Bina Venkataraman Books
Bina Venkataraman is an American writer, journalist, and policy expert. A former journalist for The Boston Globe and The New York Times, she served as a senior advisor for climate change innovation in the Obama White House.
Known for: The Optimist's Telescope: Thinking Ahead in a Reckless Age
Books by Bina Venkataraman
The Optimist's Telescope: Thinking Ahead in a Reckless Age
In this thought-provoking book, Bina Venkataraman explores how individuals and societies can make wiser decisions for the future in an age dominated by short-term thinking. Drawing on insights from science, economics, and history, she offers practical strategies to cultivate foresight and resilience, helping readers to act today with the future in mind.
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The Problem of Present Bias
At the root of our difficulty with foresight is an ancient quirk of the human mind. Psychologists call it 'present bias'—the tendency to favor immediate rewards over future gains, even when the long-term outcome is clearly better. In laboratories, it appears when subjects choose one cookie now over ...
From The Optimist's Telescope: Thinking Ahead in a Reckless Age
Learning from History
Our capacity for foresight depends on our grasp of history. When I interviewed scientists and policymakers, I was struck by how often they turned to historical analogies to navigate uncertainty. The eradication of smallpox, the environmental regulation victories of the 20th century, the reforestatio...
From The Optimist's Telescope: Thinking Ahead in a Reckless Age
About Bina Venkataraman
Bina Venkataraman is an American writer, journalist, and policy expert. A former journalist for The Boston Globe and The New York Times, she served as a senior advisor for climate change innovation in the Obama White House. She is currently the editorial page editor of The Boston Globe and a lecture...
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Bina Venkataraman is an American writer, journalist, and policy expert. A former journalist for The Boston Globe and The New York Times, she served as a senior advisor for climate change innovation in the Obama White House. She is currently the editorial page editor of The Boston Globe and a lecture...
Bina Venkataraman is an American writer, journalist, and policy expert. A former journalist for The Boston Globe and The New York Times, she served as a senior advisor for climate change innovation in the Obama White House. She is currently the editorial page editor of The Boston Globe and a lecturer at MIT.
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Bina Venkataraman is an American writer, journalist, and policy expert. A former journalist for The Boston Globe and The New York Times, she served as a senior advisor for climate change innovation in the Obama White House.
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