This is your brain on sports : the science of underdogs, the value of rivalry, and what we can learn from the T-shirt cannon /

The book for sports fans searching for a deeper understanding of the games they watch and the people who play them. Bestselling author L. Jon Wertheim teams up with Tufts psychologist Sam Sommers to take readers on a wild ride into the inner world of sports. Through the prism of behavioral economics...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Wertheim, L. Jon (Author), Sommers, Sam (Author)
Format: Book
Language:English
Published: New York : Crown Archetype, [2016]
Edition:First edition.
Subjects:
Table of Contents:
  • Your brain on sports
  • Why the T-shirt cannon has something to teach us about human nature
  • Why Tom Brady and all those other quarterbacks are so damned good-looking (or are they?)
  • Why we channel our inner Mayweather and secretly crave disrespect
  • Why we are all dog lovers at heart (but not deep in our hearts)
  • Why hockey goons would rather fight at home
  • The curse of the expert: why the best players make the worst coaches
  • Acting on impluse : why we aren't so different from the sports hothead (L-O-B, Crabtree!)
  • Why athletes don't need an empty bed before competition
  • Why the coach's seat is always hot
  • Why so many successful ultra-endurance athletes area also successful recovering addicts
  • Why giving every little league kid a trophy is such a lousy idea
  • Why rooting for the Mets is like building that IKEA desk
  • Why we need rivals
  • Why we want Gronk at our backyard barbecue-- and why he wants to be there
  • Tribal warfare : why the agony of the other team's defeat feels just as good as the thrill of our team's victory
  • Why we are all comeback kids
  • Why running on a treadmill is like running a business
  • Why the World Cup doesn't lead to world peace (even if J. Lo and Pitbull claim otherwise)
  • Why our moral compass is more flexible than an Olympic gymnast
  • Why unlocking the mystery of human consciousness is-- like so much else in life-- all about sports.