the human element book review

Book Review: The Human Element: Overcoming the Resistance That Awaits New Ideas by Loran Nordgren & David Schonthal By: Julia DeKorte -->

by Julia DeKorte | 29 Feb 2024

Book Reviews

Book Reviews | 29 Feb 2024

The Human Element: Overcoming the Resistance That Awaits New Ideas by Loran Nordgren and David Schonthal is all about what it takes to successfully introduce a new idea into the world. Nordgren and Schonthal bring in new perspectives that help visionaries to get the world to see what they see, and they do it in a pretty unusual way. Instead of educating readers on how to add value to a product, they dive into the four “frictions” operate against new ideas.

Friction #1: Inertia. Objects in motion stay in motion. I.E. People don’t like change. Many consumers find something they like and stick with it because it’s familiar. Even if it isn’t the best product on the market, or the most functional, or the newest, or any one of the qualifiers that make one product better than the other. That’s where you must start. Give your product something familiar, so your consumers don’t feel like they’re making a leap to something brand new.

Friction #2: Effort. The energy, real and perceived, needed to make change happen. Inventors must demonstrate how easy it is to implement the new approach, or idea, or product. Show that the cost of implementation is low but the rewards are so much more than you can imagine.

Friction #3: Emotion. The unintended negative emotions created by the very change we seek. Change can often cause anxiety, and it’s normal. But it’s also a reason why some people may not jump on board with new, unfamiliar ideas. Visionaries have to demonstrate that their new idea isn’t a threat.

Friction #4: Reactance. The impulse to resist being change. It’s a funny thing we do, isn’t it? Nordgren and Schonthal break down the science behind why humans are so resistant to change, and how inventors can use this fact to their advantage.

Of course, Nordfren and Schonthal get into the science behind each of these ideas, and how these ideas can help anyone who’s trying to show their idea to a greater audience. It’s a quick, interesting read and no matter what your idea or invention is, you’ll benefit from reading this book.

Loran Nordgren, Ph.D. is a Professor of Management and Organizations at the Kellogg School of Management. He teaches Leading Organizational Change, and also helps companies address their organization “misbehaviors” and helps turn things around. Some examples of companies he’s worked with? The Chicago Cubs, Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), and Allstate, to name a few.

David Schonthal is also a Professor at the Kellogg School of Management. He focuses on Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and teaches courses on Design Thinking, New Venture Creation, Creativity, Healthcare Startups, and Business Acquisition. He focuses on social psychology and how that plays into innovation. He’s also a Senior Director at IDEO, a design and innovation company, where he works with emerging businesses as well as older businesses that need a refresh.

There isn’t a more talented and tenured duo to write such a book!

This review has been adapted from The Human Element website.

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The Human Element: Overcoming the Resistance That Awaits New Ideas

Loran Nordgren (an organizational psychologist) and David Schonthal (a venture capitalist) are both professors at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. They wrote The Human Element as a resource for innovators who want to get their ideas to lift off, and then stay in flight, by looking beyond the hype and curbside appeal of their pitch, and into the details of why enticing offers and products often become crashed failures. Read 5 key insights from the book below, or listen to the audio version—read by Loran and David themselves—in the Next Big Idea App.

1. We think in Fuel.

When a bullet is fired from a gun, it leaves the barrel traveling 1,300 feet per second, breaking the sound barrier. If shot at the ideal angle, it can travel for nearly two miles. In a steady hand, a bullet will strike its target with pinpoint accuracy, time and again. What enables such a technologically simple device to achieve such extraordinary power and precision?

Most people’s answer is gunpowder. When gunpowder ignites, it creates enormous pressure inside the barrel of the gun, and the only way for the gas to escape is to push the bullet out through the end of the barrel. Gunpowder, therefore, isn’t the wrong answer—it’s just woefully incomplete.

