The book of Nikita Nepryakhin “Anatomy of delusions” is a study of the world of illusions and characteristics of human thinking and a practical guide to overcome the laziness of his own mind.
Excerpt for familiarization
It is important to understand one thing: the majority may be mistaken. It is enough to mention several historical examples. It was once believed that the Earth is on three whales and a large turtle and is the center of the universe. Once they sacrificed virgins to get a rich harvest. Once the slavery flourished. Once, doctors were bloodletting to treat any disease. Once everyone was completely believed in alchemy. Once upon a time, Chinese girls were bandaged and deformed their feet so that they look like a lotus buds. It is difficult to say that these are illustrations of common sense. What we will call with a nonsense now was once separated by the majority. Moreover, these ideas were considered the norm, dogma, standard. And somewhere they still do female circumcision. And someone still believes that the offspring can inherit the genes of all those with whom the woman entered into sexual contact (I mean telegonia, which we will talk about at the very end of the book). And someone still considers this unshakable truth. And who knows, perhaps the time will pass, and what now we consider “common sense”, what is categorically separated by the majority, future generations will recall with misunderstanding and surprise.
People tend to make many mistakes in the process of cognition of the world. The inability to admit that we have cognitive distortions - this, paradoxically, is also a cognitive distortion, which is called the effect of a blind spot. Therefore, rational thinking and recognition of the right to error are so important.
Although Nikita Nepryakhin is not a scientist and not even a researcher in the traditional sense of the word, for the reader this can be rather a plus. As a business trainer and entrepreneur, the author of the “Anatomy of Truce” is concentrated on practical skills that can be mastered in the reading process. Nepryakhin literally offers to “dissect” his own brain for distortions and begins with megapopular myths, for example, that the left and right hemispheres have some special roles in logical or creative thinking.
Based on scientific research, the author explains why people make mistakes and how they become victims of manipulations in discussions. And, as a coach, he seeks to give the audience tools in order to avoid logical errors and cognitive distortions or at least realize that everyone is subject to them. This is already a big step towards life in reality, and not in the myth.
Read a fragment of the book or you can buy it On the website of the publisher.
