Description

Book Synopsis
In this book, Reuven Brenner argues that people bet on new ideas and are more willing to take risks when they have been outdone by their fellows on local, national, or international scales. Such bets mean that people deviate from the beaten path and either gamble, commit crimes, or come up with new ideas in art, business, or politics, and ideas concerning war and peace in particular. By using evidence on gambling, crime, and creativity now and during the Industrial Revolution, by examining innovations in English and French inheritance laws and the emergence of welfare legislation, and by looking at what has happened before and after wars, Brenner reaches the conclusion that hope and fear, envy and vanity, sentiments provoked when being leapfrogged, make humans race.

Betting on Ideas Wars Invention Inflation

Product form

£28.50

Includes FREE delivery

RRP £30.00 – you save £1.50 (5%)

Order before 4pm today for delivery by Wed 1 Apr 2026.

A Paperback / softback by Reuven Brenner

15 in stock


    View other formats and editions of Betting on Ideas Wars Invention Inflation by Reuven Brenner

    Publisher: The University of Chicago Press
    Publication Date: 10/07/1989
    ISBN13: 9780226074016, 978-0226074016
    ISBN10: 0226074013
    Also in:
    Economic theory and philosophy Sociology and anthropology

    Description

    Book Synopsis
    In this book, Reuven Brenner argues that people bet on new ideas and are more willing to take risks when they have been outdone by their fellows on local, national, or international scales. Such bets mean that people deviate from the beaten path and either gamble, commit crimes, or come up with new ideas in art, business, or politics, and ideas concerning war and peace in particular. By using evidence on gambling, crime, and creativity now and during the Industrial Revolution, by examining innovations in English and French inheritance laws and the emergence of welfare legislation, and by looking at what has happened before and after wars, Brenner reaches the conclusion that hope and fear, envy and vanity, sentiments provoked when being leapfrogged, make humans race.

    Recently viewed products

    © 2026 Book Curl

      • American Express
      • Apple Pay
      • Diners Club
      • Discover
      • Google Pay
      • Maestro
      • Mastercard
      • PayPal
      • Shop Pay
      • Union Pay
      • Visa

      Login

      Forgot your password?

      Don't have an account yet?
      Create account