Numbers Tell Stories: How Data Reveals the Surprising Truths About Our World from the Bestselling Author

From the internationally bestselling author, a revealing look at the surprising numbers that uncover the hidden forces shaping our world‘There is perhaps no other academic who paints pictures with numbers like Smil’ GuardianWhat do marriage, milk and the black market tell us about the state of humanity?Most people would say, not much at all. But the numbers reveal startling truths about who we are, how we live and where we’re headed.For centuries we’ve told ourselves stories about how the world works - yet the data often point to a very different reality.In Numbers Tell Stories, Vaclav Smil shows how statistics challenge conventional thinking and illuminate the hidden forces shaping our lives. Take marriage. Weren’t people in the past married off as children? In fact, in eighteenth-century France, the median age was 29 for men and 27 for women - not that different to today. Or longevity. Should we look to Japan to unlock the secrets of a long, healthy life?Perhaps - but only one in fiv