Audiobooks by David Epstein

The Sports Gene: Talent, Practice and the Truth About Success

*** Shortlisted for William Hill Sports Book of the Year 2013 *** Is Usain Bolt a superhuman one-off? Are sports stars like Paula Radcliffe and Tiger Woods born or made? Could we all be Olympians if we trained hard enough? And is the answer to be found by looking at Alaskan huskies? In this ground-breaking and entertaining exploration of athletic success, award-winning writer David Epstein gets to the heart of the great nature vs. nurture debate, and explodes myths about why top sportsmen excel. Along the way Epstein exposes the flaws in the so-called 10,000-hour rule that states that rigorous practice from a young age is the only route to success. He shows why some skills that we imagine are innate are not - like the bullet-fast reactions of a baseball player - and why other characteristics that we assume are entirely voluntary, like an athlete's will to train, might in fact have important genetic components. Through on-the ground reports at locations ranging from below the equator to above the Arctic Circle, revealing conversations with leading scientists and Olympic champions, and interviews with athletes who have rare genetic mutations or physical traits, Epstein forces us to rethink the very nature of sport.

David Epstein (Author), David Epstein (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Sports Gene: Inside the Science of Extraordinary Athletic Performance

In high school, I wondered whether the Jamaican Americans who made our track team so successful might carry some special speed gene from their tiny island. In college, I ran against Kenyans, and wondered whether endurance genes might have traveled with them from East Africa. At the same time, I began to notice that a training group on my team could consist of five men who run next to one another, stride for stride, day after day, and nonetheless turn out five entirely different runners. How could this be? We all knew a star athlete in high school. The one who made it look so easy. He was the starting quarterback and shortstop; she was the all-state point guard and high-jumper. Naturals. Or were they? The debate is as old as physical competition. Are stars like Usain Bolt, Michael Phelps, and Serena Williams genetic freaks put on Earth to dominate their respective sports? Or are they simply normal people who overcame their biological limits through sheer force of will and obsessive training? The truth is far messier than a simple dichotomy between nature and nurture. In the decade since the sequencing of the human genome, researchers have slowly begun to uncover how the relationship between biological endowments and a competitor's training environment affects athleticism. Sports scientists have gradually entered the era of modern genetic research. In this controversial and engaging exploration of athletic success, Sports Illustrated senior writer David Epstein tackles the great nature vs. nurture debate and traces how far science has come in solving this great riddle. He investigates the so-called 10,000-hour rule to uncover whether rigorous and consistent practice from a young age is the only route to athletic excellence. Along the way, Epstein dispels many of our perceptions about why top athletes excel and explores controversial questions such as: -Are black athletes genetically predetermined to dominate both sprinting and distance running, and are their abilities influenced by Africa's geography? -Are there genetic reasons to separate male and female athletes in competition? -Should we test the genes of young children to determine if they are destined for stardom? -Can genetic testing determine who is at risk of injury, brain damage, or even death on the field? Through on-the-ground reporting from below the equator and above the Arctic Circle, revealing conversations with leading scientists and Olympic champions, and interviews with athletes who have rare genetic mutations or physical traits, Epstein forces us to rethink the very nature of athleticism.

David Epstein (Author), David Epstein (Narrator)

Audiobook

Range: How Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World

The New York Times bestseller 'Urgent and important. . . an essential read for bosses, parents, coaches, and anyone who cares about improving performance.' Daniel H. Pink 'So much crucial and revelatory information about performance, success, and education.' Susan Cain, bestselling author of Quiet A powerful argument for how to succeed in any field: develop broad interests and skills while everyone around you is rushing to specialize. From the '10,000 hours rule' to the power of Tiger parenting, we have been taught that success in any field requires early specialization and many hours of deliberate practice. And, worse, that if you dabble or delay, you'll never catch up with those who got a head start. This is completely wrong. In this landmark book, David Epstein shows you that the way to succeed is by sampling widely, gaining a breadth of experiences, taking detours, experimenting relentlessly, juggling many interests - in other words, by developing range. Studying the world's most successful athletes, artists, musicians, inventors and scientists, Epstein demonstrates why in most fields - especially those that are complex and unpredictable - generalists, not specialists are primed to excel. No matter what you do, where you are in life, whether you are a teacher, student, scientist, business analyst, parent, job hunter, retiree, you will see the world differently after you've read Range. You'll understand better how we solve problems, how we learn and how we succeed. You'll see why failing a test is the best way to learn and why frequent quitters end up with the most fulfilling careers. As experts silo themselves further while computers master more of the skills once reserved for highly focused humans, Range shows how people who think broadly and embrace diverse experiences and perspectives will increasingly thrive and why spreading your knowledge across multiple domains is the key to your success, and how to achieve it.

David Epstein (Author), Will Damron (Narrator)

Audiobook

Es lebe der Generalist!: Warum gerade sie in einer spezialisierten Welt erfolgreicher sind

Spezialisierung sei der Schlüssel zum Erfolg, sagen viele Experten. Um Fähigkeiten, Instrumente oder Themengebiete zu beherrschen, müsse man früh anfangen und lange üben. David J. Epstein analysiert in seinem Bestseller Top-Performer in Wirtschaft und Wissenschaft, Ausnahmekünstler wie Vincent van Gogh und Profisportler wie Roger Federer oder Tiger Woods und belegt: Das ist eher die Ausnahme, denn die Regel! Generalisten legen vielleicht später los, dafür aber meist kreativer, agiler und mit Blick über den Tellerrand. Und haben letztlich Erfolg. Das Buch ist ein eindrucksvolles Plädoyer, wieder mehr Überblick zu wagen - und zu fördern!

David Epstein (Author), Markus Böker (Narrator)

Audiobook