In this episode of You Are Not So Smart David McRaney explores ego depletion and all the things that can cause it, from feeling rejection to holding back tears to avoiding the temptation of cookies.

No human being can make the circuit from eyes to brain to muscles fast enough to hit a ball in midflight or avoid an oncoming fist. You can’t change those natural limits with any amount of practice. So how do they do it?

Our guest for this episode of You Are Not So Smart is Adam Alter, a psychologist who studies marketing and communication, and his New York Times bestselling book is titled Drunk Tank Pink after the color used to paint the walls of police holding cells after research suggested it lessened the urge to fight.

In his new book, David McRaney explains that You Are Now Less Dumb. Here he makes you even less dumb, by way of explaining social norms you will no longer be defeated by.

The viewpoint that humans in large groups are dangerous has informed the policies and tactics of governments and police forces for more than a century, and like many prescientific musings, much of it is wrong. David McRaney investigates in the latest episode of You AreNot So Smart.

And what are the ramifications of rubbing a beard with an infected chicken before conducting lab work? Tune in to the latest episode of You Are Not So Smart to find out!

Even though we are learning more and more about what is "under the hood" of human consciousness, it might not tell us what we most want to know about ourselves. It could be like monitoring a transistor in a computer to better understand why a YouTube video was funny. David McRaney explores the dangers of reductionism in the You Are Not So Smart podcast.

When you work from home, do you produce better results in pajamas or professional attire? Do casual Fridays damage productivity? Does a jeans-and-T-shirt startup have an edge over its business-casual competitor? Researchers are just now getting to the bottom of questions like these. David McRaney of the You Are Not So Smart podcast explores the strange phenomenon known as "enclothed cognition."

William Dement, former dean of sleep studies at Stanford, a man with 50 years of research behind him, once told a reporter for National Geographic – “As far as I know, the only reason we need to sleep that is really, really solid is because we get sleepy.”

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[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/146188463" params="color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_artwork=true" width="100%" height="166" iframe="true" /] You are Not So Smart is hosted by David McRaney, a journalist and self-described psychology nerd. In each episode, David explores cognitive biases… Read the rest of the article: You Are Not So Smart podcast 022: how to combat "survivorship bias"

[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/142817640" params="color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_artwork=true" width="100%" height="166" iframe="true" /] You are Not So Smart is hosted by David McRaney, a journalist and self-described psychology nerd. In each episode, David explores cognitive biases… Read the rest of the article: You Are Not So Smart podcast 021: how to use science as a tool to understand human nature

[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/140010755" params="color=ff0000&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_artwork=true" width="100%" height="166" iframe="true" /] You are Not So Smart is hosted by David McRaney, a journalist and self-described psychology nerd. In each episode, David explores cognitive biases… Read the rest of the article: You Are Not So Smart podcast 020: The Future – James Burke and Matt Novak

[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/137297100" params="color=c11e2c&show_artwork=false" width="100%" height="166" iframe="true" /] You are Not So Smart is hosted by David McRaney, a journalist and self-described psychology nerd. In each episode, David explores cognitive biases… Read the rest of the article: You Are Not So Smart podcast 019: Placebo sleep and other new discoveries in placebo research

[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/135587044" params="color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_artwork=true" width="100%" height="166" iframe="true" /] You are Not So Smart is hosted by David McRaney, a journalist and self-described psychology nerd. In each episode, David explores cognitive biases… Read the rest of the article: You Are Not So Smart podcast 018: How Benjamin Franklin dealt with haters

[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/132791080" params="color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_artwork=true" width="100%" height="166" iframe="true" /] You are Not So Smart is hosted by David McRaney, a journalist and self-described psychology nerd. In each episode, David explores cognitive biases… Read the rest of the article: You Are Not So Smart podcast 017: Alternative Medicine – Tim Farley

[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/129889028" params="color=ff6600&auto_play=false&show_artwork=true" width="100%" height="166" iframe="true" /] You are Not So Smart is hosted by David McRaney, a journalist and self-described psychology nerd. In each episode, David explores cognitive biases… Read the rest of the article: You Are Not So Smart podcast 016: Conspiracy Theories

[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/128425681" params="color=ff6600&auto_play=false&show_artwork=true" width="100%" height="166" iframe="true" /] You are Not So Smart is hosted by David McRaney, a journalist and self-described psychology nerd. In each episode, David explores cognitive biases… Read the rest of the article: You Are Not So Smart podcast 015: You Are Now Less Dumb

[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/126263844" params="color=ff6600&auto_play=false&player_type=tiny" width="100%" height="18" iframe="false" /] YANSS: RSS | iTunes | Download this episode | Stitcher You are Not So Smart is hosted by David McRaney, a journalist and… Read the rest of the article: You Are Not So Smart podcast 014: How stories can change beliefs and behaviors