What Makes Your Brain Happy and Why You Should Do the Opposite
"David DiSalvo takes us on a whistle-stop tour of our mind's delusions.  No aspect of daily life is left untouched: whether he is exploring job  interviews, first dates or the perils of eBay, DiSalvo will change the  way you think about thinking... an enjoyable manual to your psyche thatmay change your life."--New Scientist"Thislively presentation of the latest in cognitive scienceconvincingly debunks what DiSalvo calls 'self-help snake oil.'"--Publisher's Weekly"DiSalvo offers 'science-help' (as opposed to self-help) by detailing the mental shortcuts our minds like to take but that don't always serve us well, with the assumption that understanding brain function helps us fight its stubborn behavior."--Psychology Today"A five-star intellectual smorgasbordof the latest speculations on what makes us tick." --Robert Burton, MD, author ofOn Being Certain: Believing You Are Right Even When You're Not"This book isthe Swiss Army knife of psychology and neuroscience research—handy,  practical, and very, very useful. It boils down the latest findings  into simple easy-to-understand lessons you can apply to your daily  life." --Joseph T. Hallinan, Pulitzer Prize-winning author ofWhy We Make Mistakes"ReadingWhat Makes Your Brain Happyis like eating intellectual dim sum at your favorite Chinese restaurant. Each morsel is tasty andyou will keep coming back for more." --Bruce Hood, PhD, author ofSuper Sense: Why We Believe the Unbelievableand director of the Bristol Cognitive Development Centre"The chapters in this book arecrystal-clear and multifaceted, and each transmits a ray of insight about how we think. It's jewelry for the mindful mind." --Phillip Alcabes, PhD, author ofDread: How Fear and Fantasy Have Fueled Epidemics from the Black Plague to the Avian Flu"Packed full of scientific insights with practical applications to everyday life—a thought-provoking and entertaining page-turner." --Gary Small, MD, UCLA professor of psychiatry and author ofThe Memory Bible,iBrain, andThe Other Side of the Couch: A Psychiatrist Solves His Most Unusual Cases"David DiSalvotakes us on mind trips to the frontiers of brain and behavior research—and  being a superb guide, shows us how each development is useful,  exciting, and inspired by wonder." --Jena Pincott, author ofDo Gentleman Really Prefer Blondes? Bodies, Brains, and Behavior—The Science Behind Love, Sex & Attraction"It's hard to put down this smart, readable discussion of the latest  brain science from science writer David DiSalvo. As always, DiSalvo  deftly offers both expert and lay readersnews we can use, in context and with style. Read on!" --Maggie Jackson, author ofDistracted: The Erosion of Attention and the Coming Dark Age"This book will make your brain happy—in a good way. Withengaging prose and compelling stories,  DiSalvo provides a fast-paced overview of mental shortcuts and foibles  that make us happy in the short-term, often to our long-term detriment."  --Daniel Simons, author ofThe Invisible Gorilla, and Other Ways Our Intuitions Deceive Us"DiSalvo is a genial and enthusiastic guide who makes emerging  research in neuroscience, social psychology, cognitive science, and  behavioral economics accessible, and even entertaining. But this book is  not specifically about research, nor is it really about brains and  minds. What it is about is you and me and how science can help with the  messy business of trying to live a meaningful, good life.A delightfully illuminating read." --Todd Essig, PhD, Training and Supervising Psychoanalyst, William Alanson White Institute"This book is a well-researched and effectively argued guide to  uncovering the reasons why we so often think and act in ways that  undermine our best interests, and it's also full of knowledge about why  humans manipulate each other. If you want to know more about why you do  what you do, and how to avoid becoming the victim of someone else's  manipulation tactics, I encourage you toread this book." --Philip Zimbardo, PhD, author ofThe Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil, and past president of theAmerican Psychological Association