Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Book recommendation

I recently finished listening to "The Social Animal: The Hidden Sources of Love, Character, and Achievement" by David Brooks. It was one of the most interesting and thought provoking books I have ever read. Though I disagree with Brooks on many of his political views, I cannot fault the research, creativity, and inspired writing that went into this work.
Brooks has spent years researching the role and effect of what he calls the non-cognitive functions of the human mind. We may think our thinking is what makes us do what we do, but, in fact, more often than not, it is our assessments and responses on a level outside of our awareness that most shape our behavior. Above all, we are a social animal and our emotional connections and responses to one another and the groups we belong to and identify with affect our behavior in expected and unexpected ways.

I highly recommend this book. It's so provocative, I'm going to listen to it again and I may even buy a hard copy just for ease of reference.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Please don't read it again.

If you think the science and neuroscience of happiness are interesting try reading this:
http://computinginsights.org/blog/2006/12/28/25/ . (If you are worried that non fiction by a Harvard prof might be dull, check out his TED talk first: http://www.ted.com/talks/dan_gilbert_asks_why_are_we_happy.html )

Or if you want a more practical and easy to read version of this science look at Part 2 of Younger Next Year ( http://www.amazon.com/Younger-Next-Year-Living-Beyond/dp/0761134239 ) starting with the chapters "The Limbic Brain and the Biology of Emotion"). It's an all around great book anyway.

But don't read this potzer a second time. Life is too short.

Craig C. Roshaven said...

Thanks Rich. I appreciate your concern for the quality of my few remaining years ;-).
I also appreciate your suggestions for further reading.