Delusions of Gender: The Real Science Behind Sex Differences

The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature

Steven Pinker · 528 pages

In The Blank Slate, Steven Pinker, one of the world's leading experts on language and the mind, explores the idea of human nature and its moral, emotional, and political colorings. With characteristic wit, lucidity, and insight, Pinker argues that the dogma that the mind has no innate traits-a doctrine held by many intellectuals during the past century-denies our common humanity and our individual

The Female Brain

Louann Brizendine · 279 pages

While doing research as a medical student at Yale and then as a resident and faculty member at Harvard, Dr. Brizendine discovered that almost all of the clinical data on neurology, psychology, and neurobiology focused exclusively on males. In response to the need for information on the female mind, Brizendine established the first clinic in the country to study and treat women's brain function. At

Social Intelligence: The Revolutionary New Science of Human Relationships

Daniel Goleman · 403 pages

Explores the nature of human relationships, finding that humans are "wired to connect," and bringing together the latest research in biology and neuroscience to reveal how one's daily encounters shape the brain and affect the body. "Humans have a built-in bias toward empathy, cooperation and altruism, provided we develop the social intelligence to nurure these capabilities in ourselves and others.

50 Great Myths of Popular Psychology: Shattering Widespread Misconceptions about Human Behavior

Scott O. Lilienfeld, Steven Jay Lynn, John Ruscio, Barry L. Beyerstein · 352 pages

50 Great Myths of Popular Psychology uses popular myths as a vehicle for helping students and laypersons to distinguish science from pseudoscience. Uses common myths as a vehicle for exploring how to distinguish factual from fictional claims in popular psychology Explores topics that readers will relate to, but often misunderstand, such as "opposites attract," "people use only 10% of their br

Social: Why Our Brains Are Wired to Connect

Matthew D. Lieberman · 379 pages

We are profoundly social creatures. Here, renowned psychologist Matthew Lieberman explores groundbreaking research in social neuroscience revealing that our need to connect with other people is even more fundamental than our need for food or shelter. Because of this, our brain uses its spare time to learn about the social world--other people and our relation to them. He argues that our need to rea

The Believing Brain: From Ghosts and Gods to Politics and Conspiracies How We Construct Beliefs and Reinforce Them as Truths

Michael Shermer · 385 pages

Shermer demonstrates how our brains selectively assess data in an attempt to confirm the conclusions (beliefs) we've already reached. Drawing on evolution, cognitive science, and neuroscience, he considers not only supernatural beliefs but political and economic ones as well.

The Synaptic Self: How Our Brain Becomes Who We Are

Joseph E. Ledoux

Welcome to Your Brain: Why You Lose Your Car Keys But Never Forget How To Drive and Other Puzzles of Everyday Behavior

Sandra Aamodt, Sam Wang · 248 pages

The Man Who Couldn't Stop

David Adam · 324 pages

**An intimate look at the power of intrusive thoughts, how our brains can turn against us, and living with obsessive compulsive disorder** Have you ever had a strange urge to jump from a tall building or steer your car into oncoming traffic? You are not alone. In this captivating fusion of science, history, and personal memoir, David Adam explores the weird thoughts that exist within every mind

Subliminal: How Your Unconscious Mind Rules Your Behavior

Leonard Mlodinow · 272 pages

Making Up the Mind

Chris Frith · 234 pages

"Making up the Mind is the first accessible account of experimental studies showing how the brain creates our mental world. Using evidence from brain imaging, psychological experiments, and studies with patients, Chris Frith, one of the world's leading neuroscientists, explores the relationship between the mind and the brain."--Jacket.

