Chris Davenport and Gretchen Bleiler have both achieved high levels of success in their unique and respective fields of ski mountaineering and competitive snowboarding. Although their paths of how and what they have achieved are different, there is a common bond. The passion they both have for their sport and lifestyle has led them to the highest levels of human performance in unlocking flow state. Integrating flow state into their daily lives, as well as when in the mountains, has been...

Renowned Harvard psychologist Daniel Gilbert describes the foibles of imagination and illusions of foresight that cause each of us to misconceive our tomorrows and misestimate our satisfactions. Vividly bringing to life the latest scientific research in psychology, cognitive neuroscience, philosophy, and behavioral economics, Gilbert reveals what scientists have discovered about the uniquely human ability to imagine the future, and about our capacity to predict how much we will like it when...

Forming beliefs is one of the most basic and important features of the mind, but when it comes to religion and spirituality, how do we square that against hard science? The scientific method seems to have no place for untestable spiritual or religious beliefs. Yet lots of leading scientists have them. How do they reconcile this apparent contradiction? How does one maintain such beliefs while doing solid science? Is the spiritual realm merely that which science cannot yet explain, or is it...

Most people think that happiness has four sources: the sensory pleasures (from art to chocolate), material wealth, romantic relationships, and children. But recent research suggests that much of what people think about happiness is wrong. Daniel Gilbert, author of “Stumbling on Happiness," hosts this symposium in which experts discuss what science has discovered about each of these sources: the sensory pleasures (Paul Bloom is the author of "How Pleasure Works"), material wealth (Tim Kasser...

Empathy is typically seen as wonderful, central to cooperation, caring, and morality. We want to have empathic parents, children, spouses and friends; we want to train those in the helping professions to expand their empathy, and we certainly want to elect empathic politicians and policy makers. But empathy has certain troubling features, and questions have begun to arise about just how useful empathy really is and how it might be different from related capacities such as compassion.

We live in a world unimaginable only decades ago: a domain of backlit screens, instant information, and vibrant experiences that can out-compete dreary reality. Our cutting-edge technologies offer incredible opportunities for work and play. But at what price? Disputing the assumption that our technologies are harmless tools, neuroscientist Susan Greenfield brings together a range of scientific studies, news events, and cultural criticism and exposes how neuronal networking may be affected by...

The problems of adolescence are often blamed on the hormonal changes brought about during puberty, but recent discoveries in the study of brain development show that substantial maturation continues well beyond 18. We can't point to a specific chronological age at which the adolescent brain becomes an adult brain, because different brain regions mature along different timetables, but important developments are still ongoing during the early 20s. Treating adolescents as adults and setting...

Scientific evidence suggests that we can change our brains by transforming our minds and cultivating habits of mind that will improve well-being. These include happiness, resilience, compassion, and emotional balance. Each of these characteristics is instantiated in brain circuits that exhibit plasticity and thus can be shaped and modified by experience and training. Mental training to cultivate well-being has profound implications for the workplace including its impact on leadership,...

Whether you get dementia, Alzheimer’s or another brain disease, the fact is we’re living longer and our brains change. What are the changes and how should we be dealing with them, both individually and on a societal level? Are we obsessed with longevity? How can we thrive into the twilight years?

Human beings are the only mammals on the planet whose thinking, feeling and learning brain develops extensively after birth. Young brains are wired for growth but their anatomical structure is exquisitely sensitive to experience, shaped for good or bad by what children live through and the relationships they form. Nurture shapes nature as much, if not more, than nature shapes nurture. By understanding how the brain interacts with its environment, we can positively influence a child’s brain...

Cutting-edge science reveals that if we adopt behaviors reflecting power and strength, we liberate ourselves from the fears and doubts that obstruct us. By redirecting our thoughts, actions, and even physiology, we free ourselves to be our best. Amy Cuddy, author of the upcoming book Presence, reveals the science underlying these and many other fascinating body-mind effects that help us in our most challenging moments. Todd Rose is a leader in the new "science of the individual." His...

Siamese brains. Pathological generosity. Viruses that eat patients' memories. Stroke victims who can't speak but can still sing. Until very recently, scientists had only one way to study the brain: wait for misfortune to strike and see how people's minds were transformed afterward. These people's lives laid the foundations of modern neuroscience, and their fascinating and dramatic stories expand our notions of what the brain is capable of — showing that when one part of the mind shuts down,...

Misplacing your keys, forgetting someone’s name at a party, or coming home from the market without the most important item — these are just some of the many common memory slips we all experience from time to time. But such cognitive lapses don’t just plague middle-agers and seniors: Scientists can detect subtle changes in the brain that coincide with mental decline by the time we reach age 40, and findings show that people as young as 20 already have memory problems. Dr. Gary Small, author of...

New findings from the scientific study of babies and young children reveal the rich and complex inner mental life that exists even before language, and show how we are shaped by our social experiences and culture. This research exposes the astonishing things babies are thinking about, reveals what’s happening in children’s developing brains, tells us things we can do to improve early learning, and even gives us glimpses into the origins of human good and evil. Ultimately, these advances in...