When an object takes flight, two opposing forces are at play. There are propelling forces that thrust the object forward, such as gunpowder or a jet engine. And then there are constraining forces that push back, like gravity and wind resistance. For a bullet, the biggest obstacle to flight is drag. That’s because the faster an object moves, the more drag it encounters. The reason a bullet can fly with pinpoint precision over great distances is because it is aerodynamic, having been optimized to reduce the friction operating against it.

Similarly, when you launch a new idea, two opposing forces are at play. There are forces that propel the idea, which we call Fuel. Fuel is anything that makes an idea more attractive and compelling. Fuel covers everything from the features and benefits to the way that it is communicated. The job of Fuel is to ignite our desire for change, but there are forces that oppose change, which we call Frictions. We may not see them, but they are there, quietly acting as drag on innovation.

“By focusing on Fuel to enhance attraction, innovators neglect the other half of the equation—the Friction that works against the change.”

Most people operate on a deep assumption that the best way to sell an idea is to heighten the appeal, to add Fuel. We instinctively believe that if we add enough value, people will say “yes.” And if people reject our offer, we believe it is because there’s insufficient Fuel. We call this a “Fuel-based mindset.”

But by focusing on Fuel to enhance attraction, innovators neglect the other half of the equation—the Friction that works against the change. Ignoring Friction is like building an airplane without taking aerodynamics into account, and only thinking about the power of the engines. This is precisely what we do when we launch a new idea or initiative, so it’s no wonder that so few take flight.

2. Why we think in Fuel.

One day we got a call from a company in search of help. The company is a fast-growing startup that is redefining how furniture is sold by allowing customers to create a one-of-a-kind, fully customized sofa at a price about 75% cheaper than other custom furniture companies. Customers love spending hours on the site or working with a design specialist creating a sofa that is perfect for them. But something mysterious happens right before would-be customers hit the “order” button: nothing. They disappear before completing their purchase.

The company’s instinct was that some aspect of their product must be driving them away. Maybe prices are too high, or they need to add more options, or elevate the in-store experience. But it turns out that the problem had nothing to do with the company’s appeal. There was a Friction standing in the way: People didn’t know what to do with their old sofa! Will the garbage truck take it? If not, who will? Until they resolve this, people can’t move forward with their purchase.

As this example illustrates, humans have a funny habit of explaining behavior in terms of internal forces like motivation and intent, and downplaying situational forces. Psychologists call this the fundamental attribution error . And it is a nearly unbreakable habit of the mind.

“Humans have a funny habit of explaining behavior in terms of internal forces like motivation and intent, and downplaying situational forces.”

Fuel reinforces our attributional tendencies. Fuel is designed to stoke motivation and intent. Why aren’t people buying your product or proposal? “They must not find it exciting,” we imagine. If that’s the reason your mind constructs, then the way you change that behavior is to increase excitement by adding Fuel. That is why we fixate on Fuel.

3. The limitations of Fuel-based mindset.

A doctor says, “I have good news and bad news; which do you want to hear first?” What would you say? A majority of people pick the bad news. This is because, for the human mind, bad is stronger than good. If you’ve ever gone through a performance review, you’ll know what we are talking about. One negative comment can instantly wash away all the positive observations that preceded it. Psychologists call this the negativity bias .

Our bias for bad affects how we see almost everything. We remember negative events more intensely than positive events. We process negative information faster than positive information. A threatening image can trigger our fight-or-flight response in milliseconds, but positive events produce much slower reactions. You jump back from a snake much faster than you jump toward your favorite snack.

When people hesitate to embrace a new idea, there are two broad explanations. Either the idea lacks appeal (insufficient Fuel), or a Friction is blocking progress. Negativity bias has a clear implication: Focus on the Frictions. This shift in mindset can be seen in Bob Sutton’s wonderful book, The No Asshole Rule , which tackles a problem that plagues many companies: low workplace morale. The conventional response to a disengaged workforce is to add benefits, to crank up the positive in hopes of drowning out the bad. What Sutton proposes instead is fearless intolerance for bad people and bad behavior. The negativity bias leads to the realization that benefits and perks will rarely overcome a toxic culture.

