The latest of Gladwell's books to get my attention is Blink! I read the first couple of pages in a bookstore, then had to get it. Blink is about how we think without thinking, about choices that seem to be made in an instant-in the blink of an eye-that actually aren’t as simple as they seem. Gladwell points out that often more information does not yield better decisions, but worse decisions. Almost always he uses data to back up his points, which make his conclusions mind-changing.
He showed how doctors in the Cook County Emergency Room became more effective in treating heart attacks, how women are getting into the previously male-dominated domain of orchestras, and how policeman can dramatically improve the incidence of fatal encounters.
The answer to the last one intrigued me. It was that they need to slow their heartbeat--calm down, It reminds me of one of my favorite quotes from that great "philosopher-comic" Bill Murray. He said, "Almost everything goes better when you relax."
