The Believing Brain
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The Believing Brain
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Author : Michael Shermer
language : en
Publisher: Hachette UK
Release Date : 2012-06-07
The Believing Brain written by Michael Shermer and has been published by Hachette UK this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2012-06-07 with Science categories.
Synthesizing thirty years of research, psychologist and science historian, Michael Shermer upends the traditional thinking about how humans form beliefs about the world. Simply put, beliefs come first and explanations for beliefs follow. The brain, Shermer argues, is a belief engine. Using sensory data that flow in through the senses, the brain naturally looks for and finds patterns - and then infuses those patterns with meaning, forming beliefs. Once beliefs are formed, our brains subconsciously seek out confirmatory evidence in support of those beliefs, which accelerates the process of reinforcing them, and round and round the process goes in a positive-feedback loop. In The Believing Brain, Shermer provides countless real-world examples of how this process operates, from politics, economics, and religion to conspiracy theories, the supernatural, and the paranormal. Ultimately, he demonstrates why science is the best tool ever devised to determine whether or not our belief matches reality.
The Believing Brain
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Author : Michael Shermer
language : en
Publisher: Times Books
Release Date : 2011-05-24
The Believing Brain written by Michael Shermer and has been published by Times Books this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2011-05-24 with Psychology categories.
Shermer demonstrates how our brains selectively assess data in an attempt to confirm the conclusions (beliefs) we've already reached. Drawing on evolution, cognitive science, and neuroscience, he considers not only supernatural beliefs but political and economic ones as well.
Why People Believe Weird Things
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Author : Michael Shermer
language : en
Publisher: Souvenir Press
Release Date : 2011-02-01
Why People Believe Weird Things written by Michael Shermer and has been published by Souvenir Press this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2011-02-01 with Science categories.
A survey of a range of irrationalisms, with explanations of their empirical and logical flaws, this book describes the differences between science and pseudo-science, and goes on to describe and critique popular contemporary irrationalisms. Why do smart people believe weird things?Why do so many people believe in mind reading, past-life regression therapy, extra-terrestrial abduction and ghosts? What is behind the rise of 'scientific creationism' and Holocaust denial? In an age of supposed scientific enlightenment why do we appear more impressionable than ever?Scientific historian, and director of the Skeptics Society, Michael Shermer debunks these extraordinary claims in a no-holds-barred assault on the popular superstitions and confused prejudices of our time. Exploring the very human reasons behind otherworldly phenomena, conspiracy theories and cults Shermer explains why are they are so appealing to so many."Skepticism is the agent of reason against organized irrationalism -and is therefore one of the keys to human social and civic decency."Stephen Jay Gould, from his forewordShermer reveals the darker side of wishful thinking, through the recovered memory movement, satanic rituals and other modern witch hunts, and ideologies of racial superiority. Confronting those who take advantage of the gullibility of other people to advance their own, self-serving agendas Why People Believe Weird Things is compelling and often disturbing. It is a perceptive portrait of the human capacity for self-delusion and a celebration of the scientific spirit.
Brains Buddhas And Believing
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Author : Dan Arnold
language : en
Publisher: Columbia University Press
Release Date : 2012-05-15
Brains Buddhas And Believing written by Dan Arnold and has been published by Columbia University Press this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2012-05-15 with Philosophy categories.
