​Get the App!
The iScore 5 AP Psych app is now available for $4.99 in the iTunes App Store for Apple devices or Google Play for Android devices.
 
iTunes  https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.iScore5.Psych&hl=en
Google Play https://apps.apple.com/us/app/iscore5-ap-psychology/id6739144070

App Description 
iScore 5 AP Psych is an app designed to help students achieve high scores on the AP examination. The app makes exam review entertaining and engaging for students. The creators have designed an app that functions as a game, helping students master all the CED vocabulary words for AP Psychology. The app, however, goes beyond merely learning basic vocabulary by challenging students to master multiple-choice questions in levels of increasing difficulty. The questions have been written by experienced AP Psychology teachers and college professors of psychology, all of whom are also AP exam readers.
 
The app's interactive interface is easy to navigate, and students can return to study mode at any point during the game to practice basic vocabulary. The app tracks a running score, enabling students to monitor their progress and gain a deeper understanding of the concepts they will need to know for the exam. Within each level, including the study mode, questions and practice items are organized by units, allowing for targeted study of specific areas in the AP curriculum.
 
The app is also an effective way for students to prepare for classroom unit exams, midterms, and finals. Because it is portable and easily accessible via phone or tablet, students are more likely to review more frequently. Even if students only have five or ten minutes to review at a time, this will result in an impressive increase in knowledge of psychology content due to the spacing effect.

 
Prepare for the AP Psychology Exam with iScore5
 
Study Level: All of the concepts from the updated CED are organized by AP Psychology unit and presented in a flashcard format. The study level is available for review at any level of the game.  

Play Level: Four levels of increasingly difficult multiple-choice questions.

​Level 1:  Vocabulary questions are organized by each of the AP Psychology units and presented in a multiple-choice format. Level 1 provides 20 terms at a time for each unit, so it is recommended that students play this level often, as the app generates a different set of terms each time the student plays.
 
Levels 2, 3, and 4:  These levels contain a set of multiple-choice questions in an AP format for each of the AP Psychology units in the CED. Each level increases in difficulty, ranging from level 2 (general understanding) to level 3 (intermediate) and level 4 (advanced). The correct answer to each question is explained, regardless of whether the student provided the correct response.
 
Practice Exam
Students are given the same amount of time they will have during the official AP Psychology exam (90 minutes) and are provided with their total score. After completing the practice test, they can review the questions they missed and see answer explanations. 

Reset: On the home screen, students can press the reset button to restart the game at any point, allowing them to play as often as they like.
 
The iScore5 AP Psych app provides students with a fun way to review for the exam.  Because all the questions are crafted by expert AP Psychology teachers and university psychology professors, the quality of the questions is very similar to what students will see on the AP exam.

​
 
Get the App!
The iScore 5 AP Psych app is now available for $4.99 in the iTunes App Store for Apple devices or Google Play for Android devices.
 
iTunes (iPhones and iPads) https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.iScore5.Psych&hl=en

Google Play (Android phones and Chromebooks) https://apps.apple.com/us/app/iscore5-ap-psychology/id6739144070
 
Other Apps Available from iScore5
The iScore5 company also offers review apps for other Advanced Placement topics, including AP United States Government and Politics, AP World History, and AP Human Geography. Visit the main iScore website for information about these other programs: http://www.iscore5.com.
 
Social Media
For more information about iScore5 AP Psych, visit the company website or follow them on Facebook and Instagram.
 
Website:
http://www.iscore5.com/apreg-psychology.html
 
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/iscore5/
 
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/iscore5/

Never Enough: The Neuroscience and Experience of Addiction
Author: Judith Grisel
ISBN-10:‎ 0525434909
ISBN-13: 978-0525434900
 
APA Style Citation
Grisel, J. (2020). Never enough: The neuroscience and experience of addiction. Anchor.
 
Buy This Book
https://www.amazon.com/Never-Enough-Neuroscience-Experience-Addiction/dp/0385542844
​

Book Description
Never Enough: The Neuroscience and Experience of Addiction talks of the epidemic and catastrophic effects of addiction. Author, Judith Grisel, shares her story as someone with a substance use disorder and a behavioral neuroscientist. She went from addiction in 7th grade, to using drugs for about a decade, to being clean for decades, to earning her Ph.D. in behavioral neuroscience. She is now an expert in neurobiology, chemistry, genetics, and addictive behavior.

Dr. Grisel defines drug addiction and provides a strong biological explanation for the reader. She explains how drugs of abuse stimulate both the mesolimbic dopamine system and nigrostriatal pathways. This is what makes  the experience pleasurable and why drugs of abuse are sought after. There is also an explanation of endorphins and how they are released in response to a wide range of environmental signals. In addition, the more predictable and frequent the dosing, the more addictive a drug will be.
 
The three general laws of psychopharmacology that apply to drugs are explained in detail. First, all drugs change the rate of what is already going on. They either speed up or slow down neural activity and act similarly to neurotransmitters at the receptor site. Second, all drugs have side effects. Unlike natural neurotransmitters, they are not targeted in their delivery but are delivered in the bloodstream and found in mostly uniform levels throughout the nervous system. For example, natural serotonin release targets particular cells to influence sleep, eating, etc. However, a drug enhancing serotonin acts in all these places simultaneously, often producing side effects in other motivated behaviors than its intended use. Third, the brain adapts to all drugs by counteracting the drug's effects. When drugs are used regularly, the brain adapts to compensate for the changes made by the drug. The brain responds to a drug by doing the opposite and returning to homeostasis. An addict doesn't drink coffee because she is tired. She is tired because she drinks coffee. For regular users to feel normal, they need to take the drug.
 
Richard Solomon and his student John Corbitt explained how the concept of homeostasis could be applied to emotion in what is known as the opponent-process theory. This theory helps the current understanding of addiction. Any feeling (e.g., good, bad, happy, depressed) that disrupts our balance will elicit a response by the brain that is exactly opposite to the effect of that stimulus. The brain counteracts the stimulus by producing its own opposite effect. The brain’s ability to respond and anticipate events is part of plasticity. For addiction, this is known as “acute tolerance.” The first cigarette of the day can be the most pleasing because after the brain site activates for nicotine, they become insensitive to additional exposures. For some drugs, such as SSRIs, adaptation is the point. The goal is to change the set point so that being depressed is no longer the patient’s normal state.
 
The middle part of the book devotes a specific chapter to each of the main drugs of abuse, including THC, opiates, alcohol, tranquilizers, stimulants, psychedelics, and others. Each chapter provides specifics while tying the drug to neuroscience. It is readable and relevant. While many other sources provide a great overview of symptoms and statistics, Dr. Grisel provides the connections many teachers want for a psychology class.
 
As the book draws to a close, Dr. Grisel explores how drug addictions form. There are numerous genetic and environmental contributions involved. She explains genetics, epigenetics, early exposure, and addictive personalities. However, some factors are vague and hard to quantify. Furthermore, because multiple influences interact, it is challenging to identify a root cause.  In addition, there is no current objective measure to use for addiction. The Diagnostic Statistic Manual (DSM) has changed the name and criteria, but we still have a long way to go to understand drug addiction.

Dr. Grisel provides this bottom line, "Despite small advances in understanding addiction, rates of addictive disorders are increasing." The field of neuroscience is still in its infancy. The author feels that recovery is a process of expansion and freedom, not restriction. She believes treatment is most effective when it combines a slow reduction and social support. The answer may be in the brain and social contacts. What caused Dr. Grisel to change her behavior was not a tragedy but rather human love and connection. Dr. Grisel states, "While we are at it, instead of wringing our hands, we might try reaching for another's."
 
