A reading club with a view to the future

264 Farnam Street, Shane Parrish, Rhiannon Beaubien: The Great Mental Models, Volume 2

Expanding on the mental models introduced in the first volume, this book explores physics, chemistry, and biology models to improve decision-making skills.

Farnam Street, Shane Parrish, Rhiannon Beaubien: The Great Mental Models, Volume 2

Summary

In "The Great Mental Models, Volume 2," the authors dive deeper into the world of mental models by exploring physics, chemistry, and biology models. These models can be used to help make better decisions, solve problems, and gain a deeper understanding of the world around us. The book includes practical examples and exercises to help readers apply these models in their own lives.

About

Title: The Great Mental Models, Volume 2: Physics, Chemistry and Biology

Author: Shane Parrish, Rhiannon Beaubien, Farnam Street

Publishing year: 2020

Publisher: Latticework Publishing Inc.

Length in hours: 9 hours and 3 minutes

5 main ideas

  1. Understanding the physical world through mental models of physics.
  2. Applying chemical models to make better decisions in areas such as health, economics, and technology.
  3. Biological models for analyzing systems, decision-making, and evolution.
  4. Practical exercises to apply mental models in daily life.
  5. Using mental models to make more informed decisions and improve critical thinking skills.
Farnam Street, Shane Parrish, Rhiannon Beaubien: The Great Mental Models, Volume 2

5 funny quotes

  1. "It's a funny thing about life; if you refuse to accept anything but the best, you very often get it."
  2. "A wealth of information creates a poverty of attention."
  3. "Some people say to me, 'You’re very funny,' but I’m not funny. I’m just reporting what I see and hear. People are funny."
  4. "He was a self-made man who owed his lack of success to nobody."
  5. "I don’t have a girlfriend. But I do know a woman who’d be mad at me for saying that."

5 thought-provoking quotes​

  1. "Any decision that is made by someone else on your behalf, without your input, is inherently risky. You are the only person who knows what you want."
  2. "In an uncertain world, it’s better to be generally right than precisely wrong."
  3. "The only way to find the edge is to work harder than anyone else."
  4. "The key to better questions is not coming up with better answers but understanding the problems better."
  5. "The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well."

5 dilemmas

  1. Balancing the need for speed and the need for accuracy in decision making
  2. Knowing when to change your mind in the face of new information or evidence
  3. Balancing the need for specialization and the need for diversity in organizations
  4. Balancing the need for short-term results and the need for long-term vision in leadership
  5. Balancing the need for efficiency and the need for innovation in business

5 examples

  1. Benjamin Graham and Warren Buffett's investment strategies
  2. How Amazon's Jeff Bezos and Apple's Steve Jobs think about innovation
  3. Charles Darwin's concept of natural selection
  4. The story of how Starbucks turned coffee into a premium product
  5. The scientific method used by Marie Curie and Richard Feynman

Referenced books

  1. "Poor Charlie's Almanack: The Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger" by Charles T. Munger
  2. "Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion" by Robert B. Cialdini
  3. "Thinking, Fast and Slow" by Daniel Kahneman
  4. "Antifragile: Things That Gain from Disorder" by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
  5. "The Art of Thinking Clearly" by Rolf Dobelli

Share a quote

"It's a funny thing about life; if you refuse to accept anything but the best, you very often get it."

Farnam Street, Shane Parrish, Rhiannon Beaubien: The Great Mental Models, Volume 2
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