Pleasure is one of the most fascinating aspects of being human. But what is it? Exploring child development, philosophy, neuroscience and behavioural economics, Paul Bloom uncovers how universal habits explain what we like and why we like it. The average Briton spends over a day a week watching television. People slow their cars to look at gory accidents and go to sentimental movies that make them cry. Some men pay good money to be spanked by prostitutes. In this revealing and witty account, Paul Bloom examines the science behind these curious desires, attractions and tastes, exploring one of the most fascinating and fundamental engines of human behaviour.

Why are some people and organisations more inventive, pioneering and successful than others? And why are they able to repeat their success again and again?In business, it doesn't matter what you do, it matters WHY you do it.Start with Why analyses leaders like Martin Luther King Jr and Steve Jobs and discovers that they all think in the same way - they all started with why.Simon Sinek explains the framework needed for businesses to move past knowing what they do to how they do it, and then to ask the more important question-WHY?Why do we do what we do? Why do we exist? Learning to ask these questions can unlock the secret to inspirational business. Sinek explains what it truly takes to lead and inspire and how anyone can learn how to do it.

Why are some people and organisations more inventive, pioneering and successful than others? And why are they able to repeat their success again and again?In business, it doesn't matter what you do, it matters WHY you do it.Start with Why analyses leaders like Martin Luther King Jr and Steve Jobs and discovers that they all think in the same way - they all started with why.Simon Sinek explains the framework needed for businesses to move past knowing what they do to how they do it, and then to ask the more important question-WHY?Why do we do what we do? Why do we exist? Learning to ask these questions can unlock the secret to inspirational business. Sinek explains what it truly takes to lead and inspire and how anyone can learn how to do it.

In The Stuff of Thought: Language as a Window into Human Nature, Steven Pinker looks at how the relationship between words and thoughts can help us understand who we are. Why do so many swear words involve topics like sex, bodily functions or the divine? Why do some children’s names thrive while others fall out of favour? Why do we threaten and bribe and seduce in such elaborate, often comical ways? How can a choice of metaphor damn a politician or start a war? And why do we rarely say what we actually mean? Language, as Steven Pinker shows, is at the heart of our lives, and through the way we use it - whether to inform, persuade, entertain or manipulate - we can glimpse the very essence of what makes us human.

In The Stuff of Thought: Language as a Window into Human Nature, Steven Pinker looks at how the relationship between words and thoughts can help us understand who we are. Why do so many swear words involve topics like sex, bodily functions or the divine? Why do some children’s names thrive while others fall out of favour? Why do we threaten and bribe and seduce in such elaborate, often comical ways? How can a choice of metaphor damn a politician or start a war? And why do we rarely say what we actually mean? Language, as Steven Pinker shows, is at the heart of our lives, and through the way we use it - whether to inform, persuade, entertain or manipulate - we can glimpse the very essence of what makes us human.

Why cooperate? This may be the most important scientific question we have ever, and will ever, face. The science of cooperation tells us not only how we got here, but also where we might end up. Cooperation explains how strands of DNA gave rise to modern-day nation states. It defines our extraordinary ecological success as well as many of the most surprising features of what make us human: not only why we live in families, why we have grandmothers and why women experience the menopause, but also why we become paranoid and jealous, and why we cheat. Nichola Raihani also introduces us to other species who, like us, live and work together. From the pied babblers of the Kalahari to the cleaner fish of the Great Barrier Reef, they happen to be some of the most fascinating and extraordinarily successful species on this planet. What do we have in common with these other species, and what is it that sets us apart? Written at a time of global pandemic, when the challenges and importance of cooperation have never been greater, The Social Instinct is an exhilarating, far-reaching and thought-provoking journey through all life on Earth, with profound insights into what makes us human and how our societies work.

Philosophy seeks to discover the nature of truth and knowledge. Philosophical reasoning helps us to make sense of the world around us and work out what we think and why. Sometimes it can enable us to become the people we believe we should be. Think Like a Philosopher is a fun introduction to the subject and shows how it has a clear practical purpose vital to our daily lives and thinking.

Much of the advice we've been told about achievement is logical, earnest...and downright wrong. In Barking Up the Wrong Tree, Eric Barker reveals the extraordinary science behind what actually determines success and most importantly, how anyone can achieve it. You'll learn: - Why valedictorians rarely become millionaires, and how your biggest weakness might actually be your greatest strength - Whether nice guys finish last and why the best lessons about cooperation come from gang members, pirates, and serial killers - Why trying to increase confidence fails and how Buddhist philosophy holds a superior solution - The secret ingredient to "grit" that Navy SEALs and disaster survivors leverage to keep going - How to find work-life balance using the strategy of Genghis Khan, the errors of Albert Einstein, and a little lesson from Spider-Man By looking at what separates the extremely successful from the rest of us, we learn what we can do to be more like them-and find out in some cases why it's good that we aren't. Barking Up the Wrong Tree draws on startling statistics and surprising anecdotes to help you understand what works and what doesn't so you can stop guessing at success and start living the life you want.