Other Related Resources
NPR- A Neuroscientist Explores The Biology Of Addiction In 'Never Enough' https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2019/02/12/693814827/a-neuroscientists-explores-the-biology-of-addiction-in-never-enough

Never Enough: The Neuroscience and Experience of Addiction / Judy Grisel /
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnt1eb9vQxA&t=8s

Judith Grisel, Ph.D.: "Never Enough: The Neuroscience and Experience of Addiction" (02/25/19)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pOkh9xC-dSg

Chemistry World- Never Enough: The Neuroscience and Experience of Addiction
https://www.chemistryworld.com/review/never-enough-the-neuroscience-and experience-of-addiction/4011008.article
Psychological Concepts and Figures
Walter Cannon
James Olds and Peter Milner
Richard Solomon and John Corbitt
 
ADHD
Alcohol
Amphetamines
Analgesia
Antagonists
Barbiturates
Benzodiazepines
Caffeine
Cocaine
Cognitive dissonance
Dependence
Dopamine
Ecstasy (MDMA)
Endorphins
Epigenetics
Evolutionary perspective
Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS)
GABA
GHB
Glutamate
Homeostasis
Human Genome Project (HGP)
LSD
Psilocybin
Marijuana
Medical model of addiction
Mescaline
Mesolimbic pathway
Methadone
Methamphetamine
Nicotine
Nucleus accumbens
Opiates
Opponent-process theory
Placebo
Plasticity
Polymorphic genes
Positive and negative punishment
Positive and negative reinforcement
Psychedelics
Psychopharmacology
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)
Serotonin
Set-point
Spice
Suboxone
Synapse
THC
Tolerance
Tranquilizers
Vesicles
Withdrawal

Generation Sleepless: Why Tweens and Teens Aren’t Sleeping Enough and How We Can Help Them
Author: Heath Turgeon and Julie Wright
ISBN-10:‎ 0593192133
ISBN-13:‎ 978-0593192139
 
APA Style Citation
Turgeon, H. & Wright, J. (2022). Generation sleepless: Why tweens and teens aren’t sleeping enough and how we can help them. Penguin Random House LLC.
 
Buy This Book
https://www.amazon.com/Generation-Sleepless-Tweens-Sleeping-Enough/dp/0593192133
​

​Book Description
What if you could easily enhance your focus, remember more, make stronger decisions, control your emotions and interact better with others, and get sick less often? All it takes is sleep! The benefits of sleep are endless. The father of sleep medicine, William Dement, once described sleep as life’s mood music. If you get good sleep, your background music is positive, and the world is seen through an optimistic lens. However, when sleep deprived, your background music becomes negative, and the world becomes dark and gloomy. We know that sleep is important for babies and children, but what about teenagers? The answer is, yes! Sleep is necessary for the important reconstructive processes of pruning and myelin formation. We have all heard the stereotype that teens are lazy and unmotivated. However, teens’ sleep clock starts to change in middle school. They generally can’t fall asleep until 11 p.m., and want to sleep until at least 8 a.m. Contrary to negative stereotypes, it has nothing to do with laziness. In addition, they have been accused of spending too much time on screens and are struggling with mental health issues. Yet, these symptoms are also associated with a lack of sleep. The first part of Generation Sleepless: Why Tweens and Teens Aren’t Sleeping Enough and How We Can Help Them focuses on the science of the teenage brain and sleep. Teens today are the most sleep-deprived we have ever seen. By some estimates, only five percent of teens get the necessary sleep on school nights.
 
The book’s second part provides the tools to improve teens’ sleep. Teenagers can start to regain their sleep loss by simply adding 30 minutes a night, totaling 2.5 hours by the end of the school week. The book provides lots of helpful hints to becoming a sleep-forward family. One of the greatest sleep predictors of adolescent sleep is the family’s sleep habits. Adolescents with parent-set, earlier bedtimes have the best indicators of positive mental health.
 
Teens simply do not get enough sleep! It might be due to the perfect storm of their shifting biology, technology, academic pressure, early high school start times, and the myth that sleep is a luxury rather than a necessity. Teens need 9-10 hours of sleep, not the current average of 6.5 hours of sleep they are typically getting on a school night. When teens sleep for only 6 hours, they are missing a quarter of their night’s sleep and half their REM sleep. The problem is often that we don’t see the issues associated with sleep loss. Instead, we see anxiety, depression, ADHD, apathy and underperformance, and drug use. Many teens and parents don’t recognize sleep loss as a problem. Sleep deprivation is a real problem and the signs include: waking up more than once a week, sleeping two hours or more on weekends, falling asleep quickly during passive events or morning hours, having low energy, being irritable, having a lack of interest, drinking caffeine or vaping, and late-afternoon or evening naps. A study found almost 10% of seniors in the U.S., say they have fallen asleep behind the wheel.
 
Middle childhood (6-10 years) is the ideal time for good sleep. But by middle school, many have lost their healthy sleep habits, and by age 15 most are sleep deprived. The child’s brain is known for its growth period, but the adolescent brain is going through an equally important stage of growth. During adolescence, the brain is beginning a new wave of brain reorganization. The prefrontal cortex is becoming stronger and efficient. Thanks to pruning, the unused neural connections are dying off and others are strengthening. While pruning is in process, myelin encases the pathways and increases speed. The authors use the analogy of how a town with small roads over time lays down major highways connecting places that are frequented. The flashy, billion-dollar upgrade happens largely while asleep. Brain cells in the frontal lobe are connecting to the limbic system during sleep. Many scientists believe that sleep deprivation during adolescence may permanently alter brain development and behavior. When you are not getting enough sleep it raises the risk of mental health issues, increases stress levels, decreases memory storage, and hampers learning and academic success. With less sleep, there are more risky behaviors. The higher powers of reasoning and impulse control are compromised. Teens, especially 15 to 16-year-olds, feel dopamine more intensely, leading to thrill-seeking and addictive behaviors. When you are getting enough sleep, neurotransmitters are released to increase positive emotion and focus, hormones strengthen and repair muscles, and the immune system works properly. Proper sleep leads to a healthy metabolism, positive eating behaviors, and weight management. Sleep is necessary to encode information from short-term memory to long-term memory.
 
Sleep is controlled by the circadian rhythm or the “master clock” that keeps time and creates the 24-hour cycle. Kids have a natural cycle of falling asleep by 8 p.m. and waking by 6 a.m. But the teenager has a “sleep phase delay” of two hours or more. It is hard for many teens to fall asleep before 11 p.m. Sleep is also controlled by the homeostatic sleep drive that increases the pressure to sleep, the longer you are awake. As adenosine, the by-product of burning energy, levels increase, you are more likely to sleep. The circadian rhythm works to give you a burst of energy late afternoon to help counteract the homeostatic sleep drive and keep you away into the evening. This is why you feel drowsy mid-afternoon and then get a second wind. Not only is the teen circadian rhythm delayed, but the sleep pressure builds more slowly across the day and the teen’s second wind happens around 9 p.m. The teen’s biology is working against the schedule created for them.
 
Teens are faced with several additional factors that contribute to their sleep problems. Teens suffer from a social jet lag, where their brain’s clock and the outside world are not aligned. When students sleep on different schedules during the school week and break, it is equivalent to flying cross-country twice a week. They face similar side effects of feeling hungry, tired, and out of sorts. Some additional symptoms include: daytime fatigue, weight gain, concentration issues, digestive problems, moodiness, negative thoughts, chronic health conditions, insomnia, and family conflict. In 2011, the smartphone gained popularity, and now over 95% of teens have smartphones or access to them. While many studies are finding a negative correlation between digital media and well-being, the fine print is also showing that screen time is connected to sleep loss. Sleep debt is a consequence of too much technology and the two share the same symptoms. The light from the screen tricks the body into keeping you awake. Technology also creates flow and keeps teens engrossed where they lose track of time. Smartphones have become the new teddy bear. Around 90% of teens have at least one device in their sleep environment. A final piece to the puzzle is early school start times and academic overload. Currently, over half of the public schools in the U.S. start during the 7 a.m. hour. When teens wake up at 5 a.m. to get ready for school, it is equivalent to an adult waking up at 3 a.m. Research has shown that when schools shift to later start times, students continued to go to bed at the same time, but had more time to sleep in the morning. There is resistance to changing school start times, but the benefits have been proven.
 
So, what can you do? While it may feel like there is no possibility for change, there is! The authors use the second part of the book to help teenagers and families create a plan of action. At home, teens can choose to limit time on homework, rethink commitments, understand sleeps benefits, and remember the power of a FOND family. The acronym stands for family rituals, open play, nature, and downtime. Parents set the example for their children. The authors go further by providing examples of how to take a sleep-forward approach as a family. They talk about how to use family meetings to set up an environment and schedule for success. They also provide the five habits of happy sleepers. Individuals can create a sleep bubble with the five habits that spell SLEEP. First, Set your sleep times. Regularity is important. Second, Lay out your three routines. Select two routines before sleep, and one after sleep to provide a cushion around your sleep bubble. Third, Extract your sleep stealers. Identify what is stealing your sleep and remove them, while also paying attention to environmental cues that enhance sleep. Fourth, Eliminate light and make your bedroom a cave. A wind-down time of decreased light an hour before bed can be especially helpful. Fifth, Practice a sleep-friendly daytime. What happens during the day impacts your night. Pay attention to early sunlight, exercise, daytime foods, caffeine, alcohol, bedtime snacks, and smart napping. This advice sounds amazing and you want teens to implement it right away, but it is important to recognize the need for teen motivation and independence. Instead invite teens to learn, brainstorm, and problem-solve around their own sleep issues. Point out the value of good sleep to students and let them decide to make the changes on their own. The authors provide a more clear and effective communication method called ALP. Attune- pause, listen, and lead with empathy. Limit-set- set and hold reasonable limits on a consistent basis. Problem-solve- help teens come up with their own solutions. Sleep is easy to dismiss because we are unconscious when it happens. However, it is a very important process for teens. Give the five habits, all five, a try for two weeks to create a sleep bubble that promotes natural sleeping powers.
 