“When people hesitate to embrace a new idea, there are two broad explanations. Either the idea lacks appeal (insufficient Fuel), or a Friction is blocking progress.”

The parallels with innovation are striking. When we sell an idea, our focus is on the benefits the idea offers. We implicitly ask ourselves, “How will we seduce them into saying yes?” And when our message is ignored or outright rejected, our response is to crank up the perks. Fuel is important, but Fuel isn’t the mind’s first priority.

4. Friction is a source of untapped opportunity.

Because people fixate on Fuel, it has become an over-exploited resource. There can be incredible opportunity in spotting the Frictions that your competitors have failed to resolve. Consider the success of the dating app, Tinder. Before Tinder, online dating was dominated by companies like Match.com and eHarmony. These companies require you to build a detailed profile of yourself, including intimate details like political views, salary, and body type. Next you search the huge database for potential matches. Then, once you find someone you like, the final step is to send them a perfectly crafted email.

But expressing interest in someone takes courage because you are making yourself vulnerable to rejection. Imagine finding a potential date who seems a perfect match. You send them a thoughtful message, but for a Match.com user, you often hear things like: “I’m looking for someone a little younger.” “Sorry, I don’t date Republicans!” “You’re not my type.”

Or perhaps worst of all, you don’t hear anything at all. The point is that traditional online dating produces a lot of rejection, and many people drop off these sites because they find it difficult to bear. Tinder greased the emotional Friction of online dating by creating a system based on mutual interest. To have the ability to reach out to someone on Tinder, both people have to “swipe right” on each other. Mutual interest is established before people make themselves vulnerable. Tinder’s core insight was that you feel more comfortable approaching somebody if you know they want you to approach them. Spotting and fixing the pain helped Tinder transform the dominant model for online dating.

“Tinder’s core insight was that you feel more comfortable approaching somebody if you know they want you to approach them.”

5. Finding Frictions requires empathy.

Despite their power and importance, Frictions are easily overlooked. Consider the following thought experiment: Imagine you run a non-profit that gives social support to children in hospitals. Your organization encourages people to write and send “hero cards”—letters of support to hospitalized children. How would you increase participation in this program?

When we posed this question to a group of people, two suggestions came up again and again: Explain how the cards help children, and incentivize people for writing them. We tested these influence intuitions, along with one of our own. One group received quotes from children explaining how much the cards meant to them. Other people were paid a small amount for each card they wrote. And for a final group, we simply made it easier to write a hero card by giving them templates. The first two interventions barely moved the needle, but when we gave people templates, responses rose significantly.

What made the template approach so effective? Does anyone think supporting sick children is unimportant? Of course not! They weren’t resisting because they didn’t think it was worthy; they were reluctant because they didn’t know what to write . They struggled with questions like: What’s appropriate? What words should I use? Should the message be happy or sympathetic? That uncertainty was a Friction that defused the tactics designed to Fuel change. Giving people templates removed the Friction, and behavior changed.

Frictions are difficult to spot because they require empathy. They require that you see the world from the perspective of your audience. When you are selling change, it’s natural to fixate on the idea. But to understand Friction, you need to shift the spotlight from the idea to the audience .

To listen to the audio version read by Loran Nordgren and David Schonthal, download the Next Big Idea App today:

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The Human Element: Overcoming the Resistance That Awaits New Ideas Hardcover – Oct. 5 2021

Purchase options and add-ons.

