，為何人類身為善良又有智慧的物種，有時候仍會用一些錯的離譜的邏輯來思考？《The Knowledge Illusion》的作者Steven Sloman和Philip Fernbach會告訴你，其中一個重要的原因是，所謂的「獨立思考」根本不存在。相反地，知識的思考、創造、傳播和保存，倒比較像是一種團隊運動。本書用了兩個美國歷史上非常離譜的故事為開場，這兩個故事都和有名的曼哈頓計畫（二戰期間美國的原子彈研發計畫）有關，並鉅細彌遺地描述這些高知識、高智能的大人物們，如何犯下這種血淋淋的認知錯誤。

This book accomplishes its goals through a number of arguments written with scientific understanding of the subject. As would be expected, the book warns us from the very beginning of the unimaginably complex nature of our brains and minds. After establishing that it goes on to demonstrate how, in spite of their complexity, our minds also tend to follow certain rules and make certain mistakes. One of the book’s theses echoes the wisdom of Socrates’ statement “I know that all I know is that I do not know anything”.

本書用幾個具有科學基礎的論點來說服讀者。果不其然，本書打從開頭就提醒我們人的大腦和思想有多麽複雜，甚至到了難以想像的地步。然而，儘管人腦結構如此複雜，我們仍會傾向依循某種規則、和犯下幾個既定的錯誤。本書的幾個理論，也呼應了蘇格拉底的賢哲之語：「我唯一知道的，就是我一無所知」。

If you enjoy the mysteries of the mind, or if you work in an industry that employs a lot of logic, this is the book for you. Its stories and explanations are written in a straightforward and clear scientific style that is peppered with interesting stories and details. The Knowledge Illusion directs a sympathetic eye towards our tendencies as a species.

如果你對頭腦的奧秘有興趣，或是你的工作需要用上很多邏輯思考，這就是一本你必讀的書。其中的故事和解讀，都用非常直白而具科學精神的風格描述，並以許多有趣的小故事和細節增添色彩。《The Knowledge Illusion》引導我們用同理的眼光來看待人類的天性和發展。

文/ Max Power

本文收錄於英語島English Island 2018年10月號
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