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    Unavailable
    The Genius in All of Us: Why Everything You've Been Told About Genetics, Talent, and IQ Is Wrong
    Unavailable
    The Genius in All of Us: Why Everything You've Been Told About Genetics, Talent, and IQ Is Wrong
    Unavailable
    The Genius in All of Us: Why Everything You've Been Told About Genetics, Talent, and IQ Is Wrong
    Audiobook5 hours

    The Genius in All of Us: Why Everything You've Been Told About Genetics, Talent, and IQ Is Wrong

    Written by David Shenk

    Narrated by Mark Deakins

    4/5

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    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    With irresistibly persuasive vigor, David Shenk debunks the long-standing notion of genetic "giftedness," and presents dazzling new scientific research showing how greatness is in the reach of every individual.

    DNA does not make us who we are. "Forget everything you think you know about genes, talent, and intelligence," he writes. "In recent years, a mountain of scientific evidence has emerged suggesting a completely new paradigm: not talent scarcity, but latent talent abundance."

    Integrating cutting-edge research from a wide swath of disciplines-cognitive science, genetics, biology, child development-Shenk offers a highly optimistic new view of human potential. The problem isn't our inadequate genetic assets, but our inability, so far, to tap into what we already have. IQ testing and widespread acceptance of "innate" abilities have created an unnecessarily pessimistic view of humanity-and fostered much misdirected public policy, especially in education.

    The truth is much more exciting. Genes are not a "blueprint" that bless some with greatness and doom most of us to mediocrity or worse. Rather our individual destinies are a product of the complex interplay between genes and outside stimuli-a dynamic that we, as people and as parents, can influence.

    This is a revolutionary and optimistic message. We are not prisoners of our DNA. We all have the potential for greatness.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateMar 9, 2010
    ISBN9780307704450
    Unavailable
    The Genius in All of Us: Why Everything You've Been Told About Genetics, Talent, and IQ Is Wrong
    Author

    David Shenk

    David Shenk is an American writer, lecturer, and filmmaker. He is author of six books and has contributed to National Geographic, Slate, The New York Times, Gourmet, Harper's, Wired, The New Yorker, New Republic, The Nation, The American Scholar, NPR and PBS. In mid-2009, he joined The Atlantic as a correspondent. He is a 1988 graduate of Brown University.

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    Reviews for The Genius in All of Us

    4/5

    62 ratings9 reviews

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    • 4/5
      Thank you, thank you, thank you... I've long believed that genetics only plays a small part in defining who we are or what we are capable of. Thank you David Shenk for showing us the researcj that backs that up that belief and doing so in such a way that makes it easy to understand while not diminishing the real science and research that has been done.

      I really like the manner the information is presented and then the flow that Shenk takes as he steps through the different areas that all play a part of defining who we are, or who we could be.

      This was a First-Reads selection
    • 4/5
      Will make you re-think what you can accomplish
    • 3/5
      An interesting review of the science of achievement, but somehow Shenk did not satisfy me--maybe because I have a read a lot in this area, but still a good read. I am puzzling over the ratio of text to notes, since there are more pages of notes than of the text. Kind of interesting way to write a book. Some of the notes are about what you would expect, just sourcing things he says or quotes in the text, but others offer more information or tell stories. Kind of a non-fiction "Pale Fire" about the science of achievement, perhaps.
    • 3/5
      another testament to the impact of practice and desire
    • 4/5
      This book parallel's Gladwell's Outliers, which I read a few months ago, but without being as engaging. It has several good points and does go into more depth in some areas. I particularly liked the discussion of culture as a factor in people developing to their fullest, and also making the point that what it takes to be truly great (while more attainable than you think) might not be worth it to most people. What drags the book down is that the author spends too much of the book telling us how geneticists and sociologists have been getting it wrong for the last couple of hundred years. That may be an unfair criticism considering the subtitle of the book should have made it clear to me that was his intent from the beginning, but I think I would have enjoyed the book more if he had simply presented his viewpoint without getting into that argument.
    • 4/5
      A quick, great read to inspire us all to aim high and work hard to achieve our goals. Also, contains advice on how to achieve goals, raise children, etc. In addition, it's full of useful facts like: true masters(i.e. geniuses, e.g. Mozart, Beethoven, Yo-Yo Ma, Einstein, Fenyman, Ted Williams, etc.) of any craft or skill require a minimum of 10,000 hrs of intense study/practice within 10 years.
    • 4/5
      I received a complimentary copy of this book from Goodreads First Reads. Thank you to the author and publisher for this wonderful book. This book is revolutionary in it's thinking and is similar in nature to the Malcolm Gladwell books. The book discusses nature and IQ versus good old fashioned hard work and focus. Being a firm believer in this philosophy, it is wonderful to see real evidence proving it. This is a quick read and will change the way you think! I recommend this book for those with an interest in the genetics versus hard work
    • 4/5
      Clear and thorough. The information was fascinating and never did I feel bored or inundated with data. I appreciated that the author presented data that was contrary to his findings and explained his doubts professionally.
    • 4/5
      Clear informative argument for the "perspiration" view of talent. Though where the talent in my immediate family comes from remains a mystery. None of us are of the "Practice makes perfect" persuasion.