The Mind Is Flat: The Remarkable Shallowness of the Improvising Brain
Nick Chater
Nov 2018 · Highbridge Audio · Narrated by Nick Chater
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7 hr 26 min
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About this audiobook
In a radical reinterpretation of how the mind works, an eminent behavioral scientist reveals the illusion of mental depth
Psychologists and neuroscientists struggle with how best to interpret human motivation and decision making. The assumption is that below a mental "surface" of conscious awareness lies a deep and complex set of inner beliefs, values, and desires that govern our thoughts, ideas, and actions, and that to know this depth is to know ourselves.
In this profoundly original book, behavioral scientist Nick Chater contends just the opposite: rather than being the plaything of unconscious currents, the brain generates behaviors in the moment based entirely on our past experiences. Engaging the listener with eye-opening experiments, the author first demolishes our intuitive sense of how our mind works, then argues for a positive interpretation of the brain as a ceaseless and creative improviser.
Psychologists and neuroscientists struggle with how best to interpret human motivation and decision making. The assumption is that below a mental "surface" of conscious awareness lies a deep and complex set of inner beliefs, values, and desires that govern our thoughts, ideas, and actions, and that to know this depth is to know ourselves.
In this profoundly original book, behavioral scientist Nick Chater contends just the opposite: rather than being the plaything of unconscious currents, the brain generates behaviors in the moment based entirely on our past experiences. Engaging the listener with eye-opening experiments, the author first demolishes our intuitive sense of how our mind works, then argues for a positive interpretation of the brain as a ceaseless and creative improviser.
In a radical reinterpretation of how the mind works, an eminent behavioral scientist reveals the illusion of mental depth
Psychologists and neuroscientists struggle with how best to interpret human motivation and decision making. The assumption is that below a mental "surface" of conscious awa...
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About the author
Nick Chater is professor of behavioral science at Warwick Business School and cofounder of the research consultancy Decision Technology Ltd. He has contributed to more than two hundred articles and book chapters and is the author, coauthor, or coeditor of fourteen books.
Nick Chater is professor of behavioral science at Warwick Business School and cofounder of the research consultancy Decision Technology Ltd. He has contributed to more than two hundred articles and book chapters and is the author, coauthor, or coeditor of fourteen books.
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