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The Half-Life of Facts

The Half-Life of Facts

By Samuel Arbesman

Why Everything We Know Has an Expiration Date. Current, 2012.

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16 mins read

14 Key insights

A brief summary of The Half-Life of Facts

An in-depth examination of how and why knowledge fluctuates, the half-life of information, and the effect these changes have over science, culture, and our everyday lives.

Key insights in The Half-Life of Facts

1
What do you get from this book? The evolution of ever-changing knowledge and how to prepare for it
2
Facts are constantly changing, but today’s scientists can measure the speed of transformation and help societies stay organized
3
Change is not always linear, but exponential— scientometrics has developed a system for detecting patterns and measuring these changes
4
“Lazarus taxa” proves that facts can be overturned, but half-lives are different for every field
5
“Moore’s Law” demonstrates how quickly technology advances, while “S-curves” show how multiple technologies work together
6
Social networks have a strong influence on how quickly or slowly information spreads, even when that information is wrong
7
When multiple disciplines come together, solutions to long-held problems are more likely to be solved
8
“Phase transitions” demonstrate shifts in knowledge, allowing scientists to predict changes before they occur
9
Standardized systems for measurement can help scientists collect “precise” data, though it may not always be “accurate”
10
“Shifting baseline syndrome” is a type of bias that puts our own self-interests before the facts, often to unfortunate consequences
11
Dramatic shifts in knowledge can impact the world, but humans can adapt if they accept the inevitability of change
12
Summary of the key insights
13
Selected critiques in brief
14
Final word

Who should read The Half-Life of Facts

Educators • students • scientists • historians • sociologists

About the author of The Half-Life of Facts

Samuel Arbesman holds a PhD in computational biology from Cornell University. His work has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, and Wired magazine. He is the former Senior Scholar at the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation and previous Research Fellow at Harvard University. Currently, Arbesman is Scientist in Residence at Lux Capital, a venture capital firm.

author avatar

Samuel Arbesman

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