Other Related Resources
Authors’- Press
https://www.thehappysleeper.com/press
 
Authors’ Website- Happy Sleeper
https://www.thehappysleeper.com/
 
Division of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School- Resources section
https://sleep.hms.harvard.edu/resources
 
Psychological Concepts and Figures
William Dement
Ivan Pavlov
 
Adenosine
Adolescence
Amygdala
Circadian rhythm
Cognitive-behavioral therapy
Creativity
Delayed gratification- Marshmallow experiment
EEG
Evolutionary perspective
Excitatory vs. inhibitory
Flow
Frontal lobes
Glial cells
Habits
Homeostatic sleep drive
Hormones- Leptin, Ghrelin
Immune system
Learned helplessness
Light therapy
LTP
Melatonin
Memory
Mental health
Myelin sheath
Negative reinforcement
Neurotransmitters- Serotonin, Dopamine
NREM
Paleo-sleep
Plasticity
Prefrontal cortex
Pruning
Puberty
Punishment
Rebound sleep
REM
Reticular activating system
Sensitive period
Sleep bubble
Sleep debt
Sleep deprivation
Sleep disorders
Sleep spindles
Social jet lag
Suprachiasmatic nuclei
Unconditional positive regard

​Author:  Carmine Gallo
ISBN: 978-1-250-04112-8

APA Style Citation
Gallo, Carmine (2014). Talk Like TED:  The 9 Public-Speaking Secrets of the World’s Top Minds.  New York: St. Martin’s Press.

Buy This Book
​​www.amazon.com/Talk-Like-TED-Public-Speaking-Secrets/dp/1250041120

Book Description
The TED Conference, which stands for Technology, Entertainment, and Design, has been around since 1984 but did not become well known until they began posting videos of their trademark 19-minute presentations online for free.  Author Carmine Gallo is a communications expert and the author of the bestselling book, The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs.  Gallo examined over 500 TED presentations and added insights from research on persuasion and communication to generate a list of the critical aspects of highly engaging presentations. Talk Like TED offers nine key public-speaking tips utilized in some of the most well-known presentations.  The tips for giving great talks are organized into three broad categories:  Emotional (they touch the heart), Novel (they teach something new), and Memorable (they present ideas in a unique manner).  As teachers, we frequently deliver content to students in a presentation form, and this book can provide a variety of tools to use to increase student engagement and learning.  Each chapter describes a method used in the most successful TED talks including specific examples and insight from the speakers. One of the best aspects of this book was stopping periodically to watch the amazing TED talks discussed in the book!
 
EMOTIONAL
The first third of the book is devoted to the three tips in the category related to emotional factors that “touch the heart.”  In chapter one, “Unleash the Master Within,” the author discusses the importance of choosing topics to discuss in which you have personal passion and interest.  According to the author, “the first step to inspiring others is to make sure you are inspired yourself.”  An excellent example of a TED talk that exemplifies passion was given by University of Waterloo Economics professor Larry Smith titled, “Why You Will Fail to Have a Great Career.”  Smith discusses that although college students are told to pursue their passion most will not because “You’re afraid to pursue your passion.  You’re afraid to look ridiculous.  You’re afraid to try.  You’re afraid you may fail.”
https://www.ted.com/talks/larry_smith_why_you_will_fail_to_have_a_great_career
 
Neuroanatomist Jill Bolte Taylor gave one of the most watched TED talks of all time (about 20 million views).  The talk illustrates how having a strong emotional connection with the material leads to increased audience engagement.  Bolte Taylor’s talk is compelling because it involves a personal connection and exceptional storytelling.  TEDster Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor offers advice for teachers and other presenters, and that is to tell a story and demonstrate your passion for the topic. According to Bolte Taylor, “When I was at Harvard, I was the one winning the awards.  I wasn't winning the awards because my science was better than anyone else’s.  I was winning because I could tell a story that was interesting and fascinating and it was mine, down to the detail.”
http://www.ted.com/talks/jill_bolte_taylor_s_powerful_stroke_of_insight 
 
 
Chapter two discusses how to “Master the Art of Storytelling” by illustrating how effective speakers utilize narratives to make an emotional connection with the audience.  For example, TED speaker Brene Brown famously begins her topic by defending qualitative research she conducts with the statement that “Stories are data with a soul.”  Effective storytelling engages each listener individually and allows them to become emotionally attached and to the ideas being presented.  Some of the most effective TED storytellers are discussed in this chapter including Brian Stevenson’s talk, “We Need to Talk About an Injustice” which led to the longest standing ovation in TED history (see earlier Books for Psychology Class post on his book Just Mercy).  The 1,000 attendees at Stevenson’s talk collectively donated $1 million dollars to his nonprofit, the Equal Justice Institute.  Stevenson raised $55,000 for every minute he spoke that day.  This TED talk was given without the aid of a PowerPoint, visuals, or props of any kind – a testament to the power of story. 
https://www.ted.com/talks/bryan_stevenson_we_need_to_talk_about_an_injustice
 
Another tip for an effective persuasive presentation according to the author, is to utilize Aristotle’s three components of effective persuasion ethos, logos, and pathos in the most effective ratio. Ethos refers to the credibility and credentials of the speaker, logos is the use of logic and data to make effective arguments, and pathos is the ability to appeal to the emotions of the audience.  When the author of the book analyzed the content of Brian Stevenson’s TED talk, he found it was 10 percent ethos, 25 percent logos, and 65 percent pathos or emotional appeal. Despite being 65 percent of pathos Stevenson’s talk has been rated as one of the most persuasive of all time. One of the ways the book recommends inserting pathos or emotional appeal is by including extreme moments. Dan Ariely, a psychologist and behavioral economist at Duke, introduces his talk on how research shows that people are predictably irrational with a dramatic personal story of his recovery from an injury that left him burned over 70 percent of his body.  Ariely’s talk is an excellent addition to the research unit for illustrating the need to test beliefs that are held intuitively through careful research methods. 
https://www.ted.com/talks/dan_ariely_on_our_buggy_moral_code/transcript?language=en#t-102037
 
In chapter three, the author describes how effective TED presenters can use body language and verbal delivery to engage with the audience in a manner that feels authentic and conversational instead of an impersonal lecture to a large group.  The four elements of verbal delivery addressed in this section are rate, volume, pitch, and the effective use of pauses for emphasis.  One of the examples of effective nonverbal communications is a 2012 TED talk by a former Army general and U.S. secretary of state Colin Powell on the importance of providing children with structure early in life.  His speech is broken down to illustrate how particular gestures corresponded with the words he used during his speech. 
 
Another amazing TED talk that powerfully uses gestures to strengthen an argument was given by Ernesto Sirolli titled, “Want to help someone?  Shut up and listen!” is also broken down to highlight the expert use of gestures.  Sirolli’s talk discusses how his failure to listen led to failure for his NGO project designed to help increase food production in rural Zambia.  The project involved teaching people living in southern Zambia to grow Italian tomatoes and other vegetables.  Because the local population was uninterested, the NGO paid them to grow the vegetables.  Sirolli and his team were surprised that agriculture was not being used in this fertile region with excellent weather and soil.  According to Sirolli, instead of asking the people living there why they did not grow crops, they said, "Thank God we're here." Just in the nick of time to save the Zambian people from starvation." The result was that everything grew extremely well and we were telling the Zambians, "Look how easy agriculture is." When the tomatoes were nice and ripe and red, overnight, some 200 hippos came out from the river, and they ate everything. It was then that Sirolli asked the Zambians, “My God, the hippos!" and the Zambians said, "Yes, that's why we have no agriculture here." When Sirolli asked, “Why didn't you tell us?" the Zambians replied, "You never asked."
https://www.ted.com/talks/ernesto_sirolli_want_to_help_someone_shut_up_and_listen
 
NOVEL
The second section of the book explains three aspects that contribute to an effective presentation because it is new and unique.  Kevin Allocca, who studies YouTube trends, stated this perfectly when he pointed out that in an era when two days’ worth of video is uploaded every two minutes, it is only the truly unique and original ideas that capture the attention of the online audience. 
 