Wall Street Journal bestseller Watch your most innovative ideas take flight by overcoming the forces that resist change

The Human Element  is for anyone who wants to introduce a new idea or innovation into the world. Most marketers, innovators, executives, activists, or anyone else in the business of creating change, operate on a deep assumption. It is the belief that the best (and perhaps only) way to convince people to embrace a new idea is to heighten the appeal of the idea itself. We instinctively believe that if we add enough value, people will eventually say "yes." This reflex leads us down a path of adding features and benefits to our ideas or increasing the sizzle of our messaging - all in the hope of getting others on board. We call this instinct the "Fuel-based mindset." The Fuel-based mindset explains so much of what we do, from adding countless trivial features to software, to bolting a sixth blade onto a shaving razor.

By focusing on Fuel, innovators neglect the other half of the equation – the psychological Frictions that oppose change. Frictions create drag on innovation. And though they are rarely considered, overcoming these Frictions is essential for bringing new ideas into the world. The Human Element highlights the four Frictions that operate against innovation. Readers will discover:

• Why their best ideas and initiatives often get rejected – despite their undeniable value
• How to disarm the forces of resistance that act against change
• How to transform the very Frictions that hold us back into catalysts for change

Perfect for business leaders, product managers, educators, and anyone else who seeks to bring new and exciting ideas to life, The Human Element is an indispensable resource to help people overcome the powerful forces of human nature that instinctively resist change.

• ISBN-10 1119765048
• ISBN-13 978-1119765042
• Edition 1st
• Publication date Oct. 5 2021
• Language English
• Dimensions 15.24 x 1.96 x 22.86 cm
• Print length 256 pages
• See all details

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"An engrossing read on what it takes to open other people's minds. A leading psychologist and a crackerjack entrepreneur team up to demystify the science and practice of convincing people to let go of the status quo. If you've ever been frustrated by people rejecting an innovative idea or refusing a constructive change, this book might just be what you need." -- Adam Grant , #1 New York Times bestselling author of Think Again and host of the TED podcast WorkLife " The Human Element pulls back the curtain on the psychological forces that stop people from embracing new ideas and adopting new products. Whether you're a creator looking to execute or an executive looking to create, this book is a timely read." -- Daniel H. Pink , Author of When, Drive, and To Sell Is Human "Why is it that customers looking at new products or services that would dramatically change their lives or business for the better find it so hard to embrace and adopt them? The Human Element cracks the code. It describes the four forces that act against innovation and provides entrepreneurs the insights and tools on how to overcome them. This book is essential reading for any entrepreneur or innovator looking to accelerate adoption of disruptive innovation." -- Steve Blank , Eight-time entrepreneur-turned-educator and originator of the Lean Startup movement

"Too often marketers rely on features, benefits and promotion as the way to get customers to adopt a new product or service. But as it turns out, this is only half of the marketing formula. The Human Element makes a critical contribution to the world of marketing by identifying the four primary Frictions that inhibit consumers' desires to adopt new offers. This book shows readers not only how to forecast these Frictions, but more importantly, how to overcome them. The Human Element is a must read for anyone attempting to launch something new." -- Philip Kotler , "The Father of Modern Marketing", Author of over 80 books and Professor Emeritus at the Kellogg School of Management

"Adoption of your products and services is key to innovation success. Let this book be your guide." -- Alex Osterwalder , Innovation Thought Leader, Best-selling author of Business Model Generation and originator of the Business Model Canvas

"What invisible forces slow or stall even our best innovation efforts? Schonthal and Nordgren identify four "Frictions" that get in the way, and then tell us how to overcome them. The Human Element is full of insights for designers, innovators, and executives alike." -- Tom Kelley , 3-time, Best-selling author of the Ten Faces of Innovation , The Art of Innovation and Creative Confidence

"Thank heavens for friction--it makes driving possible. But when traveling on the innovation superhighway, friction is stifling. In The Human Element , Nordgren and Schonthal argue that although a bigger engine can promote creativity, friction-reduction is the secret ingredient. This beautiful, elegant book is the essential tour guide for those of us seeking to develop creative and influential ideas." -- Eli Finkel , Best-selling author of the All or Nothing Marriage and Professor at Northwesten University

