How to Think Things and Other Useful Tips (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9798988180210)

Why do you believe what you believe?

In a day and age characterized by division and vitriol, the answer to that question may be more important than ever. This book attempts to recapture the lost art of genuine understanding by putting the concept of truth under a microscope. It encourages readers to look closely and think carefully about the deepest assumptions they carry, and attempts to demonstrate both the difficulty, and conversely the immeasurable value of "good thinking."

A.J. Moroney makes painstaking efforts to explain complex ideas with precision and clarity, to help us rediscover concepts that have become muddied and obfuscated for the modern thinker, and recapture some of the timeless wisdom that is being eroded by the information overload of the digital age.

This book tackles everything from logic to epistemology, but all while steadfastly refusing to take itself too seriously. In this wide-ranging, fast-paced book, A.J. Moroney will explore half-truths, the dangers of unending open-mindedness, philosophy of science, and, very briefly, the behavioral patterns of small amphibians. It is the author's earnest desire that this book will not only help readers reconstruct their intellectual habits, but perhaps also be a boon those who feel overwhelmed by the aggression and outrage that have become so commonplace today, or who feel as though they are a ship passing in the night among other lonely, isolated wanderers.

Incidentally, A.J. Moroney is unsure why he is writing this in the third person, but that seems to be what other authors do, and he thought it might be best to follow suit. Moreover, it allowed him to ironically comment on the silliness of convention, which, as will doubtless be confirmed by even a casual reading of this book, he thoroughly enjoys.