David Orrell is an applied mathematician and author of popular-science books. He studied mathematics at the University of Alberta and obtained his doctorate from Oxford University on the prediction of nonlinear systems. His book Apollo's Arrow: The Science of Prediction and the Future of Everything was a national bestseller and finalist for the 2007 Canadian Science Writers' Award, and his book Economyths: Ten Ways Economics Gets It Wrong was a finalist for the 2011 National Business Book Award.