Book Review | Numbers Don't Lie

BUY NOW --Numbers Don't Lie by Vaclav Smil-- BUY NOW

NUMBERS DON’T LIE: 71 Stories to Help Us Understand the Modern World | Vaclav Smil, Penguin Books (2020), 368p.

“Numbers Don’t Lie: 71 Stories to Help Us Understand the Modern World” is a collection of small essays tackling a range of subjects, including vaccinations, evolution, misconceptions about the impact of wind turbines, the environmental impact of cars, population, cellphones, diesel fuel, and the unreliability of unemployment figures. 

The mathematician, scientist, and Professor-emeritus Vaclav Smil is a prolific author, publishing over 41 tomes and hundreds of research papers. Smil often adds a meticulous historical context to each subject regardless of the topic. 

He clusters his topics in seven themes: “People,” “Countries,” “Machines, Designs & Devices,” “Fuels and Electricity,” “Transport,” “Food,” and “Environment.”

Smil’s penchant for history and adherence to the scientific method imbues his writings with an uncommon humility regarding the promise of our modern age. 

In another article, Smil charts the general length and duration of “empires.” History has demonstrated they come and go, but they have a mean duration of 220 years. Another stimulating chapter outlines a rapidly rising empire (Japan) and a slowly rising empire (Great Britain). Both with longevity converse to their rate of rise or growth. He then compares both to modern-day China and India, leaving the reader to discern which will have lasting power. 

For each page-turning 71 topics covered, the reader is left with unique reflections. New information is presented with a broader context than most have likely imagined. Smil’s style is straightforward. You get what you would expect from a polymath. Nevertheless, as compelling as his arguments are, he writes without stories that enliven the imagination and make his conclusions more memorable. He lets the data work even if his landscape is a bit bereft. 

Smil’s “Numbers” readers will find some heartily held beliefs challenged by the data he prescribes. Such books are a benefit to us all.
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BUY NOW --Numbers Don't Lie by Vaclav Smil-- BUY NOW