Summary of Leonard Mlodinow's Subliminal

By IRB Media

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

#1 My mother had a pet Russian tortoise named Miss Dinnerman. The tortoise lived in a large pen enclosing both shrubs and lawn, delineated by chicken wire. Miss Dinnerman’s main goal in life seemed to be escape. She would walk the perimeter, poking around for a hole in the chicken wire.

#2 It can be difficult to distinguish between willed, conscious behavior and that which is habitual or automatic. We often read consciousness into our own actions, and we do this with animals as well.

#3 We humans also perform many automatic, unconscious behaviors. We tend to be unaware of them, however, because the interplay between our conscious and our unconscious minds is so complex.

#4 My mother, who had been orphaned and sent to a labor camp when she was 16, had developed a skewed view of the world that remained unchanged for the rest of her life. She never recognized that her perceptions were skewed by the ever-present fear that justice, probability, and logic could cease to have force or meaning.

• Language: English
• Publisher: IRB Media
• Release date: May 4, 2022
• ISBN: 9798822502437

IRB Media

With IRB books, you can get the key takeaways and analysis of a book in 15 minutes. We read every chapter, identify the key takeaways and analyze them for your convenience.

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Insights on Leonard Mlodinow's Subliminal

Contents

Insights from Chapter 1

Insights from Chapter 2

Insights from Chapter 1

#1

My mother had a pet Russian tortoise named Miss Dinnerman. The tortoise lived in a large pen enclosing both shrubs and lawn, delineated by chicken wire. Miss Dinnerman’s main goal in life seemed to be escape. She would walk the perimeter, poking around for a hole in the chicken wire.

#2

It can be difficult to distinguish between willed, conscious behavior and that which is habitual or automatic. We often read consciousness into our own actions, and we do this with animals as well.

#3

We humans also perform many automatic, unconscious behaviors. We tend to be unaware of them, however, because the interplay between our conscious and our unconscious minds is so complex.

#4

My mother, who had been orphaned and sent to a labor camp when she was 16, had developed a skewed view of the world that remained unchanged for the rest of her life. She never recognized that her perceptions were skewed by the ever-present fear that justice, probability, and logic could cease to have force or meaning.

#5

The modern concept of the unconscious is based on studies and measurements of the brain, and it is now clear that many of our behaviors are governed by mental processes that we are unaware of.

#6

The idea that we are not aware of the cause of much of our behavior can be difficult to accept. However, the internal forces of the new unconscious have little to do with the innate drives described by Freud.

#7

The modern understanding of the unconscious is that it is a gift of evolution that is crucial to our survival as a species. It is a mechanism that helps us avoid snake bites and cars that swerve into our path, and it helps us navigate both the physical and social world.

#8

The most common surnames in the United States are Smith, Johnson, Williams, and Jones. People have a basic desire to feel good about themselves, and they are unconsciously biased in favor of traits similar to their own.

#9

The effects of environmental