Laurence Gonzales
Author
Laurence Gonzales won the 2001 and 2002 National Magazine Awards from the American Society of Magazine Editors for National Geographic Adventure Magazine. Since 1970, his essays have appeared in such periodicals as Harper's, Rolling Stone, Men's Journal, National Geographic Adventure, Smithsonian Air and Space, Chicago Magazine, San Francisco Magazine, and many others.
He has published a dozen books, including two award–winning collections of essays, three novels, and the book–length essay, One Zero Charlie published by Simon & Schuster. His latest book, Everyday Survival, published by W.W. Norton & Company, is available at book sellers now. His previous book, Deep Survival, is now out in paperback.
The Calculus of Risk-Taking
Every choice we make involves calculating the risk versus the reward, but if we mistake luck for skill, as was the case on Wall Street, these calculations become meaningless.
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How to Survive Airline Crashes and Other Extreme Scenarios
Survival expert Laurence Gonzales explains how to increase your chances of surviving some of the most common deadly scenarios.
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Extreme Survival Tips for Everyday Life
The characteristics that increase your chance of survival in extraordinary situations can also help you manage the daily trials of life.
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The Outer Limits of Human Survival
The rule of thumb is that humans can survive three minutes without air, three days without water, and three weeks without food, but there are always extraordinary cases—some have gone […]
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What Makes a Survivor?
The people who are likely to survive against all odds are not “weekend warriors” but rather those who are persistent, prepared, organized, and calm in extreme situations.
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Big Think Interview With Laurence Gonzales
A conversation with the author and survival expert.
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Laurence Gonzales on Deep Survival
Humans who can maintain the interior orientation and do not resign in the face of external challenges are the long-term survivors Laurence Gonzales writes in his first book.
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Laurence Gonzales on our culture of garbage
A culture based on the systematic disposal of potentially useful material items inspired Laurence Gonzales to ask some hard questions.
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Laurence Gonzales on Decorporatizing Academia
The universities where Laurence Gonzales has taught have replaced the rules of scholarship with the rules of business.
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Laurence Gonzales on A More Thoughtful Society
Citing TV as a primary example, Laurence Gonzales says there are simply not enough opportunities for thought.
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Laurence Gonzales on Socrates’ Take on Modern Scholarship
Socrates would say any medium of inquiry is worthless if it’s making us shallower.
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Laurence Gonzales on Managing Technology
With technology, our gain in efficiency is another person’s loss in toxicity says Laurence Gonzales.
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Laurence Gonzales on How to Overcome Intelligent Mistakes
Laurence Gonzales says being aware of our behavioral patterns is the first step in noticing how we make mistakes.
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Laurence Gonzales on Efficiency
Being more inefficient on purpose can bring the irrelevancy of our efficient behavior to light Laurence Gonzales notes.
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Laurence Gonzales on Mental Model Mistakes
Relying on a system of mental models can confuse associations with reality says Laurence Gonzales. .
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Laurence Gonzales on Homo Sapiens’ Stupidity
Author Laurence Gonzales charts recent human de-evolution.
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Laurence Gonzales on Everyday Survival
In his book, Laurence Gonzales goes from human behavior to the cosmos in an attempt to explain why smart people do stupid things.
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