Brain Science Podcast 88 - "The Self Illusion" with Bruce Hood

The most recent episode of the Brain Science Podcast, with Dr. Ginger Campbell, featured an interview with Bruce Hood, author of the very excellent The Self Illusion: How the Social Brain Creates Identity.

If you have not done so, you can get a Kindle copy of Dr. Campbell's new book - Are You Sure? The Unconscious Origins of Certainty (Brain Talk: Conversations with Neuroscientists) - for only $2.99.

In future episodes, Dr. Campbell will be discussing Self Comes to Mind by Antonio Damasio and new interviews with Evan Thompson (Mind in Life) and Jaak Panksepp (The Archeology of Mind).

"The Self Illusion" with Bruce Hood (BSP 88)

Ginger Campbell, MD

Bruce Hood, PhD The Self Illusion: How the Social Brain Creates Identity by Bruce Hood is a fascinating look at how our brains create both our experience of the world and our sense of being a single, coherent self. As the word "illusion" in the title indicates, neither is exactly what it seems. When I interviewed Dr. Hood (for BSP 88) he explained that The Self Illusion is a broad introduction to this somewhat surprising idea. The  Self Illusion was written with a general audience in mind. For those already familiar with the topic he also puts a new emphasis on the role of development. All readers should come away with a new appreciation for the critical role social interactions play through out human life.

Listen to Episode 88

Free Episode Transcript (Download PDF)

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Related Podcasts:

• Books and Ideas #34: Bruce Hood talks about his first book Supersense. (audio)
• BSP 29: Dr. Maryanne Wolf, author of Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain. (audio)
• BSP 57: Dr. Chris Frith, author of  Making up the Mind: How the Brain Creates Our Mental World. (audio)
• BSP 67: Thomas Metzinger,PhD, author of The Ego Tunnel: The Science of the Mind and the Myth of the Self. (mp3)
• Books and Ideas #43: Dr. Carol Tavris explains the basics of cognitive dissonance. (mp3)
• BSP 72: The Neuroscience of Magic. (Listen Now)
• BSP 75: Dr. David Eagleman, author of Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain. (audio)
• Books and Ideas #48: Jonathan Gottschall, author of The Storytelling Animal: How Stories Make Us Human. (Listen now)

   

Additional References:

• SuperSense: Why We Believe in the Unbelievable by Bruce M. Hood (audible link)
• The Self Illusion: How the Social Brain Creates Identity by Bruce Hood (audible link)
• Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength by Roy F. Baumeister & John Tierney (audible link)
• Please see the FREE Episode Transcript for many additional references, including references to the scientific studies discussed in this podcast.

   

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• The latest episode of Books and Ideas is an interview with Jonathan Gottschall, author of The Storytelling Animal: How Stories Make Us Human. This episode continues some of the same themes explored in BSP 88.
• Upcoming episodes: Discussion of Self Comes to Mind by Antonio Damasio and interviews with Evan Thompson (Mind in Life) and Jaak Panksepp (The Archeology of Mind).
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