This entry summarizes and discusses Book I of Nassim Nicholas
Taleb's book, Antifragile. Taleb defines the term
antifragile based on his search for the opposite of fragile.
Most people understand that if a package is stamped with the word
fragile, then it must be handled carefully or it will break.
In other words, dropping the package or otherwise exposing it to
some force will damage or destroy its contents. Taleb
contends that most people think of the opposite of fragile as
"robust" or some other word that suggests that the
contents of our mythical package would be able to survive being
dropped without damage.
However, Taleb's search for an opposite to fragile must go
beyond a neutral ability to withstand a certain level of impact
without sustaining damage. Rather, antifragile means that the
contents of our package will actually benefit from being dropped or
mishandled. Something along the lines of the cliché:
adversity builds character.
