Ignorance

Ignorance has become a hip topic in academia and beyond. George G. Szpiro’s book masterfully weaves together different aspects of this trend by considering the flip side of knowledge from everyday perspectives, that is, the normalcy of nonknowledge, intentionally or not, in basically all areas of life. By so doing, Szpiro detects sixty “normal” instances of ignorance, no less. If you truly want to know about not knowing, then this is the book to read. – Matthias Gross, author of Ignorance and Surprise: Science, Society, and Ecological DesignSzpiro returns with a witty, thought-provoking exploration of life, history, and the meaning of our existence. Fun to read yet deeply educational, this lively journey through ideas reminds us why books still matter. – William Eimicke, Columbia University School of International and Public AffairsSzpiro has opened a curiosity cabinet of queries and answers about what is knowable, what is somewhat knowable, and what is not. Ignorance is crafted superbly, with thoroughly engaging origin stories and vignettes of discovery that investigate belief, doubt, uncertainty, and suspicion—illuminating from beginning to end. – Joseph Mazur, author of The Clock Mirage: Our Myth of Measured Time

George G. Szpiro is an author and journalist who was a longtime correspondent for the Swiss daily Neue Zürcher Zeitung. His previous Columbia University Press books are Risk, Choice, and Uncertainty: Three Centuries of Economic Decision-Making (2020) and Perplexing Paradoxes: Unraveling Enigmas in the World Around Us (2024). Szpiro was on the faculty at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, and the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.