Bruce M. Hood

Most of us believe that we are unique and coherent individuals, but are we? The idea of a "self" has existed ever since humans began to live in groups and become sociable. Those who embrace the self as an individual in the West, or a member of the group in the East, feel fulfilled and purposeful. This experience seems incredibly real but a wealth of recent scientific evidence reveals that this notion of the independent, coherent self is an illusion - it is not what it seems. Reality as we perceive it is not something that objectively exists, but something that our brains construct from moment to moment, interpreting, summarizing, and substituting information along the way. Like a science fiction movie, we are living in a matrix that is our mind. In The Self Illusion, Dr. Bruce Hood reveals how the self emerges during childhood and how the architecture of the developing brain enables us to become social animals dependent on each other. He explains that self is the product of our relationships and interactions with others, and it exists only in our brains. The author argues, however, that though the self is an illusion, it is one that humans cannot live without. But things are changing as our technology develops and shapes society. The social bonds and relationships that used to take time and effort to form are now undergoing a revolution as we start to put our self online. Social networking activities such as blogging, Facebook, Linkedin and Twitter threaten to change the way we behave. Social networking is fast becoming socialization on steroids. The speed and ease at which we can form alliances and relationships is outstripping the same selection processes that shaped our self prior to the internet era. This book ventures into unchartered territory to explain how the idea of the self will never be the same again in the online social world. - Publisher's description.

"John McEnroe notoriously refused to step on the white lines of a tennis court between points. Wade Boggs insisted on eating a chicken dinner before every Boston Red Sox game. Presidential candidate Barak Obama played a game of basketball the morning of his victory in the Iowa primary, and continued the tradition the day of every following primary. Superstitious habits are common. Do you ever cross your fingers, knock on wood, avoid walking under ladders, or step around black cats? Sentimental value often supercedes material worth. If someone offered to replace your childhood teddy bear or wedding ring with a brand new, exact replica, would you do it? How about $20 for trying on a sweater owned by Jeffrey Dahmer? Do you believe in an afterlife? Innate belief in things beyond what's rational or natural are common to humans. In fact, according to award-winning cognitive scientist Bruce Hood, this "super sense" is something we're born with and essential to the way we learn to understand the world. We couldn't live without it! Therefore it is unlikely that any effort to get rid of supernatural beliefs, or the superstitious behaviors that accompany them, will be successful. Moreover, these beliefs are essential in binding us together as a society. We are inclined from the start to think that there are unseen patterns, forces and essences inhabiting the world. (Creative types rely upon this ability to see patterns in the world.) This way of thinking is unavoidable, and it may be part of human nature to see ourselves connected to each other at this deeper level"--

A neuroscientist identifies a high prevalence of belief in supernatural phenomena and superstition while explaining why people are innately subject to such beliefs, in an account that explores why superstitions promote societal bonding.