Fluke

Chance, Chaos, and Why Everything We Do Matters

By: Brian Klaas

Narrated by: Brian Klaas

This “captivating illustration of the follies of trying to model and forecast the unpredictable world” (Financial Times) is both “empowering” (The New Statesman, UK) and “compelling” (New Scientist) as it challenges our most fundamental assumptions—by social scientist and Atlantic writer Brian Klaas.

If you could rewind your life to the very beginning and then press play, would everything turn out the same? Or could making an accidental phone call or missing an exit off the highway change not just your life, but history itself?

In Fluke, myth-shattering social scientist Brian Klaas takes a deep-dive into the phenomenon of random chance and the chaos it can sow, taking aim at most people’s neat and tidy version of reality. The book’s argument is that we willfully ignore a bewildering truth: but for a few small changes, our lives—and our societies—could be radically different.

Offering an entirely new lens, Fluke explores how our world really works, driven by strange interactions and apparently random events. How did one couple’s vacation cause 100,000 people to die? Does our decision to hit the snooze button in the morning radically alter the trajectory of our lives? And has the evolution of humans been inevitable, or are we simply the product of a series of freak accidents?

Drawing on social science, chaos theory, history, evolutionary biology, and philosophy, Klaas provides a brilliantly fresh look at why things happen—all while providing mind-bending lessons on how we can live smarter, be happier, and lead more fulfilling lives.

©2024 Brian Klaas (P)2024 Simon & Schuster Audio

Another outstanding book from Klaas!

The author’s ability to break down complex theories into digestible pieces and his evident love for humanity make this a compelling read (listen).

Not bad —but I was hoping for mote

There are some good parts to this book, but the premise drags out and there are some baseline assumptions — like Darwinism — that are asserted as truth and not explored.

Glad I read it but not my highest recommendation.

Very nice and interesting!

Very well narrated and is a great tool for making life choices. Author's story is well balanced.

This book should be listed as fiction

In Brian Klaas’s book *Fluke: Chance, Chaos, and Why Everything We Do Matters*, the character “Motu Camorra” is presented as having significant historical impact within the narrative. However, there is no evidence outside of Klaas’s book to support that Motu Camorra is a real historical figure. It appears that Camorra is a fictional creation used by Klaas to illustrate his points about randomness and its profound effects on history and human events. This raises a critical question: if Klaas’s thesis about the role of chance in shaping history is compelling, why does he resort to fabricating a historical figure to support it? This approach risks undermining the book’s credibility by blurring the line between fact and fiction.

The "What If"and the "What Is" book.

The book was referred to my by a trusted person. The author packed so many concepts,iIt was almost too hard to catch it all in a single read. So splitting up the chapters to leave time to reflect and ponder did help me get thru it. I noticed the wonderful references to where he got some of his information was a delightful change to the so called plagiarism that is allowed these days, that I notice in this "it's all about me" culture. Thank you Brian Klaas for being a breath of fresh air in polluted existence that is called "SOCIETY"

Uñbèlievaɓle facts about things I thought I knew a lot about, which make history infinitely more facinating

A page turner. It's a wonder so many things turn out as well as they do.

Thought provoking

Interesting take on social science and alternative explanations to major incidents. Leaves you wondering what do you really know and understand.

The obvious logic

This book addresses issues I have been thinking about ever since I got caught up in a fascination with quantum physics. I am just a neophyte when it comes to quantum physics but I started looking at books about it written for the lay person, and realized that it had a many implications for my worldview. Do things happen by chance? What is time? Is there free will? I love this book and plan to read it again to get more out of it. Thank you Brian Klaas for writing it.

l listened to this book again. It was even better the second time. Especially the chapter on free will. It addressed questions that I have been discussing with my nephew who is a quantum physics professor. I asked him if there were free will and he said yes. I said how can that be possible? So we go around and around about it. Brian Klaas has clarified a lot of these ideas for me. Thanks again, Brian.

Deep and thoughtful

This isn’t a casual read. Focus is needed to really think through the concept. The time is well worth it. Let your own mind try and untangle the idea as you go on this journey.

Thought provoking

Free will has always been a broad concept, as well as how we all fit together. This book challenged me in a lot of ways to think outside of what I always thought. really good listen.