CONTENTS

TITLE PAGE

DEDICATION

INTRODUCTION

COUNTRY MUSIC KILLS

COOL NEUROSURGERY PAST AND PRESENT: TREPANATION THROUGH TIME

SELF-TREPANATION

INTRO TO GAME THEORY: PRISONER’S DILEMMA

SOCIAL CONTAGION: HAPPINESS AND OBESITY ARE CATCHING

TOO DUMB TO KNOW IT

SMARTER EVERY DAY

THE KEY TO BRAIN TRAINING

GAME THEORY MAKE BRAIN BIG: COLONEL BLOTTO I

THE GUILTY PLEASURE OF SCHADENFREUDE

GAME THEORY MAKE BRAIN BIG: COLONEL BLOTTO II

MIRROR NEURONS: YOUR ACTIONS IN MY HEAD

SELF-TEST

NEURAL NETS KNOW ALL

BRAIN CHIP: NEURAL NETS AND THE ARTIFICIAL HIPPOCAMPUS

PIECE OF MIND: HIPPOCAMPUS

ABNORMAL PSYCH: HM (PATIENT)

LOGIC OF ILLOGIC: THE TRICKY SECONDARY MARKET AND WHY ECONOMISTS HATE PSYCHOLOGY

COGNITIVE COSTS OF WINNING AND LOSING ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS

ROSHAMBO WINNERS GUIDE

THE HEDONOMETER

LOGIC OF ILLOGIC: BRAIN-DEFLATING FALLACIES TO WIN ANY ARGUMENT, PART I

THE CALCULUS OF COMPASSION

GAME THEORY MAKE BRAIN BIG: THE ORIGIN OF FAIRNESS

SELF-TEST

MAD PRIDE

HEAR WITH YOUR EYES, SPEAK WITH YOUR EARS

PIECE OF MIND: TEMPORAL LOBE

PSY-OP: FLEXIBLE MIND OF MASTERY

INMATES RUNNING THE PRISON: INSANE RULERS

PERSIAN COW PRINCE

LOGIC OF ILLOGIC: BRAIN-DEFLATING FALLACIES TO WIN ANY ARGUMENT, PART II

THE EXPRESSIVE BODY

SHORT AND STOUT, LONG AND TALL

PIECE OF MIND: HYPOTHALAMUS

GENIUS TESTER #1

LOGIC OF ILLOGIC: ANCHORING

OUIJA TWEET BRAIN INTERFACE

GENIUS TESTER #2: BRIDGE AND TORCH

ALGEBRAIC EIGHT-BALL: AT WHAT AGE WILL TECHNOLOGY OVERTAKE YOUR ABILITY TO USE IT?

DEBUNKED: SELF-AFFIRMATION STINKS

THE ECONOMICS OF MATING I: MONOGAMY, POLYGAMY, AND POLYAMORY

PARASITE BRAIN PUNK

HANG UP AND DRIVE: YOUR BRAIN, SPLIT

GENIUS TESTER #3: MEETING IN THE MIDDLE

THE ECONOMICS OF MATING II: SNEAKY FEMALE REGULATION OF THE FREE MARKET

COOL NEUROSURGERY PAST AND PRESENT: PREFRONTAL LOBOTOMY

PIECE OF MIND: FRONTAL LOBE

THE ECONOMICS OF MATING III: FEMALE COMPETITION

LOGIC OF ILLOGIC: BATTLE ROBOT

PIECE OF MIND: MIDBRAIN

THE ECONOMICS OF MATING IV: GENDER SCARCITY

CLOWNS’ SELF-PURPOSE

PSY-OP: MOVING WALKWAY

NAILS AND THE HUMAN BRAIN

PIECE OF MIND: CEREBRUM

JOCKS, NERDS, AND THE SECRETS OF SUCCESS

BUT JOCKS GET BETTER GRADES

ATKINS MAKES YOU DUMB?

