Danger Ahead: The Risks You Really Face on Life's Highway [Paperback]

Larry Laudan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1997

What are the real chances that:

• Your tax return will be audited? (See page 53.)
• Your television will catch fire? (See page 117.)
• You will injure yourself on a child's toy? (See page 119.)
• You will get whiplash this year? (See page 151.)
• You will be injured in an elevator? (See page 171.)

Larry Laudan takes a fresh look at the risks and odds we all face every day. This time out, the author of the popular Book of Risks has compiled an astonishing assortment of surprising statistics—and sometimes startling truths—about the way things really are. It's a delightful excursion into the intriguing realm of chance and probability, with plenty of wry wit and laughs along the way. From the lethal to the absurd, the odds are you'll love it! Find out:

• How reducing one risk may actually increase another
• How to determine the odds of something actually happening to you
• How you can avoid the most common risks
• And much more!

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

True or false: We live in especially risky times. Not so, says this delightful, statistics-packed volume that calculates the exact probability of everything from your chance of going bankrupt to getting divorced. The author of the lauded "The Book of Risks" also takes on the Politically Correct Risk and explores why, sometimes, ignorance really is bliss. Filled with fascinating charts, graphs and sidebars that prove its controversial but undeniable facts and logic.

About the Author

LARRY LAUDAN, Ph.D. , is a professor of philosophy at the University of Hawaii. An expert in the logic of scientific inference, he has taught at the Universities of London, Pittsburgh, and Illinois. He is the author of four scholarly books as well as The Book of Risks (also published by Wiley).

Product Details

• Paperback: 203 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (September 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471134406
• ISBN-13: 978-0471134404
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #711,488 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 55 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars My personal oppinion, which I think should be thought about, April 13, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Danger Ahead: The Risks You Really Face on Life's Highway (Paperback)

I have to say 1st of all that there is a risk in everything, the food you eat, the clothes you wear,the car you drive,the water you drink, the neighborhood you live in, and even the way you think is a risk ( I believe what you put out in the universe comes back to you) Everylittle thing has risks, but ultimately we are responsible for ourselves daily, we need to be thinking human beings, and think about things we eat, or the cars we drive, the point is to be aware and be thorough with our choices that we should make & ultimately try to make this world a better place....we can take a risk to go out for a sail, & get devoured by a 10 ton whale, or we can take a risk to go for a simple stroll and all of a sudden the world gets hit by a comet! Then what? we have to all use our intuition, and be thorough in the decisions that we make in our daily lives. Life is a adventure, to be dared, to live life in fear is a tragedy...We should all live as happily as we can, optimastically as we can, its healthier that way.. Learn how to use your sixth sense and use your head and THINK. its a very difficult thing to do thats why the majority does not engage in it. If the masses learned to "THINK" they would not look at there daily routine as a risk, they would live there well thought out daily plan...optimistally not in fear