Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain

The machinery of the brain, the unconscious space—one of the most striking phenomena to date. While we imagine ourselves to be the masters of our lives, inside and separate from us, a body sits and operates—an organ that shapes hopes, plans, fears, desires, and instincts. It constructs behavior and the physical state of the entire organism. It’s a control center that manages all the work by collecting data through tiny portals inside a shielded bunker of the skull.

In his book, the famous neuroscientist David Eagleman explores the depths of the human subconscious to reveal incredible secrets: how can a leg jerk toward the brake pedal before you’ve realized there’s danger ahead? How do you notice that your name was mentioned in a conversation you weren’t even paying attention to? Why is it so hard to keep secrets? And how can you get angry at yourself—who exactly, in the end, gets angry and at whom?

Using optical illusions, logical paradoxes, and unconventional tasks, the author uncovers the mechanisms of the incomprehensible work of the human brain. Brain damage, spotting (watching airplanes), relationships, betrayals, drugs, beauty, synesthesia, criminal law, artificial intelligence, and optical illusions—this is only an incomplete list of topics Eagleman covers. Get ready to learn something that will forever change how you see yourself, your actions, and the world around you.

David Eagleman is a neuroscientist, author of the bestsellers “The Brain: Your Personal Story” and “Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain and Sum.” He is the author and host of the TV series The Brain, nominated for an Emmy. Guest professor at Stanford University, member of the Guggenheim Foundation, director of the Center for Science and Law. His articles have been published in The New York Times, Discover Magazine, The Atlantic, Slate, Wired, and many other outlets. He regularly participates in broadcasts on National Public Radio and the BBC.