Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and its Consequences is a 1988 book by mathematician

Mathematician

A mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....

 John Allen Paulos

John Allen Paulos

John Allen Paulos is a professor of mathematics at Temple University in Philadelphia who has gained fame as a writer and speaker on mathematics and the importance of mathematical literacy...

 (1988 1st ed., 135 p. ; 24 cm. New York : Hill and Wang; ISBN 0809074478) about "innumeracy

Numeracy

Numeracy is the ability to reason with numbers and other mathematical concepts. A numerically literate person can manage and respond to the mathematical demands of life...

", a term he embraced to describe the mathematical equivalent of illiteracy — incompetence with numbers rather than words. It was a New York Times bestseller.

Paulos speaks mainly of the dangers of mathematical innumeracy; that is, the common misconceptions of the layperson in regards to numbers, exploring the relationship between math and the human mind. Paulos discusses innumeracy with quirky anecdotes, scenarios and facts, encouraging readers in the end to look at their world in a more quantitative

Quantitative property

A quantitative property is one that exists in a range of magnitudes, and can therefore be measured with a number. Measurements of any particular quantitative property are expressed as a specific quantity, referred to as a unit, multiplied by a number. Examples of physical quantities are distance,...

 way.

Topics include probability

Probability

Probability is ordinarily used to describe an attitude of mind towards some proposition of whose truth we arenot certain. The proposition of interest is usually of the form "Will a specific event occur?" The attitude of mind is of the form "How certain are we that the event will occur?" The...

 and coincidence, the birthday problem, innumeracy in pseudoscience

Pseudoscience

Pseudoscience is a claim, belief, or practice which is presented as scientific, but which does not adhere to a valid scientific method, lacks supporting evidence or plausibility, cannot be reliably tested, or otherwise lacks scientific status...

, and statistics

Statistics

Statistics is the study of the collection, organization, analysis, and interpretation of data. It deals with all aspects of this, including the planning of data collection in terms of the design of surveys and experiments....

and trade-offs in society.

Chapters

1. Examples and Principles
2. Probability and Coincidence
3. Pseudoscience
4. Whence Innumeracy?
5. Statistics, Trade-Offs, and Society