Premodern Buddhists are sometimes characterized as veritable "mind scientists" whose insights anticipate modern research on the brain and mind. Aiming to complicate this story, Dan Arnold confronts a significant obstacle to popular attempts at harmonizing classical Buddhist and modern scientific thought: since most Indian Buddhists held that the mental continuum is uninterrupted by death (its continuity is what Buddhists mean by "rebirth"), they would have no truck with the idea that everything about the mental can be explained in terms of brain events. Nevertheless, a predominant stream of Indian Buddhist thought, associated with the seventh-century thinker Dharmakirti, turns out to be vulnerable to arguments modern philosophers have leveled against physicalism. By characterizing the philosophical problems commonly faced by Dharmakirti and contemporary philosophers such as Jerry Fodor and Daniel Dennett, Arnold seeks to advance an understanding of both first-millennium Indian arguments and contemporary debates on the philosophy of mind. The issues center on what modern philosophers have called intentionality—the fact that the mind can be about (or represent or mean) other things. Tracing an account of intentionality through Kant, Wilfrid Sellars, and John McDowell, Arnold argues that intentionality cannot, in principle, be explained in causal terms. Elaborating some of Dharmakirti's central commitments (chiefly his apoha theory of meaning and his account of self-awareness), Arnold shows that despite his concern to refute physicalism, Dharmakirti's causal explanations of the mental mean that modern arguments from intentionality cut as much against his project as they do against physicalist philosophies of mind. This is evident in the arguments of some of Dharmakirti's contemporaneous Indian critics (proponents of the orthodox Brahmanical Mimasa school as well as fellow Buddhists from the Madhyamaka school of thought), whose critiques exemplify the same logic as modern arguments from intentionality. Elaborating these various strands of thought, Arnold shows that seemingly arcane arguments among first-millennium Indian thinkers can illuminate matters still very much at the heart of contemporary philosophy.
Belief
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Author : James E. Alcock
language : en
Publisher: Prometheus Books
Release Date : 2018-04-03
Belief written by James E. Alcock and has been published by Prometheus Books this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2018-04-03 with Psychology categories.
An expert on the psychology of belief examines how our thoughts and feelings, actions and reactions, respond not to the world as it actually is but to the world as we believe it to be. This book explores the psychology of belief - how beliefs are formed, how they are influenced both by internal factors, such as perception, memory, reason, emotion, and prior beliefs, as well as external factors, such as experience, identification with a group, social pressure, and manipulation. It also reveals how vulnerable beliefs are to error, and how they can be held with great confidence even when factually false. The author, a social psychologist who specializes in the psychology of belief, elucidates how the brain and nervous system function to create the perceptions, memories, and emotions that shape belief. He explains how and why distorted perceptions, false memories, and inappropriate emotional reactions that sometimes lead us to embrace false beliefs are natural products of mental functioning. He also shows why it is so difficult to change our beliefs when they collide with contradictions. Covering a wide range -- from self-perception and the perceived validity of everyday experience to paranormal, religious, and even fatal beliefs--the book demonstrates how crucial beliefs are to molding our experience and why they have such a powerful hold on our behavior.
Quiet
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Author : Fearne Cotton
language : en
Publisher: Hachette UK
Release Date : 2018-12-13
Quiet written by Fearne Cotton and has been published by Hachette UK this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2018-12-13 with Self-Help categories.
'Fearne Cotton and Frankie Bridge have encouraged fans to open up about their mental health issues in inspirational social media posts' Hello This book is about taming the bad inner voice - the one that has the power to overthrow gut instinct and talk us out of new adventures. We are all brimming with inner wisdom, yet we allow negative thoughts to confuse us. We forget how capable and strong we can be. There is confidence there even if it's hidden; there is courage, beauty, wisdom and belief - we just need some quiet to notice it. Love, Fearne xxx - From Sunday Times bestselling author Fearne Cotton, this is the handbook for modern life we all need. Including expert advice, ideas to put into practice, adventures to complete and interviews with everyone from Bryony Gordon to Billie Piper, Quiet seeks out ways to help you tune out the negative backchat that holds you back, so you can hear the positives that will guide you forwards . . . PRAISE FOR FEARNE HAPPY Fearne's account is wonderfully honest and relatable, and it's also extremely comforting and reassuring too - knowing that even someone in her position is still working through certain issues - issues that a lot of us are working through too. (MIND) Fearne Cotton's new book is full of useful advice on how to live a happier life. (Viv Groskop THE POOL) I recommend this for anyone who's looking to find true consistent happiness (Craig David) She's known for her fun and upbeat presenting style, but Fearne Cotton has also been bravely open about her struggle with depression during some darker points in her life. . . In our busy 2017 lives that are constantly fuelled by Instagram envy, bad Tinder dates and increasingly outrageous politicians, it's nice to go over the basics of simply being happy. (OK!)
