13 quotes
Perception requires imagination because the data people encounter in their lives are never complete and always equivocal.
The Drunkard's Walk (2008)
The law of small numbers is not really a law. It is a sarcastic name describing the misguided attempt to apply the law of large numbers when the numbers aren't large.
The Drunkard's Walk (2008)
Obviously it can be a mistake to assign brilliance in proportion to wealth.
The Drunkard's Walk (2008)
We unfortunately seem to be unconsciously biased against those in society who come out on the bottom.
The Drunkard's Walk (2008)
The theory of randomness is fundamentally a codification of common sense.
The Drunkard's Walk (2008)
It is one of those contradictions of life that although measurement always carries uncertainty, the uncertainty in measurement is rarely discussed.
The Drunkard's Walk (2008)
Random events often come like the raisins in a box of cereal - in groups, streaks, and clusters. And although Fortune is fair in potentialities, she is not fair in outcomes.
The Drunkard's Walk (2008)
The nasty thing about the availability bias is that it insidiously distorts our view of the world by distorting our perception of past events and our environment.
The Drunkard's Walk (2008)
What I have learned, above all, is to keep marching forward because the best news is that since chance does play a role, one important factor in success is under our control: the number of at bats, the number of chances taken, the number of opportunities seized.
The Drunkard's Walk (2008)
The outline of our lives, like the candles flame, is continuously coaxed in new directions by a variety of random events that, along with our responses to them, determine our fate.
The Drunkard's Walk (2008)
Even random differences in pay lead to the backward inference of differences in skill and hence to the development of unequal influence. It's an element of personal and office dynamics that can't be ignored.
The Drunkard's Walk (2008)
Comets at the time were considered by theologians and the general public alike as a sign of divine anger, and God must have seemed pretty pissed off to create this one - it occupied more than half of the visible sky.
The Drunkard's Walk (2008)
It might seem daunting to think that effort and chance, as much as innate talent, are what counts. But I find it encouraging because, while our genetic makeup is out of our control, our degree of effort is up to us. And the effects of chance, too, can be controlled to the extent that by committing ourselves to repeated attempts, we can increase our odds of success.
The Drunkard's Walk (2008)