Table of Contents
Introduction 1
1 Mind controls 5
How the brain regulates the body, and usually makes a mess of things
2 The gift of memory (keep the receipt) 34
The human memory system, and its strange features
3 Fear: nothing to be scared of 75
The many ways in which the brain makes us constantly afraid
4 Think you're clever, do you? 112
The baffling science of intelligence
5 Did you see this chapter coming? 152
The haphazard properties of the brain's observational systems
6 Personality: a testing concept 188
The complex and confusing properties of personality
7 Group hug! 222
How the brain is influenced by other people
8 When the brain breaks down … 263
Mental health problems, and how they come about
Afterword 303
Acknowledgments 304
References 305
Index 321