The topic of chapter four, “Teach Me Something New,” describes how the best TED talks find a way to introduce new ideas or perspectives.  The author suggests that the titles of some of the most frequently viewed TED talks promise to teach something new such as “Schools Kill Creativity” (Sir Ken Robinson), “How Great Leaders Inspire Action” (Simon Sinek), “The Surprising Science of Happiness” (Dan Gilbert), “The Power of Introverts” (Susan Cain), “8 Secrets of Success” (Richard St. John), and “How to Live Before You Die” (Steve Jobs).  Martha Burns, a professor at Northwestern, teaches how to use neuroscience to be a better educator and highlights the biology behind the “buzz” we experience when learning something in her powerful TEDx talk.  One of the best examples of teaching something novel is Hans Rosling's talk that makes statistics and correlations exciting and meaningful.  Rosling, an expert on global health, animates correlational data regarding health and wealth in a powerful demonstration.  You can view his entire talk at ted.com or view the abbreviated version titled:  200 countries, 200 years, 4minutes.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbkSRLYSojo
 
Novel presentations, according to chapter five, “Deliver Jaw-Dropping Moments,” in which presenters capture the attention and imagination of their audiences by using dramatic demonstrations or surprises.  Some of the most dramatic moments or “hooks” at TED talks have included Bill Gates releasing mosquitos and Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor who opens her talk by holding a human brain that is still attached to the spinal cord.  “Wow” moments can also come from a single shocking statistic.

• “This country is very different today than it was 40 years ago. In 1972 there were 300,000 people in jails and prisons. Today there are 2.3 million.  The United States now has the highest rate of incarceration in the world.”

Bryan Stevenson
 

• “Why are we ignoring the oceans?  If you compare NASA’s annual budget to explore the heavens, that one-year budget would fund NOAA’s budget to explore the world's oceans for 1,600 years.” 

Robert Ballard
 

• “One in a hundred regular people is a psychopath.  So there are 1,500 people in this room. Fifteen of you are psychopaths.”

Jon Ronson
 
Successful TED talks also hook new viewers by creating memorable headlines, which turn into sound bites that are often spread across social media.  TED even has a Twitter handle devoted to the catchy, memorable quotes that are likely to generate public attention (@TEDQuote). 
 

• “There’s zero correlation between being the best talker and having the best ideas.”

Susan Cain
 

• “Don’t fake it till you make it.  Fake it till you become it.”

Amy Cuddy
 

• “Numbers are the musical notes with which the symphony of the universe is written.”

Adam Spencer
 
Chapter six highlights how the ability to “Lighten Up” by using appropriate and genuine humor can increase audience engagement.  The book provides numerous tips for adding humor to presentations, including quotes, short video clips, and anecdotes.
 
MEMORABLE
The final third of the book is dedicated to various ways to make your ideas and your presentation memorable.  Chapter seven, “Stick to the 18-Minute Rule,” explains why all TED talks are limited to 18 minutes.  This key rule was established because it allows enough time for thoughtful analysis, yet short it is enough to maintain audience engagement.  Research shows that information is remembered better if it is organized into related chunks, this has led TED to recommend that presentations be centered around three main areas or points that support one large overarching idea.  This concept can be applied to classroom presentations as well by limiting direct instruction to shorter chunks broken up with time for reflection and formative practice.  The 18-minute rule forces researchers to create a focused message that maintains attention levels, and that does not create what researchers call “cognitive backlog” or the problem in which too much information prevents the successful transfer of ideas.  There are also numerous other TED rules of three such as the Three A’s of Awesome:  Attitude, Awareness, and Authenticity which were shared by award-winning blogger and author of the Book of Awesome, Neil Pasricha in a TEDx talk.  https://www.ted.com/talks/neil_pasricha_the_3_a_s_of_awesome 
Kevin Allocca, a YouTube trends manager studies why some videos go viral, and others do not.  According to Allocca, 48 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute, yet only a few will have millions of views.  In Allocca’s TED talk, he explains the three factors that contribute to the success of a video:  tastemakers, communities of participation, and unexpectedness.  Of course, there is also the three-minute TED talk titled “TED in 3 Minutes,” which has been given by individuals such as Arianna Huffington and New York Times tech columnist David Pogue.  The original three-minute talk was given by Terry Moore who showed the audience a better way to tie their shoes, which has been viewed more than 1.5 million times.  The rule of three suggests

1. Creating a Twitter-friendly headline
2. Support the headline with three key messages
3. Reinforce the three messages with stories, statistics, and examples

 
Chapter eight describes how effective speakers can “Paint a Mental Picture with Multisensory Experiences” and engage as many of the senses of audience members as possible.   For example, the best TED talks use memorable images, not excessive text on slides.  One of the major tips is for creating better more effective PowerPoint presentations by avoiding too much text and instead relying more on memorable images and other visuals.  One of the worst ways to present is PowerPoint karaoke in which the speaker reads text aloud off of the screen. The chapter includes several examples of successful TED talks that show the words being used by the presenter alongside a description of the images being displayed to audience members.  A powerful example of how words are delivered alongside dramatic images is Lisa Kristine’s TED talk about the hardships of indigenous peoples and the reality of the 27 million individuals living in modern-day slavery. https://www.ted.com/talks/lisa_kristine_glimpses_of_modern_day_slavery
 
The final tip for making your presentation memorable, “Stay in Your Lane,” is outlined in chapter nine. Staying in your lane means that your presentations need to be authentic and honest and speak from the heart.  One of the tips offered for “staying in your lane” is to practice by giving your presentation to a friend or family member first because when you have a close relationship with someone, you are more likely to show who you are. 
 
Talk Like TED is an excellent guide full of practical ideas for making your presentations, activities, and demos more engaging and effective.  The book is also an opportunity to learn about some amazing TED talks you may not have heard of before.  TED talks can be shown in class, assigned as homework to facilitate class discussions or offered as opportunities for students who want to expand their understanding of a particular area of psychology.  Another interesting way to use TED talks is to execute the demos or activities presented by a particular TED talk in class, and then after hooking students on the content, let your students know how to access the entire TED talk. Because many TED presenters are also authors, TED talks can be used to stimulate interest for students to read books related to their favorite TED talks or pursue research projects in areas related to what they watched. 
 
Other Related Resources
 
Author’s Website
Carmine Gallo’s website offers articles, videos, and links to other books.
http://gallocommunications.com/books/talk-like-ted-2/
 
The Top 20 TED Talks of All Time
http://www.ted.com/playlists/171/the_most_popular_talks_of_all?gclid=CjwKEAjwtNbABRCsqO7J0_uJxWYSJAAiVo5LuME8Z7o2-Ki6OahJAA2Liq3mJcpOAdNcrtYR4zRz0RoCKgPw_wcB
 
How to Sound Smart in Your TED Talk
Comedian Will Stephen’s take on how to give a TED talk and impress your audience.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8S0FDjFBj8o
 
 
Psychological Figures and Concepts
Dan Ariely
Aristotle
Paul Bloom
Jill Bolte-Taylor
Lera Boroditsky
Susan Cain
James Flynn
Daniel Gilbert
Malcolm Gladwell
Sydney Jensen
George Miller
Daniel Pink
Hans Rosling
 
10,000 Hour Rule
Altruism
Amygdala
Analogies
Dopamine
Dual-Coding Theory
Flashbulb Memory
Flynn Effect
Genius
Hippocampus
Imagery
Introversion
Linguistic Determinism
Linguistic Relativity
Magic Number 7 Plus or Minus 2
Multitasking
Neuroplasticity
Nonverbal Communication
Persuasion
Positive Emotion
Self-Esteem
Statistics 

​Psych Experiments:  From Pavlov's Dogs to Rorscharch's Inkblots, Put Psychology's Most Fascinating Theories to the Test
Author:  Michael A. Britt
ISBN: 10:  1-4405-9707-3
 
APA Style Citation
Britt, Michael (2017). Psych Experiments.  Avon, MA: Adams Media.

Book Description
Psych Experiments, the much-anticipated book by psychologist Michael Britt, known to psychology teachers everywhere as the host of the Psych Files podcast is an excellent source for experiments that can be used in the classroom or as student projects.  The Psych Files is best known to students and teachers for the animated videos designed to help students memorize the parts of the brain. The book contains 50 different experiments that are all based on psychological research. The experiments range from classic studies to more current research.  The book opens with general advice for conducting psychological research including information about replication, ethics, participant rights, and statistics.  Each of the 50 studies includes background information, related psychological concepts, a summary of how the original research was conducted, and step-by-step instructions for replicating either the original research design or a modified version.  Before replicating any of the studies listed in the book students should review the ethical guidelines in the early chapters.
 