"Innovation often connotes cutting-edge, advanced, or feature-rich. In this book, however Schonthal and Nordgren make the case that, after all is said and done, innovation is simply about helping people. The authors provide paradigm shifting frameworks that will help managers and entrepreneurs improve their odds of success." - -Efosa Ojomo , Author of The Prosperity Paradox: How Innovation Can Lift Nations Out of Poverty and leader of the Global Prosperity research group at the Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation

"There's always something standing between ourselves and innovation: an overwhelming and very human resistance to change. The insights Loran Nordgren and David Schonthal surface are important reminders of the care and attention designers need to bring a new idea to life and to build our shared future." -- Sandy Speicher , CEO of IDEO

"A revolutionary approach to bringing new ideas to life. Insightful and engaging, this is a must read for anyone who want to successfully launch a project, a product or an idea." -- Francesca Gino , Award-winning Harvard Business School professor, innovation expert, and author of Rebel Talent: Why It Pays to Break the Rules at Work and Life

"The ability to elegantly overcome Friction is one of the most crucial skills an innovator can possess. The problem is, most don't know how to do it! The Human Element finally reveals why we're all wired to resist new ideas, and provides intuitive tools and methods to insure that even the most cutting-edge innovations are enthusiastically received." -- Bob Moesta , Author, educator, and originator of the "Jobs-To-Be-Done" approach to innovation and marketing

"Nordgren and Schonthal offer a revolutionary and profound approach to getting new ideas embraced: Don't follow the conventional path of intensifying your persuasion; instead focus on reducing the friction that fuels resistance. The ideas are eye-opening and the writing is eye-pleasing, elegantly combining fascinating examples with scientific insights. The writing itself personifies the very message of The Human Element : it is all fuel, no friction." -- Adam Galinsky , Professor at Columbia Business School, co-author of the best-selling book, Friend & Foe , and a popular TED speaker

"Friction Theory is a powerful framework for understanding user behavior. A must read for every product designer." -- Andy MacMillan , Founder and CEO of UserTesting

"Contrary to popular belief, innovations rarely succeed because they are chalk-full of features. This book makes a strong case for forever dispelling this view in favor of a laser-like focus on knocking down the barriers that keep customers from beating a pathway to your door. If you want a new way of thinking about these sources of friction--and more importantly, what to do when you encounter them--you should read this book. It will give you a valuable recipe for how to design and introduce innovations that are a good bet for success in the marketplace." -- Christine Mooreman , T. Austin Finch Sr. Professor of Business Administration, Fuqua School of Business, Duke University, Editor-in-Chief, Journal of Marketing

" The Human Element underscores the crucial role that empathy plays in innovation and change. It's not enough to talk about it, one must internalize it in order to have the impact they desire. David and Loran will show you how." -- Maelle Gavet , Best-selling author of Trampled by Unicorns and CEO of TechStars

From the Inside Flap

As businesspeople, inventors, and managers know all too well, convincing people to adopt a new idea or behavior is only partly about the innovation itself. Successful changemakers learn that they have to overcome the deeply rooted Frictions that oppose the very nature of change.

Perfect for anyone trying to introduce a new idea or innovation into the world, The Human Element: Overcoming the Resistance That Awaits New Ideas belongs in the libraries of marketers, innovators, executives, activists, and others who hope to change the way anyone does anything.

From the Back Cover

Praise for THE HUMAN ELEMENT

"An engrossing read on what it takes to open other people's minds. A leading psychologist and a crackerjack entrepreneur team up to demystify the science and practice of convincing people to let go of the status quo. If you've ever been frustrated by people rejecting an innovative idea or refusing a constructive change, this book might just be what you need." ―Adam Grant, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Think Again and host of the TED podcast WorkLife

"There's always something standing between ourselves and innovation: an overwhelming and very human resistance to change. The insights Loran Nordgren and David Schonthal surface are important reminders of the care and attention designers need to bring a new idea to life and to build our shared future." ­―Sandy Speicher, CEO of IDEO

