I'm about to start reading a book that normally I wouldn't ever have browsed off the shelf, nor even read a review of. It's The Ecotechnic Future by John Michael Greer. It's a 'green' book rather than an economics book, the author is billed as a Master Conserver and organic gardener whose blog is called TheArchdruidReport. New Age alarm bells ringing, or what! However, the bibliography – the acid rule of thumb test for a book's likely quality – looks great. More important, it was recommended to me as a must-read in order to think about the future by Andrew Curry, who is a clever and interesting man. So I'll give it a go & let you know.

It did make me reflect on the importance – and difficulty –  of staying open-minded, especially after reading this terrific Chris Mooney article in Mother Jones about our cognitive weaknesses, including confirmation bias.