Summary
In Starry Messenger, Neil deGrasse Tyson applies different perspectives and narrative frames for the experiences and phenomena that tend to most frequently and/or profoundly guide human psychology and decision-making. In doing so, he illuminates:
how frequently our attitudes are informed by bias
how applying different frames to the same information can lead to very different attitudes and outcomes
how approaching phenomena with rigorous objectivity and relentless curiosity can lead both to more positive experiences and better goal outcomes
Applying a Novel Perspective: An Example
As a previous (and possibly future?) vegetarian, I found the logic in the passage below to strongly resonate (from the chapter Meatarians and Vegetarians: We are not entirely what we eat):
...
I had read the information from the first passage before, but only after I also considered the alien thought experiment did I realize that I had dismissed this possibility entirely— not due to any evidence, but rather because I simply don’t want it to be true (i.e. I don't want my survival to require the death of other sentient beings).
He proceeds by highlighting additional variables that complicate the relative virtue of vegetarianism (e.g. the environmental impact of importing plant-based foods), which I also knew were important but had also previously dismissed. As you read each chapter of this book, you quickly notice all of the available evidence that people dismiss and biases that people adopt to create a short-hand for "understanding" and navigating the world, but at the huge cost of persistently getting things wrong, often preventing their own best outcomes.
This sounds disillusioning— is this book going to depress me?
I found Starry Messenger to be >90% optimistic. And although the reality checks were sometimes humbling, they've led me to adopt a more evidence-inclusive and objective mindset, and I think my future decision-making will lead to better outcomes (in the case of virtuous dietary habits, I think I’ll start investing money into lab-grown nutrients).
My Thoughts
Starry Messenger is a fast and fun read. There are 11 content chapters (of 10-20 pages each), each exploring a common-to-life topic (e.g. diet, personal identity, law & order, truth and beauty).
Excellent leadership requires :
a solid foundation in objective critical thinking and
a relentless curiosity mindset.
This book provides excellent practice and examples for how to apply both.
As you read, you will almost certainly encounter facts that have important political implications with which you passionately disagree. Pay attention to your emotional reactions to objective facts, as those may be strong indicators of your own biases (causing you to either over- or under-appreciate objective evidence in your own decision-making).
My Recommendation
If you read only one book from this blog, make it Starry Messenger (or listen to the audio book, as deGrasse Tyson is an excellent narrator).
