Sensation

The New Science of Physical Intelligence

By: Thalma Lobel

Narrated by: Joyce Bean

Length: 7 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

Like the revolutionary best sellers Predictably Irrational and Emotional Intelligence, Sensation is an exciting, completely new view of human behavior - a new psychology of physical intelligence (or embodied cognition) - that explains how the body unconsciously affects our everyday decisions and choices, written by one of the world’s leading psychologists.

From colors and temperatures to heavy objects and tall people, a whole symphony of external stimuli exerts a constant influence on the way your mind works. Yet these effects have been hidden from you - until now. Drawing on her own work as well as from research across the globe, Dr. Thalma Lobel reveals how shockingly susceptible we are to sensory input from the world around us.

An aggressive negotiator can be completely disarmed by holding a warm cup of tea or sitting in a soft chair. Clean smells promote moral behavior, but people are more likely to cheat on a test right after having taken a shower. Red-colored type causes us to fail exams, but red dresses make women sexier and teams wearing red jerseys win more games. We take questionnaires attached to heavy clipboards more seriously and believe people who like sweets to be nicer. Ultimately, the book’s message is startling: Though we claim ownership of our decisions, judgments, and values, they derive as much from our outside environment as from inside our minds. Now, Sensation empowers you to evaluate those outside forces in order to make better decisions in every facet of your personal and professional lives.

©2014 Thalma Lobel (P)2014 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved. Recorded by arrangement with Atria Books, a Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

If you can get past the gasps...

What didn’t you like about Joyce Bean’s performance?

You have to REALLY want this information, to get through the narration. The narrator makes a really irritating little gasp sound after about half of the sentences she says, and it is a real test of patience to get through more than ten minutes at a time. I found the information really interesting and useful, so I stuck it out. I will think twice before buying another book narrated by Joyce Bean, though.

Interesting Studies

Well written and methodical. Includes a lot of information about the scientific studies done. X

Interesting book.

If you could sum up Sensation in three words, what would they be?

Informative, enlightening, inspiring

What did you like best about this story?

I liked hearing about the research and the embodied cognition. It was very interesting and I liked thinking of ways I could make use of the research in my life both personal and work-realted.

What three words best describe Joyce Bean’s performance?

I did not love her performance. It was very dry and almost robotic.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes and no, I was very interested in the information, the narrator took a little getting used to. It's a lot to take in so listening to it all in one sitting would be overwhelming (not that I have that time anyway)

Unbearable inhalation sound by the narrator

Would you try another book from Thalma Lobel and/or Joyce Bean?

I would love to hear a good recording of this book. I just cannot do it with the way Joyce breaths. I have tried repeatedly to listen to it but can only get through about 3 minutes before I have to turn it off. Being autistic and hyper sensitive to sound does not help.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

No way I could get there.

How could the performance have been better?

The narrator must learn to not having an audible breath in their reading.