On May 2nd, the Young Leaders Circle was treated to a fascinating discussion with one of America's most creative analytical thinkers, Jim Manzi. His new book Uncontrolled: The Surprising Payoff of Trial-and-Error for Business, Politics, and Society (Basic Books, May 1, 2012) is the second title to appear under the new City Journal Books imprint. Jim is a Manhattan Institute senior fellow and National Review contributing editor.
In his first book, the software company entrepreneur explains how the methods of science can best be applied to social and economic policy to ensure progress and prosperity—and how poorly founded in research many ambitious government policies are today. It's an argument—updating Karl Popper and Friedrich Hayek for the twenty-first century—guaranteed to spark significant discussion.
Advance praise is already pouring in. "A thoroughly argued, powerful study," wrote Kirkus Reviews, while Matt Ridley, author of The Rational Optimist, gave this endorsement: "More and more people are coming to realize the crucial role that trial and error play in cultural progress as well as in biological evolution. Jim Manzi's ingenious book not only explores where trial and error work, but where they are lacking—in government, for example, where failure is rarely punished."
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