The Elephant in the Brain: Hidden Motives in Everyday LifeHuman beings are primates, and primates are political animals. Our brains, therefore, are designed not just to hunt and gather, but also to help us get ahead socially, often via deception and self-deception. But while we may be self-interested schemers, we benefit by pretending otherwise. The less we know about our own ugly motives, the better - and thus we don't like to talk or even think about the extent of our selfishness. This is "the elephant in the brain." Such an introspective taboo makes it hard for us to think clearly about our nature and the explanations for our behavior. The aim of this book, then, is to confront our hidden motives directly - to track down the darker, unexamined corners of our psyches and blast them with floodlights. Then, once everything is clearly visible, we can work to better understand ourselves: Why do we laugh? Why are artists sexy? Why do we brag about travel? Why do we prefer to speak rather than listen? Our unconscious motives drive more than just our private behavior; they also infect our venerated social institutions such as Art, School, Charity, Medicine, Politics, and Religion. In fact, these institutions are in many ways designed to accommodate our hidden motives, to serve covert agendas alongside their "official" ones. The existence of big hidden motives can upend the usual political debates, leading one to question the legitimacy of these social institutions, and of standard policies designed to favor or discourage them. You won't see yourself - or the world - the same after confronting the elephant in the brain. |
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Jaan Tallinn, Founder of Skype, Centre for the Study of Existential Risk, and Future of Life Institute “It's hard to overstate how impactful this book is.” — Tucker Max, author of I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell “An eye- opening look at ...
Jaan Tallinn, Founder of Skype, Centre for the Study of Existential Risk, and Future of Life Institute “It's hard to overstate how impactful this book is.” — Tucker Max, author of I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell “An eye- opening look at ...
الصفحة ix
This is, in part, because other tasks and projects clamor for our attention, but also because it's just really hard to look long and intently at our selfish motives, at what we've called “the elephant in the brain.
This is, in part, because other tasks and projects clamor for our attention, but also because it's just really hard to look long and intently at our selfish motives, at what we've called “the elephant in the brain.
الصفحة 4
... human beings, are a species that's not only capable of acting on hidden motives— we're designed to do it. Our brains are built to act in our self- interest while at the same time trying hard not to appear selfish in 4 Introduction.
... human beings, are a species that's not only capable of acting on hidden motives— we're designed to do it. Our brains are built to act in our self- interest while at the same time trying hard not to appear selfish in 4 Introduction.
الصفحة 5
the same time trying hard not to appear selfish in front of other people. And in order to throw them off the trail, our brains often keep “us,” our conscious minds, in the dark. The less we know of our own ugly motives, the easier it is ...
the same time trying hard not to appear selfish in front of other people. And in order to throw them off the trail, our brains often keep “us,” our conscious minds, in the dark. The less we know of our own ugly motives, the easier it is ...
الصفحة 17
In this chapter, we're going to take a quick look at two animal behaviors that are hard to decipher. In each case, the animals appear to be doing something simple and straightforward, but as we dig below the surface—the same way we'll ...
In this chapter, we're going to take a quick look at two animal behaviors that are hard to decipher. In each case, the animals appear to be doing something simple and straightforward, but as we dig below the surface—the same way we'll ...
ما يقوله الناس - كتابة مراجعة
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LibraryThing Review
معاينة المستخدمين - Paul_S - LibraryThingThere is nothing surprising or even taboo in this book. What sheltered lives do the authors lead? This is one step above a bloke in a pub. An interesting, articulate guy but still not any kind of expert in the field. Scholarly paper - this is not. قراءة التقييم بأكمله
LibraryThing Review
معاينة المستخدمين - Tytania - LibraryThingI really didn't learn anything. We are primates who seek to elevate our status. Almost anything we do can be viewed in this light, if you squint hard enough. This really didn't add any "a-ha" moments ... قراءة التقييم بأكمله
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عبارات ومصطلحات مألوفة
activities actually advertise animal asked become behavior beliefs benefit better body brains Chapter charity competition consider conspicuous consumers conversation cost course deception don’t donate effect entirely especially example expect experience explain face fact feel friends function getting give given going hand happen hard human important impressive individual interest it’s keep kind language laugh laughter least less listeners live look loyalty male mates means medicine minds motives natural norms ourselves parties patients percent person play political prefer Press question reasons religion religious result sense signal similar simply social someone speaking spend status subjects talk there’s they’re things tion turn typically understand voting we’re what’s
معلومات المراجع
| العنوان | The Elephant in the Brain: Hidden Motives in Everyday Life |
| المؤلفون | Kevin Simler, Robin Hanson |
| الإصدار | معاد طباعته |
| الناشر | Oxford University Press, 2017 |
| رقم ISBN (الرقم الدولي المعياري للكتاب) | 0190496010, 9780190496012 |
| عدد الصفحات | 288 من الصفحات |
| تصدير الاقتباس | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |