Outsmart Yourself: Brain-Based Strategies to a Better You
By Peter M. Vishton provides evidenced based advise on how to live a smarter life. His section on Marriage and relationships begins with the initial neural connection of falling in love and describes what is needed to maintain a relationship and clues to determine when the couple's relationship is over. If a person reacts to the other one with disgust, it is time to move on.
One minute summary of Outsmart Yourself
Train Yourself Like a Dog
helps re-frame the definition of stress. She notes that there is a big difference between minor annoyances and major physical or psychological trauma. We often over react to the minor annoyances such as getting stuck in traffic or waiting in line at the DMV. She actually highlights the process of post traumatic resilience for individuals that become stronger after going through a major traumatic event.
He clearly explains the limits of our current knowledge about the Universe from the very big to the extremely small with a pleasant wit.
is well told and thoroughly researched by Nancy Goldstone. This piece of history is set near the end of the 100 Years War between England and France. The Queen's political savvy and Joan's pious and youthful enthusiasm serve France well during a time when alliances can be bought, the church is profitable and leaders are often incompetent.
is a departure from his previous books. It is a collection of parables about a wide range of topics. The author recommends reading a few of these brief bits of zen-like wisdom a day and pondering the implications.
and would highly recommend the audio version over the text version primarily due to the addition of troubadour Jonathan Coulton. It takes comedic courage to devote a whole audio CD to a list of 700 Hobo names read to the strumming of Mr. Coulton's guitar with the audio quality slightly above that of a short wave radio broadcast. We are also treated to interesting but completely erroneous facts about each state coupled with a state song that spectacularly fails to capture the spiritual essence of member of the union.
is now available from Amazon
provides a realistic summary of the problems teenagers face when transitioning from children to adults. Teens do not have many connections to the frontal cortex and have difficulty inhibiting ill advised behavior. After reviewing the cognitive minefield these adolescence have to navigate it is amazing that any of them make it to adulthood. Dr. Jensen tells the stories of many young people who's lives were cut short via bad decisions, poor genetics, or substance abuse 
by Timothy Taylor covers a wide range of topics at what many people think would be at the edge of the field of economics. However, many of these topics have garnered Noble Prizes for the researchers and that puts them closer to the middle rather than at the fringe.
, could have used some serious editing. An abridged version that avoids repetition and presents the information in a linear fashion would drive the point home without sacrificing important details.
provides a helpful guide to parent child communication. I've tried out several of the suggestions in the book and my kid has responded very well. This has improved our relationship.
, provides information on the earliest forms of espionage up to the first part of the 20th Century.
in the Great Courses answers these questions and more backing this up with reports from scientific studies.
was a hoot. Emilie Wapnick provides a structure for individuals who are not content to do one thing people she calls 
She is delightfully frank and open about the long journey to finding the role of a lifetime and the joy of reprising it. She worked a large number of jobs before she finally made it.
available through the Great Courses. He takes and evolutionary perspective on human behavior. Each lecture attempts to answer a specific question such as "Why is self control so hard?" The Answer: There is a conflict between a future reward and a present benefit. It is harder at the end of the day then at the beginning.
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. Many of his findings are what we would expect but have interesting implications. For example: A research paper calculated the total annual cost to New York City for keeping bars open after 1 am at roughly 250 million dollars. Tired individuals who have their judgment impaired by alcohol consumption cause damage and death.
, should be subtitled - Jesus Zen Master. Viewed from the perspective of an Episcopalian Minister, Jesus offers wisdom not in pithy proverbs but in mind twisting parables that produce an evolution of thought and a better understanding of the Kingdom of Heaven. 
Provides a thorough treatment of his argument that humans are hard wired for the acquisition of language in the early stages of life. Learning spoken and signed language after this early stage is difficult and the person will often be not as fluent as a native speaker.
expands on his 2014 commencement speech at the University of Texas -Austin. His pithy book of life lessons can be read easily in one sitting. The lessons are hard yet familiar. Never give up. Life is not fair. We grow stronger through adversity. We need other people to help us be successful. Stand up to bullies. Start your day by accomplishing one thing - Make Your Bed.
by Dr. Kate Zeigler covers the basics of geology over eight lectures. She provides very clear and understandable description of the most important aspects of geology including research showing how scientists determine the make up of the earth's core. 