Cognitive Science

Look at the green organism across the room or through the window: the potted plant, or the grass, or a tree. Think how a life spent constantly growing yet rooted in a single spot comes with tremendous challenges. To meet them, plants have come up with some of the most creative methods for surviving of any living thing, us included. Many are so ingenious that they seem nearly impossible. There is no doubt that plants are important: plants, or their green precursors the blue-green algae and algae themselves, have produced all the oxygen in the Earth’s atmosphere, allowing animals to evolve.

Why do you love? Why do you lie? What makes you happy? Every thought you have comes from one place: your brain. But what makes it tick? How much of it have we decoded, and how much of it remains an impenetrable mystery? Join author and cartoonist Jorge Cham and neuroscientist Dwayne Godwin on a deep dive into the fascinating world of the human brain, in which they will explore questions such as: What is consciousness? Where is you in the brain? And do we have free will? All while illuminating everything we know (and DON’T know) about one of the most complex objects in the known universe.

From studies of bonobos in the wild to visits with the iconic painter Jasper Johns and the renowned decision-making expert Daniel Kahneman, Small looks across disciplines to put new scientific findings into illuminating context while also revealing groundbreaking developments about Alzheimer’s disease. The next time you forget where you left your keys, remember that a little forgetting does a lot of good.

Size explains the regularities—and peculiarities—of the key processes shaping life (from microbes to whales), the Earth (from asteroids to volcanic eruptions), technical advances (from architecture to transportation), and societies and economies (from cities to wages).

Noted science writer Virginia Morell explores the frontiers of research on animal cognition and emotion, offering a surprising and moving exploration into the hearts and minds of wild and domesticated animals.

Over the last 50 years, humanity has developed an extraordinary shared utility: the global positioning system. Omnipresent, free, and available to all, GPS powers everything from your phone to the Internet to the Mars Rover. Greg Milner tells the sweeping story of GPS, from its conceptual origins as a bomb guidance system to its present ubiquity.

In "Brain Health Action Plan," Dr. Teryn Clarke provides a comprehensive guide to safeguarding your brain health and reducing the risk of Alzheimer’s disease through simple yet effective lifestyle changes. Drawing on years of expertise in neuroscience and patient care, Dr. Clarke presents practical strategies to take control of your cognitive vitality. From nutrition and exercise to stress management and sleep optimization, each chapter is packed with actionable advice backed by the latest scientific research.

Are you struggling to guide the children in your life to become kind, responsible, respectful, and successful people? Do you want to avoid coercive methods and instead use effective, evidence-based, respectful guidance techniques? Responding effectively to a child's challenging behaviors is an art informed by science. Like artists need to learn techniques before creating masterpieces, parents, teachers, and therapists can develop their skills to help children thrive.

For many people who have trouble sleeping, each night is an anxious odyssey where getting a good night’s sleep feels like a battle to win rather than a basic biologic process. Hello Sleep is a guide for people with insomnia to help them shift their relationship with sleep, so that it stops being a battle and starts being enjoyable and natural again. It is a practical, self-guided tour through evidence-based interventions for chronic insomnia.

“There is no good reason why human societies should not be described and explained with the same precision and success as the rest of nature.” Thus argues evolutionary psychologist Pascal Boyer in this uniquely innovative book. Integrating recent insights from evolutionary biology, genetics, psychology, economics, and other fields, Boyer offers precise models of why humans engage in social behaviors such as forming families, tribes, and nations, or creating gender roles.

What if you could flip a switch and instantly stop hating what you hate❓ What if the fear, doubt, or pain you’ve carried for years could collapse in just minutes—using your brain’s own language❓ And what if you could master that switch and rewire your subconscious anytime, anywhere - with tools used by top therapists, athletes, and change-makers❓ This isn’t a fantasy. It’s neuroscience meets practical transformation. And in this book, you’ll learn exactly how to do it in just 10 minutes. Introducing a results-based transformation system rooted in NLP (Neuro-Linguistic ...

Discover 7 transformative steps to avoid being paralyzed by your fear of making choices and feeling like your own worst enemy Tired of feeling stuck in a cycle of procrastination and indecision? Feeling stuck and missing out on opportunities because of fear? If so, don’t worry because How To Stop Overthinking And Start Making Better Decisions is your guide to breaking free from the cycle of anxiety and overthinking. Imagine a life where you make decisions with confidence and ease, tackle challenges head-on, and embrace new opportunities without hesitation. See yourself feeling calm, free ...

We forget our passwords. We pay too much to go to the gym. We think we'd be happier if we lived in California (we wouldn't), and we think we should stick with our first answer on tests (we shouldn't). Why do we make mistakes? And could we do a little better? We human beings have design flaws. Our eyes play tricks on us, our stories change in the retelling, and most of us are fairly sure we're way above average.

Your brain responds in a predictable way when it encounters new or difficult tasks. This unique book teaches you concrete techniques rooted in cognitive science that will improve the way you learn and think about code. Learn how to optimize your brain’s natural cognitive processes to read code more easily, write code faster, and pick up new languages in much less time. This book will help you through the confusion you feel when faced with strange and complex code, and explain a codebase in ways that can make a new team member productive in days!

Purpose of the Book: Train Your Brain for a Healthier and Happier Life I have written this book to inspire you to discover the remarkable potential of your brain and mind with simple yet powerful words in a storytelling and conversational style. With over five decades of research and experimentation in cognitive science, as well as collaboration with leading experts in neuroscience, psychiatry, endocrinology, and metabolic health, I have crafted this book to share a holistic approach to enhancing mental performance, cognitive reserves, and well-being. The human brain is a dynamic, adaptive ...

As Black people, we are more likely to face a traumatic experience or suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). But being Black is about more than the violence that has been perpetrated against us. It also means living a life of dignity and self-worth. We can pull ourselves out of the fire of painful experiences and gain the psychological flexibility needed to thrive, not just survive. Jennifer Shepard Payne presents culturally tailored acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) skills to help you heal from trauma, so you can live a meaningful life that is in tune with your own values.

The Memory Thief is the remarkable true story of a team of doctors who - through years of scientific sleuthing and observant care - discover a surprising connection between opioids and memory, one that holds promise and peril for any one of us.

This fresh and exciting approach to science, skepticism, and critical thinking will enlighten and inspire listeners of all ages. With a mix of wit and wisdom, it challenges everyone to think like a scientist, embrace the skeptical life, and improve their critical thinking skills. Think shows you how to better navigate through the maze of biases and traps that are standard features of every human brain.

Tasty explains the scientific research taking place on multiple fronts: how genes shape our tastes, how the mind assembles flavors from the five senses and signals from the body's metabolic systems, why something disgusts one person and delights another, and what today's obsessions with extreme tastes tell us about the brain.

What if success wasn’t about who you are, but about what you train yourself to become? Most people believe that intelligence, talent, or personality determines success. But in reality, it’s the ability to discipline your mind, regulate your emotions, and take proactive action that shapes your future. These skills aren’t fixed—they can be developed, strengthened, and applied to any aspect of life. Mastering your thoughts helps you stay focused and consistent. Taming strong emotions enables you to make more informed choices under pressure. And cultivating proactive intelligence ...