The sibyl is faulty

摘要

Every age has its sources of wisdom, those to whom we turn for a little light in the abiding darkness: the oracle at Delphi intoxicated by volcanic gases; shadowy priests whispering behind the grille; or ascetics and gurus in their mountain fastnesses. Ours, though, is unassailably the age of the expert. With science regnant, it is to her disciples we instinctively turn. What, asks David Freedman in his combative new book, is the status of their collective wisdom? The interesting thing turns out to be not the answer, which is given in the title, but what lies behind it. Wrong: Why Experts Keep Failing Us-And How to Know When Not to Trust Them is a brisk interrogation of the extraordinary fallibility of even the most lauded and garlanded of our contemporary experts.