predict the action. And our ability to learn how to predict the outcome, our ability to consolidate a pattern, occurred very early on in terms of visual processing. Baseball Catchers Lead the Team from Behind the Plate Experienced catchers have always known what psychological science has recently uncovered: the catcher on a baseball team is the brains behind the team. Robert Arkin from Ohio State University, a former catcher and the father of baseball players, applies the insights of psychological science to the actions of the catcher in an article in the APS Observer . For example, why is it that it is often, when there are two strikes on the batter, many pitches technically within the strike zone are called balls? At the same time, conversely, the umpire's strike zone is 93 square inches larger on a three-ball count than the strike zone on two-strike counts! This may not just be a function of a "dumb ref". Instead this is an example of the power and influence of loss aversion, which is the tendency to strongly prefer avoiding losses to acquiring gains. Loss aversion affects catchers as well, who will call a different pitch for a 3-2 count that started off as an 0-2 count than for a 3-2 count that started off as a 3-0 count. The player behind the plate is the brains of the operation. Consider the visit to the mound to talk to a struggling pitcher. Whether to give advice, to motivate, or to tell