LOGIC OF ILLOGIC: BRAIN-DEFLATING FALLACIES TO WIN ANY ARGUMENT, PART III

GENIUS TESTER #4: BOXES OF BARS

CORTICAL HOMUNCULUS

PSY-OP: CUTTING

EXPECTED VALUE, EXPECTED UTILITY, AND PROSPECT THEORY

LOGIC OF ILLOGIC: LUXURY BLOODLUST

GAME THEORY MAKE BRAIN BIG: KUHN POKER

AUTHORITY AND THE STRIP-SEARCH PRANK CALL

AH, THE TEENAGE (Y)EARS

LOGIC OF ILLOGIC: YOU CAN’T MAKE ME EAT PIE

YOUR PERSONALIZED HOROSCOPE

E-PERSONALITY

SELF-TEST: PERSONALITY SNAPSHOT

FUZZY LOGIC

ASCH CONFORMITY EXPERIMENTS

GENIUS TESTER #5: MR. SMITH’S CHILDREN

PSY-OP: NO SOAP RADIO

GAME THEORY MAKE BRAIN BIG: GUESS TWO-THIRDS OF THE AVERAGE

DEBUNKED: THE HAPPY HERD

GENIUS TESTER #6: FOUR SQUARES PROBLEM

THE ONE MUST OF HAPPINESS

SELF-TEST

LOGIC OF ILLOGIC: BRAIN-DEFLATING FALLACIES TO WIN ANY ARGUMENT, PART IV

GENETICS OF BEHAVIOR

MEMORY I: ALTERNATE REALITIES

LOGIC OF ILLOGIC: SO GOD-AWFULLY BORING

MEMORY II: CREATING FALSE MEMORIES

MEMORY III: THE BRAINWORKS OF BAD MEMORY

HERE TODAY, GONE IN MILLISECONDS: ICONIC MEMORY

POST-STEREOTYPE

RACIAL BIAS IN STANDARDIZED TESTING?

PIECE OF MIND: CEREBELLUM

ACTION AND FREE WILL

DEBUNKED: MISDIAGNOSIS IMMUNITY

DEBUNKED: DIAGNOSIS BATSHIT

GENIUS TESTER #7: MISSING BOX

COFFEE AND CIGARETTES MAKE YOU SMARTER

HOT OR NOT

GAME THEORY MAKE BRAIN BIG: THE SHORTEST FUSE WINS THE BATTLE OF THE SEXES

ALGEBRAIC EIGHT-BALL: THE CHANCES THAT HE/SHE IS “THE ONE”

IF YOU SAY SO: MEMORABLE LIES, FORGETTABLE TRUTHS

THE EIGHT MENTAL DISORDERS OF 1857

ABNORMAL PSYCH: CLIVE WEARING

SELF-TEST: A SIMPLE MEMORY TEST

GAME THEORY MAKE BRAIN BIG: EL FAROL BAR

NANOTECHNOLOGY AND THE BLOOD-BRAIN BARRIER

THE DIET PARADOX: OFF-LIMITS IS OPEN SEASON

ULTIMATE EVIL?: NEUROIMAGING AS MARKET RESEARCH TOOL

PIECE OF MIND: AMYGDALA

FUGGEDABOUTIT

BAD MONKEY. NO CUCUMBER.