One of the experiments Britt discusses is the famous examination of the misinformation effect by Elizabeth F. Loftus and John C. Palmer (1974).  After describing the original study and discussing the significance of the results for illustrating the fallibility of memory students can use Britt’s outline for exactly how to replicate this research in the classroom. The book includes step-by-step instructions. The author recommends having a sensitivity to students who may not wish to participate possibly as a result of personal experiences with car accidents.  An additional activity related to the Loftus and Palmer research on memory can be found in the “Open Your Class with this” activity posted with this book review.  This activity is designed to demonstrate the fallibility of memory using virtual reality technology.  An excellent way to close out this lesson/research experiment would be to show Elizabeth Loftus’s TED talk titled “How Reliable is Your Memory.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLYY77LPr3U. 
 
Many of the experiments created by Michael Britt for this book would work well as class demonstrations or student-directed research projects for science fair competitions.  Students can view the examples of direct replications and unique variations of classic psychology experiments to help them develop ideas for their own original research.  Some of the ideas in the book that are easily adapted for classroom use are:
 
Cognition (Memory, Thinking, and Problem Solving)
How You Are Manipulated Into Paying More Money Than You Wanted:  I Bet You Expected to Pay Thousands For This! - Anchoring Bias
Based on research by Dan Ariely, George Loewenstein, and Drazen Prelec (2003)
 
Mental Sets Can Limit You Into One Way of Thinking:  How to Get Unstuck – Mental Set
Based on research by Abraham S. Luchins (1946)
 
Why Do You Remember Certain Things:  That’s Deep, Man – Levels of Processing
Based on research by Fergus I. M. Craik and Endel Tulving
 
Learning/Conditioning
When Trying Really Hard Makes No Difference:  I Give Up! – Learned Helplessness
Based on research by Martin Seligman and Steven Maier (1967)
Replication/extension research by Steven Maier and Martin Seligman (2016)
 
Motivation and Emotion
Noticing a Face in the Crowd:  I Never Forget a Face – Identifying Emotions
Based on research by Paul Ekman and Wallace V. Friesen (1971)
Replication/extension research by Christine Hansen and Ranald D. Hansen (1988)
 
Treatment
How to Think More Positively About Life:  Sing Your Problems Away – Cognitive Therapy/Cognitive Defusion
Based on research by Andreas Larsson, Nic Hooper, Lisa A. Osborne, Paul Bennett, and Louise McHuch (2015)
 
How Psychiatric Labels Affect How We Se People:  Sticks and Stones May Not Break My Bones, but Labels May Incarcerate Me – Labeling and Mental Illness
Based on research by David L. Rosenhan (1974)
Replication/extension research by Darcy Haag Granello and Todd A. Gibbs (2016)
 
Social Psychology
How Roles Can Affect Us at a Deep Level:  Are You the Role You Play?- Social Roles
Based on research by Craig W. Haney, W. Curtis Banks, and Philip G. Zimbardo (1973)
Replication/extension research by Stephen Reicher and Alexander Haslam (2006)

How Anonymity Can Make Us Mean: “That is the Stupidest Thing You Ever Said!” – Deindividuation
Based on research by Philip Zimbardo (1969)
 
The Power of Conformity:  How Much Would You Pay for That Cornflake? – Conformity
Based on research by Solomon Asch (1952)
 
When Trying to Look Good Looks Bad:  My What Big Words You Have! – Influence
Based on research by Daniel Oppenheimer (2006)
 
Where Discrimination Begins: Those People are All the Same! – Prejudice and Discrimination
Based on research by Muzafer Sherif (1954)
Replication/extension research by Henri Tajfel (1970)
 
Michael Britt’s book, Psych Experiments contains many more that could be used by student both inside and outside of class, and that can serve as inspiration for additional student-directed research.
 
Other Related Resources

Author’s Website
http://www.thepsychfiles.com/
Michael Britt’s website includes psychology resources for review and years of excellent podcasts organized by unit. Some of the most popular podcasts include:

• Episode 274: Be the First to Act – or the Second – Both Are Great
• Episode 243:  Did Your Therapy Really Work?
• Episode 224: If Freud Worked Tech Support (Defense Mechanisms)
• Episode 195:  How to Memorize Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development
• Episode 72 (video): Memorize the Parts of the Brain
• Episode 68: Mnemonic Device for Erikson’s Eight Stages of Development

 
Elizabeth Loftus TED Talk “How Reliable is Your Memory?”
https://www.ted.com/talks/elizabeth_loftus_the_fiction_of_memory
 
Psychological Figures and Concepts
Dan Ariely
Solomon Asch
Robert Cialdini
Fergus Craik
John Darley
Hermann Ebbinghaus
Paul Ekman
Leon Festinger
Carol Gilligan
Harry Harlow
Daniel Kahneman
Lawrence Kohlberg
Elizabeth Loftus
Konrad Lorenz
A.S. Luchins
Stanley Milgram
George Miller
Ivan Pavlov
Jean Piaget
Hermann Rorschach
D.L. Rosenhan
Martin Seligman
Muzafer Sherif
B.F. Skinner
Richard Wiseman
Philip Zimbardo
 
Anchoring Heuristic
Attachment
Attraction
Change Blindness
Classical Conditioning
Cognitive Development
Cognitive Dissonance
Cognitive Therapy
Conformity
Creativity
Decision Making
Deindividuation
Discrimination
Dopamine
Emotion
Encoding
Eyewitness Memory
Facial Expressions and Emotion
Forgetting
Framing Effect
Frontal Lobe
Functional Fixedness
Human Factors Psychology
Intelligence
Labeling and Mental Illness
Loci Method
Mental Set
Moral Development
Obedience to Authority
Operant Conditioning
Perception
Personal Fable
Persuasion
Prejudice
Rorschach Inkblot
Social Psychology

​Chasing the Scream:  The First and Last Days of the War on Drugs
Author:  Johann Hari
ISBN:  978-1-62040-890-2
 
APA Style Citation
Hari, Johann (2015). Chasing the Scream:  The First and Last Days of the War on Drugs.  New York: Bloomsbury Publishing.

​Book Description
Johann Hari’s Chasing the Scream is a compelling if one-sided examination of the history of the war on drugs.  The book is controversial because of an earlier plagiarism incident involving the author, the topic of decriminalizing drugs, the graphic depictions of cartel violence, and the physical, psychological, and social abuse suffered by addicts.  These factors may make the book unsuitable for some high school students.  In 2011, the author was found guilty of plagiarism and misrepresenting information from interviews.  Furthermore, it was found out that the author spitefully altered the Wikipedia sites of his critics. In an attempt to alleviate concerns about credibility, the author includes 73 pages of detailed source notes and an explanation of his research process.  On the books website, the author has shared audio files of fact-checking sessions with each of the figures quoted in the book who are still alive.  The book website allows readers to hear the actual voices of the individuals whose 400 quotes fill the book. Some of the contributors’ photos are included in the quiz about the war on drugs on the main website.
Hari’s book is the result of three years of research that took him on a thirty-thousand-mile search to trace the history of the war on drugs, which began over 100 years ago.  Much of the book is based on historical and current accounts of individuals impacted by the war on drugs.  Hari begins by describing the interrelated factors that connect three key figures at the start of the drug war:  Harry Anslinger the federal bureaucrat, Arnold Rothstein a New York criminal boss, and the singer Billie Holiday.  The story begins with the birth of the American war on drugs, which was a byproduct of the end of prohibition in the 1920’s.  Henry Anslinger became the head of the Bureau of Narcotics (today known as the DEA) and began the relentless pursuit of eliminating drugs.  Anslinger would quickly expand his war on narcotics to include marijuana in addition to cocaine and heroin by playing on racism and fear. Anslinger also silenced any criticism, much of which came from doctors who were successfully treating heroin addicts through maintenance methods.  Anslinger’s department forcibly closed many clinics and thousands of doctors were arrested for providing drugs to their patients.  Most doctors were given heavy fines, but some were given prison terms (five years for each prescription). Hari argues that despite contrary views, Anslinger was able to impose his views on drugs onto the nation.  Arnold Rothstein, whom Hari portrays as the original drug kingpin created the model for the modern drug cartel is another central figure in the history of the drug war. Rothstein controlled the drug trade and was able to accumulate enormous profits, which enabled him to buy and control politicians and law enforcement officers. 
This process continues today and can be summed up with the phrase “plato o plomo” (silver or lead) coined by Mexican cartels suggesting that officials accept bribes or be killed.  The war on drugs according to Hari has led to the control of drugs by dangerous criminals.  Finally, Hari includes the singer Billie Holiday whom he portrays as one of the first victims of Anslinger’s war.  Holiday’s troubled life and struggles with alcohol and heroin made her an early high-profile target of the man who launched the war on drugs.  Based on research from diaries and other records, Hari outlines how Anslinger and his bureau relentlessly pursued Billie Holiday to make her an example for others.
The book chronicles the heart-wrenching stories of specific victims of the war on drugs from Billie Holiday to the present.  The individuals portrayed include innocent victims caught in the crossfire, a transsexual crack dealer and gang leader in New York City, Roaslio Reta a former killer for the Zeta cartel, and the addicts in an Arizona women’s prison who endure hardships under Sherif Joe Arpaio who were forced to work chain gangs in 110 plus heat wearing t-shirts labeling them as DRUG ADDICT.  The prisoners in Sherif Arpaio’s chain gangs were forced to chant the following:
We’re in a state of shame
Couldn’t get our lives strait
We’re headed back to intake
We’re here without our kids
We lost our hope
We gave up dope
 