"Why is it that customers looking at new products or services that would dramatically change their lives or business for the better find it so hard to embrace and adopt them? The Human Element cracks the code. It describes the four forces that act against innovation and provides entrepreneurs the insights and tools on how to overcome them. This book is essential reading for any entrepreneur or innovator looking to accelerate adoption of disruptive innovation." ―Steve Blank, Eight-time entrepreneur-turned-educator and originator of the Lean Startup movement

"What invisible forces slow or stall even our best innovation efforts? Schonthal and Nordgren identify four 'Frictions' that get in the way, and then tell us how to overcome them. The Human Element is full of insights for designers, innovators, and executives alike." ―Tom Kelley, Three-time bestselling author of Ten Faces of Innovation, The Art of Innovation, and Creative Confidenc

" The Human Element pulls back the curtain on the psychological forces that stop people from embracing new ideas and adopting new products. Whether you’re a creator looking to execute or an executive looking to create, this book is a timely read." ―Daniel H. Pink, Author of When, Drive, and To Sell Is Human

About the Author

DAVID SCHONTHAL is an award-winning Professor of Innovation & Entrepreneurship at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. Outside of academia, David’s work in the fields of design, innovation consulting and venture capital have led to the creation and launch of over 200 new products and services around the world.

LORAN NORDGREN, PhD, is a Kellogg Professor of Management. His research and teaching explores the psychological forces that propel and prevent the adoption of new ideas. Loran has received numerous awards for research and teaching, and has worked with companies throughout the world on a wide-range of behavior change problems, a process he calls behavioral design.

Product details

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Wiley; 1st edition (Oct. 5 2021)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 256 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1119765048
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1119765042
• Item weight ‏ : ‎ 1.05 kg
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 15.24 x 1.96 x 22.86 cm
• #90 in Sales Textbooks
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About the authors

Loran nordgren.

Loran Nordgren is a Professor of Management and Organizations at the Kellogg School of Management. His research and teaching explores the psychological forces that propel and prevent the adoption of new ideas. Loran has received numerous awards for research and teaching, and has worked with companies throughout the world on a wide-range of behavior change problems, a process he calls Behavioral Design.

David Schonthal

David Schonthal is a Clinical Professor of Innovation & Entrepreneurship at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, where he teaches courses in new venture creation, design thinking, business acquisition, healthcare entrepreneurship, corporate innovation and creativity.He is also a Senior Director of Business Design at IDEO where helps organizations build and launch new ventures, design transformational new business models, and establish novel go-to-market strategies for products and services.

David also serves as an Operating Partner at 7Wire Ventures, a healthcare technology-focused venture capital firm, and a Global Advisor at Design for Ventures (D4V), a Tokyo-based early-stage venture capital fund that invests in design-led Japanese startups.

He is a co-founder of MATTER, a 25,000-square-foot innovation center in downtown Chicago focused on catalyzing and supporting healthcare entrepreneurship. He is a contributing writer to Forbes, Inc., Fortune and HBR magazines, authoring articles on corporate entrepreneurship, innovation and business design.

If all else fails, David's Plan B is to use his booming baritone to break into the lucrative voiceover world.

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The Human Element A Time Capsule from the Anthropocene

About this book

A magnum opus on the human impact on our planet – from the threat of animal extinction to catastrophic wildfires, global warming as visualized through glacier melt, and increased ferocity of historic floods and storms – James Balog presents four decades of his research and photography in this environmental call to arms. For four decades, world-renowned environmental photographer James Balog has travelled well over a million miles from the Arctic to the Antarctic and the Alps, Andes, and the Himalayas. With his images heightening awareness of climate change and endangered species, he is one of the most relevant photographers in the world today. Balog's photography of and essays on "human tectonics" – humanity's reshaping of the natural environment – reveal the intersection of people and nature, and that when we sustain nature, we sustain ourselves. This monumental book is an unprecedented combination of art informed by scientific knowledge. Featuring Balog's 350 most iconic photographs, The Human Element offers a truly unmatched view of the world – and a world we may never see again.