How We Believe
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Author : Michael Shermer
language : en
Publisher: W H Freeman & Company
Release Date : 2000
How We Believe written by Michael Shermer and has been published by W H Freeman & Company this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2000 with Religion categories.
Attempts to understand the balance between faith in God and scientific reason, focusing on the impact of religion in modern American society, as well as examining theories of nonbelievers in such fields as anthropology and psychology.
Science Friction
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Author : Michael Shermer
language : en
Publisher: Macmillan
Release Date : 2010-04-01
Science Friction written by Michael Shermer and has been published by Macmillan this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2010-04-01 with Science categories.
Bestselling author Michael Shermer delves into the unknown, from heretical ideas about the boundaries of the universe to Star Trek's lessons about chance and time A scientist pretends to be a psychic for a day-and fools everyone. An athlete discovers that good-luck rituals and getting into "the zone" may, or may not, improve his performance. A historian decides to analyze the data to see who was truly responsible for the Bounty mutiny. A son explores the possiblities of alternative and experimental medicine for his cancer-ravaged mother. And a skeptic realizes that it is time to turn the skeptical lens onto science itself. In each of the fourteen essays in Science Friction, psychologist and science historian Michael Shermer explores the very personal barriers and biases that plague and propel science, especially when scientists push against the unknown. What do we know and what do we not know? How does science respond to controversy, attack, and uncertainty? When does theory become accepted fact? As always, Shermer delivers a thought-provoking, fascinating, and entertaining view of life in the scientific age.
Skeptic
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Author : Michael Shermer
language : en
Publisher: Henry Holt and Company
Release Date : 2016-01-12
Skeptic written by Michael Shermer and has been published by Henry Holt and Company this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2016-01-12 with Science categories.
Collected essays from bestselling author Michael Shermer's celebrated columns in Scientific American For fifteen years, bestselling author Michael Shermer has written a column in Scientific American magazine that synthesizes scientific concepts and theory for a general audience. His trademark combination of deep scientific understanding and entertaining writing style has thrilled his huge and devoted audience for years. Now, in Skeptic, seventy-five of these columns are available together for the first time; a welcome addition for his fans and a stimulating introduction for new readers.
Why Darwin Matters
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Author : Michael Shermer
language : en
Publisher: Macmillan
Release Date : 2007-04-01
Why Darwin Matters written by Michael Shermer and has been published by Macmillan this book supported file pdf, txt, epub, kindle and other format this book has been release on 2007-04-01 with Science categories.
A creationist-turned-scientist demonstrates the facts of evolution and exposes Intelligent Design's real agenda Science is on the defensive. Half of Americans reject the theory of evolution and "Intelligent Design" campaigns are gaining ground. Classroom by classroom, creationism is overthrowing biology. In Why Darwin Matters, bestselling author Michael Shermer explains how the newest brand of creationism appeals to our predisposition to look for a designer behind life's complexity. Shermer decodes the scientific evidence to show that evolution is not "just a theory" and illustrates how it achieves the design of life through the bottom-up process of natural selection. Shermer, once an evangelical Christian and a creationist, argues that Intelligent Design proponents are invoking a combination of bad science, political antipathy, and flawed theology. He refutes their pseudoscientific arguments and then demonstrates why conservatives and people of faith can and should embrace evolution. He then appraises the evolutionary questions that truly need to be settled, building a powerful argument for science itself. Cutting the politics away from the facts, Why Darwin Matters is an incisive examination of what is at stake in the debate over evolution.