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Aug 25, 2004

"I think there's some cooperative impulse in all of us. So the question is, do you fan that? Or do you eradicate it?" --James Surowiecki

Wisdom of Crowds

"How many jellybeans in this jar?" Repeated studies show that a collective guess is often more accurate than any individual. We hold crowds accountable for the stock market bubble, boorish behavior at baseball games and the rise of Britney Spears. But in his new book, 'Wisdom of Crowds', James Surowiecki argues that the combined intelligence and input of a group of people can create optimum conclusions, whether in a financial marketplace or a county fair.