Sherif Arpaio publicly calls the prison he runs his “concentration camp” and although there is an air-conditioned prison in the area, the inmates are forced to live in tents in the desert.  The tents, which were donated by the military and date to the Korean War era, are freezing in winter and reach temperatures of 140 degrees in summer.  Meanwhile, the sheriff has ordered the air-conditioned prison facility to be used as an animal shelter. In Chasing the Scream, the author tells the story of one Arizona prisoner, meth addict Marcia Powell, who was kept outside in a metal cage by guards with no water, no bed, no bench, and no cover from the 106-degree heat.  She had been in solitary confinement where she swallowed a razor in a suicide attempt. 16 guards had the opportunity to help her, but she was left to die a horrific death in the cage in the desert.  Hari describes how the United States imprisons more individuals for drug-related offenses than all of the nations of Western Europe imprison for all crimes.
 
The book also discusses the stories of many of the individuals who are fighting for a more just and humane solution to the problems of drug abuse.  These individuals include individual family members, addicts, doctors, and government leaders.  Marisela Escobedo, a mother in Mexico who sought justice for her child who was murdered by the cartel walked more than 1000 miles from Juarez to Mexico City to ask for assistance from President Calderon.  Despite her long march through the desert and the exhaustion of her life savings, the President refused to meet with her.  She later learned that a member of the Zeta cartel had murdered her son, which was why the killer was never prosecuted.  Marisela refused to give up on her son and ended up being murdered by the cartel outside the state capitol building.  Leigh Maddox, a state trooper involved with the Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) advocates for a new approach to the war on drugs.  LEAP is an organization of current and former police officers, judges, and prison officers who advocate for ending prohibition on drugs in order to bankrupt drug gangs.  Bud Osborn, a poet and homeless addict who worked to bring change and rights for addicts in the Downtown Eastside neighborhood of Vancouver.  Gabor Maté and Bruce Alexander, who proposed alternative theories of addiction, Ruth Dreifuss, former President of Switzerland, who supported and promoted decriminalization and the creation of heroin clinics. 
 
Critics have challenged Hari’s criticism of biochemical theories of addiction as being oversimplified.  But the book provides compelling case studies of individuals on the front lines of the drug war and highlights possible alternatives to the current model.  The book ends with examples including Switzerland, Portugal, and the U.S. states of Colorado and Washington and their attempts to address the problems of drugs through decriminalization. 
Although one-sided, Chasing the Scream will challenge you to think about the consequences and costs of the war on drugs. 
 
Other Related Resources
 
Book Website
http://chasingthescream.com/
The website for Chasing the Scream includes audio of the quotes from sources used in the book organized chapter-by-chapter.  Any individual quoted in the book was given the opportunity to review the material written by the author and correct mistakes or add information.  The audio fact checking files allow the reader to have confidence in an author who has been previously found to have plagiarized sources.  The site includes a quiz to test your knowledge of the war on drugs, information about the author, news stories, links to organizations protesting the war on drugs, and videos.
 
Author Johann Hari’s TED Talk
https://www.ted.com/talks/johann_hari_everything_you_think_you_know_about_addiction_is_wrong
Author Johann Hari’s 2015 TED talk about his book Chasing the Scream is his description of a compelling theory about the cause of addiction and why the current approach has not been effective.
 
Guardian article by Johann Hari
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/apr/12/johann-hari-chasing-the-scream-war-on-drugs
 
Bruce K. Alexander’s Website
http://www.brucekalexander.com/home-4
The website of Canadian psychologist Bruce K. Alexander whose research on rat park is featured in the book Chasing the Scream.
 
 
Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP)
http://www.leap.cc/
LEAP is a nonprofit organization consisting of current and former members of the law enforcement and criminal justice communities who oppose the war on drugs and policies that do not effectively address drug abuse, juvenile drug use, addiction, and the problems of crime created by criminal control of illegal drug sales. They advocate the following goals: 1) to educate the public, the media and policy makers about the failure of current policies, and 2) to restore the public’s respect for police, which has been greatly diminished by law enforcement’s involvement in enforcing drug prohibition.
 
Heads Up - Drugs and Your Brain
http://headsup.scholastic.com/students/drugs-your-brain
Brochure produced by the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) about how drugs impact brain structures.
 
Psychological Figures and Concepts
Bruce Alexander
Sigmund Freud
Addiction
AIDS / HIV
Alcoholism
Amphetamines
Caffeine
Cannabis
Cocaine
DARE program
Decriminalization
Domestic violence
Drug cartels
Drug education
Ecstasy
Endorphins
Federal Bureau of Narcotics
Harrison Act
Hell’s Angels
Heroin
International Narcotics Control Board
Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP)
Legalization of drugs
Marijuana
Marijuana legalization
Methadone
Methamphetamine
Morphine
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
Opiates
OxyContin
Partnership for a Drug-Free America
Physical dependence
Prohibition of alcohol and drugs
Psychological dependence
Racism
Rat Park experiment
Safe injecting rooms
Schizophrenia
Solitary confinement
Vicodin
Vietnam War
War on drugs
War on poverty
World Health Organization (WHO)
Zetas

Night School:  The Life-Changing Science of Sleep
Author:  Richard Wiseman
ISBN: 13: 978-1497356443

APA Style Citation
Wiseman, R. (2014). Night School: The Life-Changing Science of Sleep. London: MacMillan.

Book Description

Richard Wiseman is back with another amazing book full of exciting activities and examples applicable for use in the psychology classroom.  For more from Wiseman, visit the 2014 post on The As If Principle.  We also strongly recommend any of Wiseman’s books as a source of ideas for classroom demonstrations including 59 Seconds:  Think a Little, Change A Lot and Quirkology: the Curious Science of Everyday Lives.  His latest book, Night School: Wake up to the Power of Sleep, is a tour through the unit on states of consciousness that includes historic and current research on topics including sleep-wake disorders, sleep cycles, polysomnograms (sleep studies), dreams, lucid dreaming, hypnotic susceptibility, sleep theories, and the impact of sleep on learning and memory.   Research consistently indicates that good sleep habits can improve learning, control weight, improve creativity, and increase productivity.  Lack of sleep is however related to increased accident risk, weight gain, impaired learning, inefficiency, and a variety of mental and physical illnesses.  This book provides insight into numerous questions students have about sleep and sleep related phenomena such as the content of dreams of blind individuals, the purpose of dreams, color vs. black and white dreams, the impact of sleep deprivation, the mysteries of sleep walking, whether you can learn while sleeping, and more.  Each chapter includes self-tests and demonstrations, which readily translate into engaging classroom activities.   

The book begins with the history of sleep science and the fascinating story of how after a near death experience involving a cannon, Dr. Hans Berger was inspired to study the possibility of telepathy.  His telepathy research, although unsuccessful ultimately led to the construction of the first fully functioning electroencephalogram (EEG) machine.  Early sleep researchers unraveled many of the mysteries surrounding sleep using the EEG, including REM, the sleep cycle, and circadian rhythms.  Students can take and score a quick and simple test to determine their chronotype (late chronotype/night owl v. early chronotype/lark). Wiseman expands on the real life consequences for individuals based on their chronotype and the importance of circadian rhythms.  This chapter also explains the biology of jet leg and provides tips for overcoming this exhausting condition.

