Jonah Lehrer

From the best-selling author of How We Decide comes a sparkling and revelatory look at the new science of creativity. Shattering the myth of muses, higher powers, even creative “types,” Jonah Lehrer demonstrates that creativity is not a single gift possessed by the lucky few. It’s a variety of ... (more)distinct thought processes that we can all learn to use more effectively. Collapsing the layers separating the neuron from the finished symphony, Imagine reveals the deep inventiveness of the human mind, and its essential role in our increasingly complex world. Vouchers are $5 and get you $5 off the author’s featured book or a purchase on the day of the event. Vouchers can be purchased in advance and over the phone.

Meet the extraordinary Jonah Lehrer, a contributing editor at Wired and a frequent contributor to The New Yorker, here to talk about and sign his new book Imagine: How Creativity Works. He writes the Head Case column for The Wall Street Journal and regularly appears on WNYC's Radiolab. His writing has ... (more)also appeared in Nature, The New York Times Magazine, Scientific American and Outside. He's the author of two previous books, Proust Was A Neuroscientist and How We Decide. Did you know that the most creative companies have centralized bathrooms? That brainstorming meetings are a terrible idea? That the color blue can help you double your creative output? From the best-selling author of How We Decide comes a sparkling and revelatory look at the new science of creativity. Shattering the myth of muses, higher powers, even creative “types,” Jonah Lehrer demonstrates that creativity is not a single gift possessed by the lucky few. It’s a variety of distinct thought processes that we can all learn to use more effectively. Lehrer reveals the importance of embracing the rut, thinking like a child, and daydreaming productively, then he takes us out of our own heads to show how we can make our neighborhoods more vibrant, our companies more productive, and our schools more effective. We’ll learn about Bob Dylan’s writing habits and the drug addiction of poets. We’ll meet a bartender who thinks like a chemist, and an autistic surfer who invented an entirely new surfing move. We’ll see why Elizabethan England experienced a creative explosion, and how Pixar designed its office space to get the most out of its talent. Collapsing the layers separating the neuron from the finished symphony, Imagine reveals the deep inventiveness of the human mind, and its essential role in our increasingly complex world.

Join us to review "Proust Was a Neuroscientist.

Jonah Lehrer will discuss and sign "How We Decide."

From the acclaimed author of Proust Was a Neuroscientist comes How We Decide, a fascinating look at the new science of decision-making. Jonah Lehrer explores two questions: How does the human mind make decisions, and how can those decisions be made better?

Jonah Lehrer discusses his new book, How We Decide. The acclaimed author of Proust Was a Neuroscientist, Lehrer examines the neuroscience of decision-making. Philosophers have long held that the process of deciding is either rational or emotional. Lehrer shows how our best decisions are a finely tuned ... (more)blend of both feeling and reason—and that the precise mix depends on the situation. Lehrer is an editor at large for Seed Magazine and a contributing editor at Scientific American Mind and NPR’s Radio Lab. Presented as part of the Seattle Science Lectures, with Pacific Science Center and University Book Store.