Summary of David Robson's The Expectation Effect

By IRB Media

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book.

Book Preview: #1 The brain is a prediction machine that constructs an elaborate simulation of the world based on its expectations and previous experiences. These simulations usually coincide with objective reality, but they can sometimes stray far from what is actually in the physical world.

#2 The brain’s visual cortex is wired with many neural connections feeding in predictions from other regions of the brain. The eye is a small but essential element of your vision, while the rest of what you see is created in the dark within your skull.

#3 The brain’s reliance on prediction helps us deal with incredible ambiguity. If you look at the image below, you will struggle to identify anything recognizable. But if you see the original image, it suddenly becomes a lot clearer.

#4 The brain can also predict the effects of our movements, so that we don’t jump out of our skin whenever one of our legs brushes against the other. However, there will always be some small errors in each brain’s simulation of the world around us.

• Language: English
• Publisher: IRB Media
• Release date: Mar 7, 2022
• ISBN: 9781669355991

IRB Media

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Book preview

Insights on David Robson's The Expectation Effect

Contents

Insights from Chapter 1

Insights from Chapter 2

Insights from Chapter 3

Insights from Chapter 4

Insights from Chapter 5

Insights from Chapter 6

Insights from Chapter 7

Insights from Chapter 8

Insights from Chapter 9

Insights from Chapter 10

Insights from Chapter 1

#1

The brain is a prediction machine that constructs an elaborate simulation of the world based on its expectations and previous experiences. These simulations usually coincide with objective reality, but they can sometimes stray far from what is actually in the physical world.

#2

The brain’s visual cortex is wired with many neural connections feeding in predictions from other regions of the brain. The eye is a small but essential element of your vision, while the rest of what you see is created in the dark within your skull.

#3

The brain’s reliance on prediction helps us deal with incredible ambiguity. If you look at the image below, you will struggle to identify anything recognizable. But if you see the original image, it suddenly becomes a lot clearer.

#4

The brain can also predict the effects of our movements, so that we don’t jump out of our skin whenever one of our legs brushes against the other. However, there will always be some small errors in each brain’s simulation of the world around us.

#5

The brain’s prediction machine is responsible for the hallucinations that are sometimes experienced by polar explorers and athletes. It is also responsible for the perceptions of people who have different beliefs than the observer.

#6

A young woman named Sara was diagnosed with a functional neurological disorder after losing her vision. She had been experiencing chronic migraines that seemed to be triggered by light, and her brain had become stuck on the idea that it couldn’t see anything.

#7

Our perceptions are constantly being biased by the brain’s predictions. These are called micro-illusions, and they can be subtle deviations in perception that will confirm and amplify what we are already feeling.

#8

The brain’s predictions can become distorted from exposure to anxiety or depression, and these distorted perceptions can have real behavioral consequences. You can learn to