Wisdom of Crowds

This fascinating treatise asserts that, under the right circumstances, the stupidest crowd can make wiser choices than the smartest individual. The author's fresh perspective on group judgment yields surprising conclusions, which he puts forward clearly and convincingly, backing up his assertions with statistical studies and examples from disparate fields of endeavor. Yet, despite his eloquence, logic, and wit, he is not always easy to follow. He needs a narrator with the brains to grasp sophisticated concepts and the skill to bring them home to listeners--a narrator like the exemplary Grover Gardner. He employs a documentary-style detachment that never bores, never errs, but always, as it were, connects the dots, and makes them interesting. Y.R. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine