Your Brain is Playing Tricks On You by Albert Moukheiber

Review 1—Reviewed Date: November 19th, 2022

Our brain is a complex organ. The things it does often leave us perplexed. One of the interesting things it does is create a stable “present.” We think we see reality as it is, but our brain fills the gap in our vision, thus making a coherent narrative.

Not only that, but our brain also creates mental shortcuts that could save us some time and energy. But the problem arises: we are taking a decision that could potentially change our lives. As we are biased, relying on information that aligns with our belief system makes us blind to seeing the truth.

In this way, we might be sharing fake information too because we rarely question the merit and truth in information that confirms our preconceived ideas. What we need to do is we have to hear the arguments of the other person, even if they are opposite, and evaluate ours with theirs.

Your Brain Is Playing Tricks on You is a short and concise book on cognitive science. I haven’t completed the book, but so far it is informative and has made me recall concepts I read in other brain-related books.

The book is beginner-friendly and a good introduction to cognitive science. I recommend it to people who are interested in reading about the brain and don’t know where to start. And, to those who have already read a few books on cognitive science, reading this helps as a revision.

Review 2—Reviewed Date: December 5th, 2022

We are living in times where misinformation travels like wildfire and the truth is regularly swept under the rug. But we could stop the misinformation from spreading by questioning its authenticity and finding if there is evidence that supports it. Since it’s hard work, most people find comfort in believing in false ideas.

Also, I think the 21st century has bred people who get offended too easily. They don’t want anyone to question their beliefs. Rather than seeing the merit or valid point in the counterpart’s argument, these ‘easy offenders’ get angry and try to impose their rules on the people. Probably they don’t know about free speech.

In these times, it is easy to mislead people. Create a fake narrative, add a few pieces of anecdotal evidence, add emotion, and release it to the people. Within a few hours, it covers the entire nation. I always wonder what makes these false narratives more appealing to the people. One of the reasons is the oversimplification of the information.

When something is so appealing and aligns with our belief system, the thing we need to do is verify it with a trusted source. In this way, we stop the information from spreading. Although it takes time and effort, we could save someone’s life.

Your brain is playing tricks on you is a simple book that introduces us to cognitive science, but the book doesn’t provide strong tools that we could use to prevent ourselves from the traps set by the brain. Overall, it’s a beginner read.