Wiseman shares the story of Thomas Edison, the Wizard of Menlo Park, and how the invention of artificial light profoundly impacted sleep patterns.  One third of adults are sleep deprived and children and teenagers are often impacted as well.  This worldwide problem can potentially be traced back to the invention of electricity according to Wiseman because prior to the advent of artificial light most people went to bed earlier because it was too difficult to work in the dark.  The long history of scientific research related to sleep deprivation is outlined including the famous study of American disc jockey Peter Tripp who attempted to stay awake for eight days in a glass enclosed studio in New York’s Times Square.  The book discusses common sleep-wake disorders related to problems falling or staying asleep (insomnia) or problems related to excessive sleep (hypersomnia) as well as the very rare condition known as fatal familial insomnia (FFI).  Wiseman saw firsthand the problems associated with sleep deprivation while working on the British reality television show Shattered, which involved ten contestants attempting to survive performance challenges while remaining awake for seven days.  The author highlights the implications of sleep deprivation by describing the influence of sleep deprivation on several high profile accidents including the Exxon Valdez oil spill, the nuclear disasters at Three Mile Island and Chernobyl, and the Challenger space shuttle crash.  Additionally, the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration believes that drowsy driving is the cause of more than 100,000 road accidents per year, 1,500 of which involve fatalities.  Numerous research studies highlight the impact of sleep deprivation on job performance and overall health.  Negative health consequences associated with sleep loss include increased risk for high blood pressure, heart disease, cancer, obesity, and diabetes.  Lack of sleep deprives the body of melatonin which has been linked to lowering blood pressure and preventing heart attacks and strokes.  Melatonin also limits the production of hormones which in high levels are related to Cancer.  The book examines the specific biological factors that lead to the connection between sleep loss and obesity.  Even short term sleep deprivation leads to a significant increase in the amount of the hormone ghrelin (which stimulates hunger) and a decrease in the production of the hormone leptin (which indicates fullness).  Ultimately, these hormone changes in research subjects motivated them to eat more by stimulating their hunger drive, but left them less full afterwards.  A lack of sleep also has a major impact on one’s psychological well being and there is a strong correlation between mental illnesses and sleep disturbances.  Depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, ADHD and many other mental illnesses are strongly correlated with sleep loss.  The provided activity in chapter two is a short test that assesses the quality of your current sleep habits.  The chapters that follow offer research based tips for improving your score.

Because there are many factors that can make falling or staying asleep difficult there are no easy answers, but Wiseman polled numerous “super sleepers” and combined their responses with research based methods to outline various ways to improve sleep each night and achieve the benefits of quality rest.  The facial feedback hypothesis for example can help someone fall asleep.  Just as smiling can lead to happiness, yawning and acting as if you are tired can lead to sleepiness.  One of the key factors stressed by the author is the evidence for how exposure to light in the bedroom impact sleeps.  Of particular interest for teenagers whose circadian rhythms already make it difficult to fall asleep early enough to get enough rest for school is the impact of light waves emitted by electronic devices.  Computer screens, smart phones, flat screen televisions, LED lighting, and tablets all release light waves from the blue end of the visible spectrum.  Blue light which is typical of early morning signals the brain that it is not time for rest and can impact melatonin production.  Research shows that even one hour of exposure to bright light at night reduces melatonin to levels typical of daytime, which make it very difficult to induce sleep.

In a section titled Sleep-learning and Power Naps the relationship between sleep and learning is examined for limitations and possibilities.  While there is no reliable scientific evidence to indicate that it is possible to learn another language or some other complex skill while sleeping, adequate sleep does improve memory retention and as such impacts learning. Research has revealed a variety of tips for getting the greatest benefit from sleep after learning a new task.  For example, it has been found that for optimal retention, the best time to go to sleep is five hours after a training session.  In others words do not practice, rehearse, or train directly before heading to sleep.  Not the most practical tip for high school students!  Also, it is often best for learning to get more sleep than you actually require.  Elite athletes have been shown to have significant performance gains when they had ten hours each night for several weeks.  Stanford swimmers reduced their average turn times by a tenth of a second, tennis players increased serving accuracy, and basketball players improved their free throw percentages by almost ten percent.  During studies in which athletes consistently got ten hours of sleep per night, many achieved new personal bests and broke long- standing records.

The book also spends a considerable time discussing the long history of the investigation of dreams as a way to predict the future, or as a source of important symbols that have special meaning.  The history of dreams is examined from ancient Greek sleep sanctuaries to the theories of Sigmund Freud.  Night school highlights the vast body of research on dreams including how often, and about which topics most individuals dream.  The book provides detailed explanations of a variety of dream theories and the research related to each theory.  The text discusses Freudian dream therapy, cognitive problem solving theory, and the activation synthesis model.  Based on his research Wiseman believes that dreams “have the power to improve your life and change the world”. The phenomenon of hypnosis, which is not dreaming, is also discussed at length.  There is also a discussion on lucid dreams and specific methods that can be used to prevent nightmares.  The book ends with12 common myths related to sleep and a list of tips for improving sleep quality.  

Other Related Resources

Book Website - The website for the book Night School which includes several short videos, a test for sleep deprivation, and music scientifically designed to help you fall asleep.
https://nightschoolbook.wordpress.com/

Smart Phones and Sleep – These three videos explains how the blue light emitted from cell phones, tablets, computer screens, and flat screen televisions send signals to the brain (suprachiasmatic nucleus) to stay awake and prevent individuals from experiencing quality sleep.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnDfPpUC_jg
http://www.businessinsider.com/smartphone-impact-brain-body-sleep-2015-2

DreamOn – The app designed to help individuals influence their own dreams.  The app allows you to select a choice for your dream, monitors your movement during the night, and plays a themed soundscape at the optimal moment within your sleep cycle.  Be a part of the world’s largest dream experiment!  The app also includes a smart alarm clock, an opportunity to share your anonymous dream data with researchers who are looking for dream patterns, themed dream soundscapes, and lucid dreaming techniques.  The app has over 40 themed soundscapes to choose from that can influence dreams including everything from a peaceful garden to a ride on the Space Shuttle.
http://www.dreamonapp.com/

Shattered – The link that follows is to the first episode of a 2004 British reality television show that challenged contestants to stay awake for seven days in a competition for £100,000.  For safety reasons the show did allow the contestants to sleep for one hour per day during the competition. During the show the contestants were also put through a variety of challenges to test their performance ability. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xtwu0xOrls

Psychological Figures and Concepts
William Dement
Hermann Ebbinghaus
Sigmund Freud
William James
Chronotype (early v. late)
Circadian timing disorder
Circadian rhythm
EEG
Psychoanalytic dream analysis (manifest and latent content)
Hypersomnia
Hypnosis and hypnotic susceptibility
Hypothalamus
Insomnia disorder
Jet lag
Latent content
Lucid dreams
Manifest content
Melatonin
Microsleep
Parasomnias
Pineal gland
REM sleep behavior disorder
Sleep apnea
Sleep cycles
Sleep deprivation
Sleep paralysis
Sleep stages (REM and NREM)
Sleep (night) terrors
Sleep theories
Sleep-wake disorders
Sleep walking
Suprachiasmatic nucleus

Eat, Move, Sleep: How Small Choices lead to Big Changes
Author(s): Tom Rath
ISBN:  9781939714008

APA Style Citation
Rath, T.  (2013). Eat, Move, Sleep: How Small Choices lead to Big Changes.  Missionday

Book Description

Eat, Move, Sleep is a book for anyone who would like to live a healthier life.  Each chapter is organized into simple sections with a single recommendation for improving one’s diet, activity and rest to conclude each chapter. Regardless of one’s current level of activity and sleep or eating habits, Rath’s ideas can be easily implemented.  There are simple recommendations for each category such as eating more green vegetables like broccoli, sleeping without lights or electronic devices, getting a pedometer or a fit bit (  a wireless electronic device that tracks activity and sleep patterns by computing statistics in real-time such as steps taken, distance covered, calories burned, stairs climbed and active minutes), and trying to be even a little bit more active each day . There are also many apps that will measure steps per day, etc. some of which are free.  Rath describes his own reasons for living a healthy lifestyle; he is prone to small cancerous tumors, which clean living can reduce.  He explains that his desire to live healthier is also about being around for his wife and children for many years. Rath clearly states that he is not a doctor or an expert on nutrition but has gathered research over the past twenty years on how to live a healthier life; it is this research on which the book is based. Rath places an emphasis on the preventable aspects of diseases such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease, and lung disease, which kill 9 of 10 people.  Implementing even some of the recommendations in the book can make these less likely to happen to you.  A mistake individuals often make is to work on only one of these three modalities (Eat, Sleep or Move) in isolation, Rath poses that it is healthier and actually easier to work on all three at the same time.