Behave: The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst

Robert M. Sapolsky · 790 pages

Why do we do the things we do? Over a decade in the making, this game-changing book is Robert Sapolsky's genre-shattering attempt to answer that question as fully as perhaps only he could, looking at it from every angle. Sapolsky's storytelling concept is delightful but it also has a powerful intrinsic logic: he starts by looking at the factors that bear on a person's reaction in the precise mo

The Man Who Wasn't There: Investigations into the Strange New Science of the Self

Anil Ananthaswamy · 312 pages

"In the tradition of Oliver Sacks, a tour of the latest neuroscience of schizophrenia, autism, Alzheimer's disease, ecstatic epilepsy, Cotard's syndrome, out-of-body experiences, and other disorders--revealing the awesome power of the human sense of self from a master of science journalism Anil Ananthaswamy's extensive in-depth interviews venture into the lives of individuals who offer perspective

The Psychopath Whisperer: Inside the Minds of Those Without a Conscience

Kent A. Kiehl · 304 pages

The Science of Evil: On Empathy and the Origins of Cruelty

Simon Baron-Cohen · 256 pages

Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain

David Eagleman · 290 pages

"This book will shine light on some of the hard-to-reach places in the brain, showing the ways in which we are not the ones driving the boat. Why does the conscious mind know so little? What do visual illusions unmask about the machinery running under the hood? How much of our lives are determined by choices and behaviors that are hard-wired, unconscious, and beyond our control? Do we have any man

Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking

Malcolm Gladwell · 288 pages

Intuition is not some magical property that arises unbidden from the depths of our mind. It is a product of long hours and intelligent design, of meaningful work environments and particular rules and principles. This book shows us how we can hone our instinctive ability to know in an instant, helping us to bring out the best in our thinking and become better decision-makers in our homes, offices a

Play: How It Shapes the Brain, Opens the Imagination, and Invigorates the Soul

Stuart Brown, Christopher Vaughan · 229 pages

From a leading expert, a groundbreaking book on the science of play, and its essential role in fueling our intelligence and happiness throughout our lives.We’ve all seen the happiness in the face of a child while playing in the school yard. Or the blissful abandon of a golden retriever racing with glee across a lawn. This is the joy of play. By definition, play is purposeless and all-consuming. An

The Organized Mind: Thinking Straight in the Age of Information Overload

Daniel J. Levitin · 528 pages

The information age is drowning us with an unprecedented deluge of data. At the same time, we’re expected to make more—and faster—decisions about our lives than ever before. No wonder, then, that the average American reports frequently losing car keys or reading glasses, missing appointments, and feeling worn out by the effort required just to keep up. But somehow some people become quite accom

The Self Illusion: How the Social Brain Creates Identity

Bruce M. Hood · 334 pages

Superstitious habits are common. Do you ever cross your fingers, knock on wood, avoid walking under ladders, or step around black cats? Sentimental value often supersedes material worth. If someone offered to replace your childhood teddy bear or wedding ring with a brand new, exact replica, would you do it?

NurtureShock: New Thinking About Children

Po Bronson, Ashley Merryman · 352 pages

In a world of modern, involved, caring parents, why are so many kids aggressive and cruel?  Where is intelligence hidden in the brain, and why does that matter?  Why do cross-racial friendships decrease in schools that are more integrated?  If 98% of kids think lying is morally wrong, then why do 98% of kids lie?  What's the single most important thing that helps infants learn language?  NurtureSh

Brain Bugs: How the Brain's Flaws Shape Our Lives

Dean Buonomano · 320 pages

Neuroscientist Dean Buonomano illuminates the causes and consequences of the brain's imperfections in terms of its innermost workings and its evolutionary purposes. He then examines how our brains function--and malfunction--in the digital, predator-free, information-saturated, special-effects-addled world we have built for ourselves.

The Memory Illusion: Remembering, Forgetting, and the Science of False Memory

Julia Shaw · 296 pages

Think you have a good memory? Think again. Memories are our most cherished possessions. We rely on them every day of our lives. They make us who we are. And yet the truth is they are far from being the accurate record of the past we like to think they are. True, we can all admit to having suffered occasional memory lapses, such as entering a room and immediately forgetting why, or suddenly being u

The Seven Sins of Memory: How the Mind Forgets and Remembers

Daniel L. Schacter · 279 pages

"Daniel L. Schacter, chairman of Harvard University's Psychology Department and a leading expert on memory, has developed the first framework that describes the basic memory miscues we all encounter. Just like the seven deadly sins, the seven memory sins appear routinely in everyday life. Schacter explains how transience reflects a weakening of memory over time, how absent-mindedness occurs when f