Bad Blood by John Carreyrou. Also known as the story of Theranos. One of the best books I have read this year. A masterpiece of investigative journalism!
This is the story of a person who had set out to help humanity, but lost her morals along the way of corporate greed and secrecy. A story about control, secrecy, ego, and denial. Elizabeth Holmes had a vision which she genuinely believed in. It is when this vision reached the harshness of reality, when things started going south. This is a typical example of what economists call Sunk Cost Fallacy - the inability to accept one’s own failures early enough, which leads to investing whatever resources possible into the failed venture, with the hope of seeing it succeed. The goal justifies the means, or does it really?
A personal moral. When I finished my undergraduate degree, I was on my way to study bioinformatics. For one reason or another, I enrolled in a different Master’s program, but I told myself that one day or another, I would come back to it, and use my knowledge to do something good for humanity. This book was an example that I must keep in mind forever, if this dream of mine eventually becomes true. Even the best intentions meet the harsh reality of life.
This post originally appeared on my blog.