GAME THEORY MAKE BRAIN BIG: PIRATE PUZZLE

BLINDSIGHT

PIECE OF MIND: OCCIPITAL LOBE

INTUITION TRUMPS REASON: THE IOWA GAMBLING TASK

OTHER COOL NEUROPSYCH TESTS

THE TRANSFORMATIVE POWER OF THE UNEXPECTED

COOL NEUROSURGERY PAST AND PRESENT: CONSCIOUS NEUROSURGERY

HANDWRITING ANALYSIS

CRANIAL NERVE MNEMONICS

KNOX BOX

GENIUS TESTER #8: HOUSES AND UTILITIES

COOL NEUROSURGERY PAST AND PRESENT: CORPUS CALLOSOTOMY

PIECE OF MIND: BRODMANN AREAS

PSY-OP: INFARCTION

BRAIN SWEAT

YOUR BRAIN ON SPACE

AUTISM AND LEGOS

MALES’ RAT-BRAINED NAVIGATION

PIECE OF MIND: PARIETAL LOBE

GAME THEORY MAKE BRAIN BIG: NASH BARGAINING GAME

THE BRAINWORKS OF RELIGIOUS CONVICTION AND ECSTASY

SELF-TEST

I CHOOSE MY CHOICE

FEAR-THEN-RELIEF PRISONER COMPLIANCE

GAME THEORY MAKE BRAIN BIG: SIGNALING STRATEGIES IN BRIDGE AND IN JOB INTERVIEWS

PIECE OF MIND: MEDULLA OBLONGATA

PLACEBOS ARE GETTING STRONGER

MEERKATS, MACAQUES, MEN, AND THE HEALING EFFECTS OF FORGIVENESS

NEUROETHICS

I WOULD NEVER

SELF-TEST

MEMORIZATION 101

DOES SUBLIMINAL ADVERTISING WORK?

SELF-TEST: QUICK MEMORY CHECK

LOGIC OF ILLOGIC: K WORDS

GENIUS TESTER #9: THE PSYCHOLOGY OF GETTING SUCKERED

PSY-OP: PICK A NUMBER, ANY NUMBER

NEURAL DARWINISM

STRETCHING PHANTOM LIMB CRAMPS

SHEEPLE

PSY-OP: PHANTOM NOSE

GAME THEORY MAKE BRAIN BIG: DINER’S DILEMMA

LOGIC OF ILLOGIC: FRUIT BAG

ABNORMAL PSYCH: PHINEAS GAGE

IS LAUGHTER THE BEST MEDICINE?

THE IMPACT OF TRAGEDY

FRUIT VS. VEGGIE PERSONALITY SMACKDOWN

DEFLECTING INCOMING BLOOPERS

PIECE OF MIND: PONS

ALGEBRAIC EIGHT-BALL: MEN, WHAT’S YOUR SEX APPEAL?

PSY-OP: VEGGIE MATH

ABNORMAL PSYCH: AHAD ISRAFIL

THE BURDEN OF CONVENTIONAL THINKING

GAME THEORY MAKE BRAIN BIG: PEACE/WAR

TIME TRAVEL: SCIENCE, NOT SCIENCE FICTION

ACTIVE FORGETTING: THE MENTAL BOXES OF SUPPRESSION AND REPRESSION

GENIUS TESTER #10: TIME TRAVEL

IGNORING IS EXHAUSTING

EXERCISE MAKES YOU SMART

DO CROSSWORDS KEEP THE BRAIN YOUNG?

I SHOP, THEREFORE I AM

GENIUS TESTER #11: THE MONTY HALL PROBLEM

PIECE OF MIND: THALAMUS

BIOLOGICAL BASIS OF ROSE-COLORED GLASSES

GENIUS TESTER #12: DEMENTIA QUIZ

THE FUNCTION OF DAYDREAMS

MEAN STUFF IN THE NAME OF SCIENCE: LITTLE ALBERT

THE COLLECTIVE UNCONSCIOUS

ALGEBRAIC EIGHT-BALL: THE KARMOMETER—WOULD YOUR KARMA SURVIVE AN INTENDED PRANK?

BRAINWASHING THE EASY WAY

FOUR STEPS TO PERSUASION

LOGIC OF ILLOGIC: THE END IS NEAR

WHIFFLE BALL CROTCH SHOT

SELF-TEST

MUSIC, COMMERCE, AND MURDER

ALGEBRAIC EIGHT-BALL: WILL YOUR HOLIDAY CHEER SURVIVE HOLIDAY DINNER?

GAME THEORY MAKE BRAIN BIG: CAKE-CUTTING PROBLEM

UN-APOLOGY APOLOGY

CHRISTMAS CAROLS FROM THE PSYCH COUCH

ANYTHING YOU CAN DO, I CAN DO BADDER

PSY-OP: HANDS AND FEET

GENIUS TESTER #13: GENDER BIAS

HOW TO REALLY SPOT A LIAR

RED BEATS BLUE AT THE OLYMPICS

NEUROLOGICAL SUPPORT FOR THE USE OF SHOE SMELL IN CONTROLLING EPILEPTIC SEIZURE

PUZZLE ANSWERS

REFERENCES

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS