Audiobook7 hours
Mystery: A Seduction, A Strategy, A Solution
Written by Jonah Lehrer
Narrated by Jonathan Davis
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
3/5
()
About this audiobook
New York Times bestselling author Jonah Lehrer “unravels the mystery of mysteries” in this “absolute delight” (Malcolm Gladwell) of a book that blends psychology, neuroscience, and anthropology to shine a new light on everything from the formulas of our favorite detective shows to the tricks of successful advertising campaigns and the calculated risks of the stock market.
Why is mystery so compelling? What draws us to the unknown? Jonah Lehrer sets out to answer these questions in a vividly entertaining and surprisingly profound journey through the science of suspense. He finds that nothing can capture a person’s attention as strongly as mystery, and that mystery is the key principle in how humans view and understand the world. Whenever patterns are broken, we are hard-wired to find out why. Without our curiosity driving us to pursue new discoveries and solve stubborn problems, we would never have achieved the breakthroughs that have revolutionized human medicine, technology—and culture. From Shakespeare’s plays to the earliest works of the detective genre, our entertainment and media have continually reinvented successful forms of mystery to hook audiences.
Here, Lehrer interviews individuals in unconventional fields—from dedicated small-business owners to innovative schoolteachers—who use mystery to challenge themselves and to motivate others to reach to new heights. He also examines the indelible role of mystery in our culture, revealing how the magical world of Harry Potter triggers the magic of dopamine in our brains, why the baseball season is ten times longer than the football season, and when the suspect is introduced in each episode of Law & Order.
Fascinating, illuminating, and fun, Mystery explores the many surprising ways in which embracing a sense of awe and curiosity can enrich our lives.
Why is mystery so compelling? What draws us to the unknown? Jonah Lehrer sets out to answer these questions in a vividly entertaining and surprisingly profound journey through the science of suspense. He finds that nothing can capture a person’s attention as strongly as mystery, and that mystery is the key principle in how humans view and understand the world. Whenever patterns are broken, we are hard-wired to find out why. Without our curiosity driving us to pursue new discoveries and solve stubborn problems, we would never have achieved the breakthroughs that have revolutionized human medicine, technology—and culture. From Shakespeare’s plays to the earliest works of the detective genre, our entertainment and media have continually reinvented successful forms of mystery to hook audiences.
Here, Lehrer interviews individuals in unconventional fields—from dedicated small-business owners to innovative schoolteachers—who use mystery to challenge themselves and to motivate others to reach to new heights. He also examines the indelible role of mystery in our culture, revealing how the magical world of Harry Potter triggers the magic of dopamine in our brains, why the baseball season is ten times longer than the football season, and when the suspect is introduced in each episode of Law & Order.
Fascinating, illuminating, and fun, Mystery explores the many surprising ways in which embracing a sense of awe and curiosity can enrich our lives.
Author
Jonah Lehrer
Jonah Lehrer is a writer, journalist, and the author of Mystery, A Book About Love, How We Decide, and Proust Was a Neuroscientist. He graduated from Columbia University and studied at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar. He’s written for The New Yorker, Nature, Wired, The New York Times Magazine, The Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal. He lives in Los Angeles, California.
More audiobooks from Jonah Lehrer
Proust Was a Neuroscientist Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Book About Love Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Related to Mystery
Related audiobooks
The Life-Changing Science of Detecting Bullshit Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Drunkard's Walk: How Randomness Rules Our Lives Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Redirect: The Surprising New Science of Psychological Change Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wonderworks: The 25 Most Powerful Inventions in the History of Literature Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Turn-On: How the Powerful Make Us Like Them-from Washington to Wall Street to Hollywood Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5The Etymologicon: A Circular Stroll Through the Hidden Connections of the English Language Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Curious Mind: The Secret to a Bigger Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5What the Luck?: The Surprising Role of Chance in Our Everyday Lives Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Mindwandering: How Your Constant Mental Drift Can Improve Your Mood and Boost Your Creativity Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Bored and Brilliant: How Spacing Out Can Unlock Your Most Productive and Creative Self Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Me, Myself, and Why: Searching for the Science of Self Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Candyfreak: A Journey Through the Chocolate Underbelly of America Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Rapt: Attention and the Focused Life Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Power of Experiments: Decision-Making in a Data Driven World Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Elements of Eloquence: Secrets of the Perfect Turn of Phrase Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Black-and-White Thinking: The Burden of a Binary Brain in a Complex World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wit's End: What Wit Is, How It Works, and Why We Need It Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nice Try Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Arbitrary Stupid Goal Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Louder Than Words: The New Science of How the Mind Makes Meaning Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Rule Makers, Rule Breakers: How Tight and Loose Cultures Wire Our World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Science of Storytelling Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Spark: How Creativity Works Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Storytelling Animal: How Stories Make Us Human Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5You Are What You Risk: The New Art and Science of Navigating an Uncertain World Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Brainscapes: The Warped, Wondrous Maps Written in Your Brain-and How They Guide You Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5NERVE: Adventures in the Science of Fear Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Psychology For You
Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before? Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Art of Seduction: An Indispensible Primer on the Ultimate Form of Power Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Highly Sensitive Person in Love: Understanding and Managing Relationships When the World Overwhelms You Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The 48 Laws of Power Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Man's Search for Ultimate Meaning Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How to Win Friends and Influence People: Updated For the Next Generation of Leaders Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Banish Your Inner Critic: Silence the Voice of Self-Doubt to Unleash Your Creativity and Do Your Best Work Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Beyond Small Talk: How to Have More Dynamic, Charismatic and Persuasive Conversations Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Good Inside: A Guide to Becoming the Parent You Want to Be Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How To Win Friends And Influence People Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5It Starts with Self-Compassion: A Practical Road Map Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Radical Acceptance: Embracing Your Life with the Heart of a Buddha Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5What Happened to You?: Conversations on Trauma, Resilience, and Healing Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Memory Craft: Improve Your Memory with the Most Powerful Methods in History Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Do Hard Things: Why We Get Resilience Wrong and the Surprising Science of Real Toughness Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5What Every BODY is Saying: An Ex-FBI Agent’s Guide to Speed-Reading People Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Why Buddhism is True: The Science and Philosophy of Meditation and Enlightenment Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Divergent Mind: Thriving in a World That Wasn’t Designed For You Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Complex PTSD: From Surviving to Thriving Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5You’re Not the Only One F*cking Up: Breaking the Endless Cycle of Dating Mistakes Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Games People Play: The Basic Handbook of Transactional Analysis Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sociopath: A Memoir Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related categories
Reviews for Mystery
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
3/5
2 ratings1 review
- Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5The message of this book can be resumed in one sentence: things are more interesting when something remains hidden. The rest of the book only gives illustrations of this thought without exploring it much deeper.