Customer Reviews

James Balog is an avid mountaineer and the author of eight books. His 2018 award-winning film The Human Element was screened worldwide. Balog’s Extreme Ice Survey (EIS) is the most extensive photographic study of glaciers ever conducted, and his documentary Chasing Ice won an Emmy and an Oscar nomination. His photographs are in dozens of public and private art collections and are extensively published. Anne Wilkes Tucker is the curator emerita of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. James Fallows is a national correspondent for The Atlantic . His work has also appeared in Slate , The New York Times Magazine , The New Yorker , and The American Prospect .

"James Balog, a photographer best known for his remarkable time-lapse glacier photos, has been chasing the climate story for decades. A new book compiling his work, The Human Element , is due out later this year." – The New Yorker "James Balog's new book The Human Element is a magnum opus destined to be a photographic classic. It is a profound statement by a force of nature on the forces of nature." – Dennis Dimick, former editor, National Geographic "A collection of visually arresting, powerful, historical-marker photos of 'the Anthropocene' by one of the celebrated naturalists and photographers of our time. Physically the book is large, very heavy, and beautifully produced. It is like a museum exhibition, captured between covers. Since people don't need printed dictionaries any more, you'd want to put it on a dictionary stand – both so you don't have to hold it, and so you can carefully leaf through its hundreds of arresting images. However you can see this photographic record of our time – in this book, in the gallery exhibits that should resume someday, or otherwise – you should make a point of doing so. This is a beautiful, and alarming, and motivating portrait of our era." – James Fallows "An epic and triumphant achievement that reveals the decades-long arc of a career of a master photographer and concerned naturalist – as well as his deep commitment to chronicling the adverse and ever-accelerating impact of humanity's toll on our precious planet." – David Friend, Vanity Fair "Your magnum opus is clearly a landmark accomplishment, offering forceful reasoning for urgent action! [...] You deserve endless credit from the rest of us hapless humans for devoting your life and your astounding talent to ringing the alarm bell with a sharp call to action." – Elizabeth Broun, director emerita, Smithsonian American Art Museum "This is epic and so filled with wisdom and heart. I cannot believe that one human created all of this and also can't begin to imagine what it took to create it. This is your life, and a profound statement about our world." – Ami Vitale, National Geographic photographer and filmmaker "The Year's Best Photo Books. Whether it's power stations pumping out smoke or a blazing forest, the environmental photographer James Balog offers a harrowing look into the impact humans have on our planet. With its hurricane-crumpled homes, tsunami-swallowed freighters and even playful doodles of tyre tracks on salt flats, this book can easily make a reader feel small. Yet it also inspires with its reverence and wonder, from the slow ache of ancient woodland and its gnarled sculptures, to the smoke-blackened faces of firefights up close." – The Times (London) "This book is a masterpiece." – Major Garrett, CBS news chief Washington correspondent "Balog's hefty new book, The Human Element , presents an anthology of his words and pictures from a lifetime of bearing witness to human impacts on the planet." – Inside Climate News "Best Illustrated Books of the Year. Hugely important, this book bemoans the effects of climate change on our shrinking natural habitats. Balog's photographs range from shots of flowing lava to power stations issuing vast plumes of smoke, from flooded streets to burning forests and some amazing endangered species. Who would have thought that such destruction could be made so beautiful?" – Daily Mail UK "12 books on climate and the planet for the holidays. These books meet this fraught moment with confidence, vision, reflection, and imagination. Another COVID year behind. Another COVID winter ahead. A 26th global climate meeting just adjourned. In Washington, the more aggressive climate and social justice bill, 'the budget reconciliation bill,' still in the balance. And records, oh so many records, broken–for fire, for rain, and for temperatures. Are there books that can meet this moment? Books that can lift burdened spirits over the holidays? Yale Climate Connections has identified a dozen. [ The Human Element ] transforms anxiety into wonder and will, with compelling visualizations. Wrap one up for a relative or a friend. Or for yourself." – Yale Climate Connections

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A flight leaves London for Nairobi carrying a mixed group of passengers--a movie star, an American journalist, a...

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THE HUMAN ELEMENT

by John Fores ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 15, 1958

A flight leaves London for Nairobi carrying a mixed group of passengers--a movie star, an American journalist, a businessman, a thief, a young civil servant, a colored woman. Thanks to the overconfident captain and the inefficient navigator, the plane has to crash land in the Sahara where, again thanks to the navigator, it takes five days for a rescue plane to find them. Five die and the rest reveal their true colors under the stress of hardships. Using a subject that is no longer novel, this books falls far short of The High And The Mighty which depicted a similar situation with more suspense, excitement and dramatic pace. A British import, this presents the American as a slangy yokel, a characterization more usual fifty years ago than today--and one not likely to appeal to the reading public here.

Pub Date: May 15, 1958

Page Count: -

Publisher: Doubleday

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1958

Categories: FICTION

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The Human Element

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Have you ever tried to introduce a new idea, innovation, or product to your customers or to the world, only to find that you hit roadblock after roadblock in getting people to adopt it? The problem isn’t lack of fuel — it’s that you haven’t reduced the friction. The Human Element is all about recognizing that no amount of pushing an idea or innovation forward is going to lead to adoption and acceptance. You have to reduce the four major types of friction — inertia, effort, emotion, and reactance. Whether you’re a business leader, entrepreneur, product or project manager, educator, or marketer, adopting a Friction-based mindset will transform the way you think about innovation and communicating that innovation to your audiences in a way that inspires adoption.

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The Human Element

by Malcolm | Jul 15, 2020 | Book Review

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The Ex-Human

Science fiction and the fate of our species.

Michael Bérubé Columbia University Press ( May 28, 2024 ) Softcover $26.00 ( 296pp ) 978-0-231-21505-3

Literature professor Michael Bérubé’s The Ex-Human delves into science fiction works that envision postapocalyptic worlds and the possible extinction of the human race.

The book focuses on an intriguing range of authors, including Margaret Atwood, Octavia Butler, Liu Cixin, Philip K. Dick, and Ursula K. Le Guin. Among the primary topics is the current Anthropocene Epoch, in which increasing climate-related disasters, including drought, wildfires, and flooding, make the potential for planetary ruin seem more immediate than futuristic. There are nuclear threats alongside growing social discord and the threat of another pandemic. Adding to humanity’s general unease is the use of artificial intelligence and technological monitoring, predicted decades ago in science fiction literature.

In addition to the precarious state of humanity, science fiction is shown to concern itself with the concept of other life form takeovers, or even ultimate replacement. In Philip K. Dick’s “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” (adapted by the cult film classic Blade Runner ), World War Terminus results in a “postnuclear dystopia,” and living among the remaining human populace are android or “replicant” beings, capable of violence and deception in order to survive. And Liu Cixin’s “The Three-Body Problem” features an astrophysicist who’s horrified by the “mass butchery” of China’s Cultural Revolution; she contacts an alien civilization with the desperate hope that it will improve life on Earth. Margaret Atwood’s “Oryx and Crake” contemplates whether an ex-human civilization would eliminate violence and slavery but at the seeming “cost of art, laughter, and intellectual curiosity.” Bérubé’s lively theories on these and other texts often incorporate notes on his interactions with students. His analyses are intensive yet fluid, variegated with a range of cultural, political, and personal references.

Spirited and speculative, The Ex-Human showcases science fiction for its formidable and prescient nature.

Reviewed by Meg Nola May / June 2024

Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. No fee was paid by the publisher for this review. Foreword Reviews only recommends books that we love. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.

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