Why people are deceived: Understanding the reason and preventing complacency | Editor's Recommended New Books Vol.11

In Japan, cryptocurrencies are inevitably associated with a negative image of fraud and being suspicious. However, isn't this strange? There are many stories of fraud all over the world, not just cryptocurrencies. In fact, in terms of the number of cases, there are still more scams other than cryptocurrencies.

People have been deceived since ancient times. Why are people deceived, and what do people who are not easily deceived think on a daily basis? In this issue, we have selected books that explain how people perceive others as trustworthy.

1. Everyone is a "sucker" - How to acquire proper thinking in this world where "cheaters" are rampant

Be prepared to be fooled by humans

【Review】

Before you read on, search YouTube for the term "invisible gorilla experiment" introduced at the beginning of this book and watch the video. I won't go into the details of what is shown here, but I think a significant percentage of people will have doubts about their own perception.

Right from the beginning, the sad facts are laid out one after another that humans live with a bias to believe what they see and hear is true unless there is clear evidence to the contrary, and that scammers take advantage of this. But don't worry.

After explaining the cognitive distortions of humans that are easily exploited, this book teaches you how to fill those gaps. What I felt after reading this book was that it all comes down to not being overconfident and thinking "I won't be fooled."

Recommended ▶︎ Read this if you are confident that you will never be fooled!

2. Psychology of evil Good bystanders create evil

Maybe it's us who are making the world worse.

[Review]

When you look into the inside of a company that has been reported for window dressing or tax evasion, you are often astonished at how they managed to avoid being found out by such sloppy means. Such wrongdoing cannot take place without a third party who notices but keeps silent.

Bullying also does not go away because there are classmates who turn a blind eye to it. This book proves that the reason why wrongdoing never goes away is also due to the psychology of "bystanders".

In recent years, the word "sontaku" has become established, and criticism that Japan is a country with strong peer pressure has swept through, mainly from X, but reading this book, it becomes clear that peer pressure is an issue that exists all over the world. Rather than succumbing to peer pressure to maintain the organization, I want to become a "moral rebel" who upholds justice.

Recommended ▶︎ Recommended for those who are unable to get their own opinions across and are easily swayed by others

3. My investment techniques Who will the market smile at?

There is no absolute answer in investing. Build your own beliefs.

[Review]

Common sense and established practices are important, but they can also hold you back in the world of investment, where there are no absolute answers. Tatsuro Kiyohara, the author of this book, was ranked number one on the wealth list in 2005 and was called the god of investment. This book is a compilation of Kiyohara's thoughts on investment up to now, even though he has retired from the front lines.

Kiyohara's theories are not established like those in typical investment books, but because they are based on real experiences, they are overwhelmingly more persuasive than ordinary books. At the core of Kiyohara's work is the desire to always "question common sense."

Rather than blindly believing what the majority believes to be good, he questions it and personally searches for information from sources such as the Nikkei Financial Times. Although he sometimes fails, the process of establishing himself has taught him the importance of having firm beliefs and philosophies in both investment and personal life.

Recommended▶︎People who are unable to achieve results just by doing what they are taught

4. Techno-Libertarianism The only ideology that can change the world

A peek into the perceptions of those who move the world

[Review]

There are people in the world who are completely different from the common sense we have in ourselves. I think that there are many such people among the heads of super-large IT companies.

This book exposes the fact that people who use IT to move the global economy all share a libertarian ideology, and explains how the technology they develop is linked to the realization of their ideology.

Their ideas and perceptions are also alive in cryptocurrencies and blockchains, which are familiar to readers of this book, and they also reach out to fields such as social surveillance and military, which at first glance seem to be the polar opposite.

There are many books that talk about successful Silicon Valley people from a historical and technical perspective, but it is rare to find a book that explains their ideology from the perspective of their beliefs. Let's take a look at how geniuses perceive the world.

Recommended ▶︎ For those who want to know how IT engineers perceive today's society

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