From the New York Times-bestselling, Booker Prize-winning author of Lincoln in the Bardo and Tenth of December comes a literary master class on what makes great stories work and what they can tell us about ourselves - and our world today. For the last twenty years, George Saunders has been teaching a class on the Russian short story to his MFA students at Syracuse University. In A Swim in a Pond in the Rain, he shares a version of that class with us, offering some of what he and his students have discovered together over the years. Paired with iconic short stories by Chekhov, Turgenev, Tolstoy, and Gogol, the seven essays in this book are intended for anyone interested in how fiction works and why it's more relevant than ever in these turbulent times. In his introduction, Saunders writes, “We're going to enter seven fastidiously constructed scale models of the world, made for a specific purpose that our time maybe doesn't fully endorse but that these writers accepted implicitly as the aim of art-namely, to ask the big questions, questions like, How are we supposed to be living down here? What were we put here to accomplish? What should we value? What is truth, anyway, and how might we recognize it?” He approaches the stories technically yet accessibly, and through them explains how narrative functions; why we stay immersed in a story and why we resist it; and the bedrock virtues a writer must foster. The process of writing, Saunders reminds us, is a technical craft, but also a way of training oneself to see the world with new openness and curiosity. A Swim in a Pond in the Rain is a deep exploration not just of how great writing works but of how the mind itself works while reading, and of how the reading and writing of stories make genuine connection possible.

One of Freud's central achievements was to demonstrate how unacceptable thoughts and feelings are repressed into the unconscious, from where they continue to exert a decisive influence over our lives. This volume contains a key statement about evidence for the unconscious, and how it works, as well as major essays on all the fundamentals of mental functioning. Freud explores how we are torn between the pleasure principle and the reality principle, how we often find ways both to express and to deny what we most fear, and why certain men need fetishes for their sexual satisfaction. His study of our most basic drives, and how they are transformed, brilliantly illuminates the nature of sadism, masochism, exhibitionism and voyeurism.

How did money come to be invented? Why does it now have such significance in our lives? Does it make us happier or unhappier? And what does the future hold for it? With brilliant clarity and insight, Yuval Noah Harari takes the reader on a journey from the very first coins through to 21st century economics and shows us how we are all on the brink of a revolution, whether we like it or not.

Crazy but true, life on Earth can't exist without poo! Starting with human sewage then moving on to animal poo, this surprisingly charming lift-the-flap book explores what happens when we flush, what animal toilets look like, why animals don't need to flush and just how important poo is - for a myriad of fascinating (and sometimes yucky) reasons.

How did money come to be invented? Why does it now have such significance in our lives? Does it make us happier or unhappier? And what does the future hold for it? With brilliant clarity and insight, Yuval Noah Harari takes the reader on a journey from the very first coins through to 21st century economics and shows us how we are all on the brink of a revolution, whether we like it or not.

How did money come to be invented? Why does it now have such significance in our lives? Does it make us happier or unhappier? And what does the future hold for it? With brilliant clarity and insight, Yuval Noah Harari takes the reader on a journey from the very first coins through to 21st century economics and shows us how we are all on the brink of a revolution, whether we like it or not.

This book introduces children ages 7-9 to the amazing science of DNA, genetics, and what makes you you . It's inside every living plant and animal, from the tiniest seed to the person standing next to you, but how much do you know about DNA? This book gives children an in-depth look at DNA and its role in all living things--from why we have different-colored eyes to why we age. Discover what DNA is, what it does, and how it shapes our lives, including inheritance and why we look like our parents; forensic science and how DNA evidence helps catch criminals; and genetic engineering and if we could bring dinosaurs back to life. With fun illustrated DNA characters, clear diagrams, and astonishing photographs, children will love learning about themselves and this all-important molecule. The DNA Book is packed with colorful illustrations and mind-boggling facts, perfect for curious young minds. It's a great addition to any STEAM library and decodes how DNA underpins life on Earth.

A fun, fact-packed introduction to the brain and nervous system for young science enthusiasts. The brain - a wrinkly, spongy mass the size of a cauliflower that sits in our heads and controls everything we do! Discover what its made of, how it works and why we even need one in this fun, fact-packed introduction to the brain. Inside the pages of this STEM book for children aged 7-9, budding young scientists will discover: - An age-appropriate introduction to the brain, what it is, what it does, how it works, and how it evolved - All about how scientists study the brain and nervous system - Introduces concepts like how we think, what consciousness is, and how the brains of other animals are different - Encourages young readers to develop an interest in STEM fields - including biology, medicine, and science - Each page is filled with engaging photographs and artworks with easy to understand text Filled with colourful illustrations and bite-sized chunks of information, this book covers all your questions on everything from the anatomy of the brain and nervous system, to how information is collected and sent around the body. Also, explore questions about the brain that we don't know the answers to yet! This educational book for kids introduces complex topics in an age-appropriate way, from how our brains learn and how processes like making memories, thinking, emotions, and sleep happen in the brain. Kids will also learn about the weird and wonderful world of different animal brains and how they impact their behaviour. With entertaining illustrated characters, clear diagrams, and fascinating photographs, children will love learning about their minds and this all-important organ. Complete the series: The Brain Book is an ideal introduction to the brain and nervous system, but why not check out the other titles in this educational book series, The Bacteria Book and The DNA Book - an excellent introduction to science for young readers and a great addition to any library.