約翰 ·艾倫·保羅士（John Allen Paulos），美國Wisconsin大學的數學博士，現為美國費城Temple大學的數學教授，他齣版瞭許多關於數學的書籍，其中《數盲》（Innumeracy）是《紐約時報》連續18周上榜的全美暢銷書，已經被翻譯成13種語言齣版，另外他所著的A Mathematician Reads the Newspaper 被選為20世紀100本最好的非文學類作品，並被BBC英國廣播公司改編為節目，Once Upon a Number則列為《拉美時報》1998年最好圖書，他還定期為《紐約時報》、《新聞周刊》、《民族》等國傢齣版物撰寫文章，並且成為ABC新聞網站“誰在計數”的撰稿人，2002年保羅士被授予大學創新奬，2003年獲得美國科學促進聯閤會所頒發的提升公眾對科學理解奬。

內容簡介:

為什麼甚至受過良好教育的人，仍然對數學瞭解得那麼少？數盲的代價是什麼？1998年約翰·艾倫·保羅士在他著名的暢銷書齣版時就聲稱：沒有能力來閤理地處理大量數據和概率問題，導緻我們誤傳瞭政府的政策，擾亂瞭個人的決定，增加瞭對形形色色僞科學的感染。《數盲》讓我們知道：我們忽視瞭什麼？我們將從何做起？

在充滿刺激的關於數的概率的神秘故事的奇聞鐵事中，保羅士自如地介入瞭現代生活的各個層麵：從競選的角逐到運動公的統計，從股票詐騙和報業心理學到節食的醫藥配方，性彆歧視，保險，彩票和藥物試驗。《數盲》的讀者將會領略到一串令人驚訝的事實，一係列有份量的思想，而最重要的是掌握瞭一個更清晰、更定量化地觀察世界的方法。

This is the book that made "innumeracy" a household word, at least in some households. Paulos admits that "at least part of the motivation for any book is anger, and this book is no exception. I'm distressed by a society which depends so completely on mathematics and science and yet seems to indifferent to the innumeracy and scientific illiteracy of so many of its citizens."

But that is not all that drives him. The difference between our pretensions and reality is absurd and humorous, and the numerate can see this better than those who don't speak math. "I think there's something of the divine in these feelings of our absurdity, and they should be cherished, not avoided."

Paulos is not entirely successful at balancing anger and absurdity, but he tries. His diatribes against astrology, bad math education, Freud, and willful ignorance are leavened with jokes, mathematical or the sort (he claims) favored by the numerate.

It remains to be seen if Innumeracy will indeed be able, as Hofstadter hoped, to "help launch a revolution in math education that would do for innumeracy what Sabin and Salk did for polio"--but many of the improvements Paulos suggested have come to pass within 10 years. Only time will tell if the generation raised on these new principles is more resistant to innumeracy--and need only worry about being incomputable. --Mary Ellen Curtin

Book Description:

Dozens of examples in innumeracy show us how it affects not only personal economics and travel plans, but explains mischosen mates, inappropriate drug-testing, and the allure of psuedo-science.

Review:

A Good Look at the NUMBERS!

Numbers - hearing that word makes a lot of people feel a certain numbness in their brains. Well, at least that is true for a rather large portion of the Earth's population. The human populace seems to be divided between those who love numbers and those who love words. There are perhaps a mere handful that can lay claim to loving BOTH with equal passion.

And it is for simply this reason that whenever a Mathematician comes along with a certain passionate feel for language, his works seem to suddenly adorn the shelves of even the most innumerate literary reader. People from one camp, often wonder how the other lives, and thinks. John Allen Paulos happens to be one of those people who has ventured where others of his peerage dare not tread: the world of the Mathematically Illiterate.

In this book, he attempts to look at how numbers simply don't seem to register with some people. In particular, how statistical probability seems entirely unrelated to our associated fears about daily existence. Although this book was written around 1988, and most of the actual numbers may have altered somewhat since that time (the number of people dying annually from smoking, for instance) it is easy to see why a large portion of people simply switch their brains off when numbers are involved: the truth is simply too shocking. Would you ever get into a car, knowing that you had a one in 5,300 chance of dying in an accident? Or, would you ever light up your next cigarette knowing that you had a one in 800 chance of dying as a result of that activity?

J.A. Paulos not only shows you the numbers but also takes a mental microscope to certain misconceptions on what the numbers are telling you. Being blind to figures is one thing - but not seeing things correctly, can sometimes be even more dangerous.

One thing is for certain when you are done reading this book: you WILL look at the world you live in differently. That is, unless you are among those who already use numbers to make sense of the world around you. For me, the book was somewhat of a vindication of my point of view on Life itself. If you want to know anything at all about it and the world you live in - you simply HAVE to look at the NUMBERS!