Eat

2/3rds of all Americans are overweight or obese; we all need to focus on eating better if this statistic is ever going to change. The quality of what one eats is far more important than the quantity, which is unfortunately what many diets emphasize.  Rath recommends trying to find foods with less fat, sugar and carbohydrates that what you are currently eating. Avoid foods with a ratio higher than five to one carbohydrates to protein and look for foods that have a ratio of one gram of carbohydrates for every gram of protein. 

Try to leave fruits and vegetables in places where you can easily see and access them and place junk food in places that are less accessible.  On average, Americans eat 150 pounds of sugar per year; there are obviously some opportunities to reduce this intake.  Sugar has been called, “candy for cancer cells” and it has been estimated that sugar kills more people each year than cocaine, heroin or any other controlled substance. Sugar is addictive and activates rewards centers of the brain, as we consume more and more sugar, we increase our tolerance and need more sugar to activate those same pleasure areas in the brain.  Recommendations for sugar intake are not more than 6 teaspoons per day for women and 9 for men. 

A great shortcut for eating better is green means “go”, which reminds us that foods like broccoli, bok choy, and celery have a positive impact on health, also red or blue foods like strawberries, blueberries and peppers are good choices.  Rath discusses that each meal can be viewed as either a benefit or a loss.  While coffee is a “net gain”, loading it with cream and sugar makes it a “net loss”; the next time you drink a cup of coffee, try it without any or at least with less cream and sugar.  

Do not be fooled by organic or “whole grain” products which are frequently not any healthier than their “normal” counterparts.  Dried fruits contain little nutritional value and often times more sugar than a candy bar.  Using smaller serving plates will cause people to eat less and using plates which contrast the color of the food also cause people to eat less in a single sitting (30% less).

Planning ahead is also an important fact related to remaining healthy. Rath suggests carrying an apple or a bag of nuts for situations in which one is traveling, driving or in other cases in which health food options may be limited.  Begin by eating the healthiest food on your plate; this will generally lead to eating more of that food and less of the other “less healthy” foods.  Drinking a large glass of water before a meal helps to suppress appetite and cause one to eat less at mealtimes. 

Move

Most people spend more time sitting than sleeping in a given day. Inactivity kills more people than smoking, so any method to be more active will be a net gain.  After 2 hours of sitting, good cholesterol drops by 20 percent so even standing at one’s desk is better than sitting.  Try taking a meeting or a phone call while walking.  Rath wrote this book while slowly walking on a treadmill (1.5 miles per hour) and easily met his goal of 10,000 steps per day (the average American takes only about 5,117 steps per day) while working, leaving him more time to spend with his family at the end of the day. 

Take the stairs instead of the elevator and find small opportunities to build in activity that does not necessarily take time out of what you are doing in your day.  Being active can cause up to a 40 percent reduction in the genetic predisposition for obesity, we do not have to be victims of our genes, Rath is a prime example of this.

The book suggests using a fit bit or one of many free phone apps as an easy way to track activity in a given day and set goals to gradually increase activity. Remaining active throughout the day seems to be more significant than a single workout within a sedentary lifestyle in terms of overall health benefits.  Exercising early in the day has been shown to boost mood throughout the day and doing so before breakfast may also help burn additional fat. 

Moving more seems to increase creativity and building breaks into one’s study time or daily workday seem to help increase brain growth and efficiency.  In a study of over 12,000 adults over the age of 25, each hour of television viewing decreased the viewer’s lifespan by 22 minutes.  Walking, stretching, or exercising while watching television can completely negate these negative effects.  In addition to improving health, physical activity wards off depression and prevents some cognitive disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease. 

Sleep

According to a study from Harvard Medical School, lack of sleep costs the American economy $63 billion per year.  Those driving with a night of sleep loss are the equivalent to a blood alcohol level of 0.19 (more than twice the legal limit) in terms of their ability to react. K. Anders Ericsson, who found that those who performed at the highest level needed 10,000 hours of practice (also see review for The Talent Code), also found that those who performed at the highest level slept for an average of 8 hours and 36 minutes a night (most Americans get just under 7 hours). 

Getting less than 6 hours of sleep a night is a key factor related to burnout on the job.  Losing 90 minutes of sleep reduces daytime alertness by 1/3rd; making it imperative that one has a good night’s sleep.  According to a fourteen day study, those who get better sleep have stronger immune systems and are less likely to get colds or other ailments.  Individuals with lower sleep efficiency were 5.5 times more likely to develop a cold.  Getting a better night sleep will also help cement the items which were learned that day, this is especially effective when the good sleep occurs on a regular schedule. 

In order to get more effective sleep, Rath recommends keeping all types of artificial light out of the bedroom including televisions, cell phones, lamps, iPads, etc., and avoiding exposure to bright light just before bedtime because this decreases the beneficial aspects of melatonin. 

Vigorous workouts shortly before bed are also shown to significantly improve sleep quality.  Maintaining a consistent sleep schedule even on holidays and weekends helps improve the quality of sleep and this is especially important for children and teens.  If you sleep more, you generally remember more and eat less, thus getting more sleep helps in many areas of one’s life. 

Summary
All of these recommendations can help individuals to live a healthier life and all of them can be implemented regardless of one’s current activity level or level of health or age.  Rath’s recommendations are simple approaches to extending and improving life.  This is a book for everyone regardless of his or her interest in Health Psychology, and we can all benefit from the recommendations he makes by adopting even a handful of his useful life changing ideas.  These recommendations need not radically change your daily life, but small changes over an extended period can lead to major life improvements.


Other Related Resources

Eat, Move, Sleep Book Website:  Through this website, you can create a personalized plan (see open your class with this tomorrow activity), link to hundreds of articles which the book references, and download the 30 day challenge.

http://www.eatmovesleep.org
Tom Rath’s website

http://www.tomrath.org/eat-move-sleep/

Facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/eatmovesleep

Office Hours with Daniel Pink:  Podcast with Tom Rath
The following link is Pink’s interview with the author of Eat, Move, Sleep – Tom Rath.
http://www.danpink.com/office-hours/tom-rath/

Forbes interview with Tom Rath on how small changes make all the difference in your life: Focuses on improving one’s work.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/danschawbel/2013/10/08/tom-rath-how-small-changes-make-all-the-difference-in-your-life/

 
Psychological Figures and Concepts
K. Anders Ericsson (10,000 hours)
BMI
Circadian rhythms
Health Psychology
Insulin
Melatonin
Sleep apnea

Spook:  Science Tackles the Afterlife
Author(s):  Mary Roach
ISBN:  978-0393329124

APA Style Citation:
Roach, M. (2005). Spook: science tackles the afterlife.  New York:  W.W. Norton Company

Book Description
Mary Roach tackles to subject of the afterlife with her usual humor and bluntness.  Her investigation takes her to India to learn more about potential reincarnation and to England for a class on becoming a psychic.  Roach remains skeptical, finding many interesting anecdotes, but little scientific proof of an afterlife.  After reading the work of University of Virginia’s Ian Stevenson on reincarnation, Roach heads to India to visit with Dr. Rawat a colleague of Dr. Stevenson’s in Bangalore.  Rawat is investigating a case of  a boy named Aishwary who claims to be reincarnated from a man in a neighboring village.  While there are some unusual circumstances in the case, Roach ultimately decides that these are merely coincidences as all of the stories regarding the reincarnation do not coincide.  She also indicates that reincarnation in India is part of the religious beliefs of Hindus, which might explain the numerous cases Dr. Rawat investigates.  Roach spends some time discussing how early researchers went about identifying where the soul resided and what happened to the soul when the body passes on.  She discusses Phrenology and Galls’ collection of skulls to demonstrate different talents.  Roach describes Duncan MacDougall who attempted to weigh the souls of the human soul of people dying of consumption.  Others have attempted to weigh animal’s souls upon their death but none to Roach’s satisfaction have succeeded at proving that it is the soul, which is being measured.  Next, Roach investigates séances to determine if the souls of lost loved ones can return to send messages to family members.  She wryly points out that it is unlikely that those who have passed on to the other side would communicate by moving tables and producing ectoplasm that upon further investigation often is astoundingly similar to the innards of animals hidden somewhere on or in the body of the supposed “psychic”.  Roach visits the University of Arizona to speak with Gary Schwartz and the University’s Human Energy’s Systems Laboratory, which deals with mediums who claim to be able to communicate with the dead.  Roach acknowledges that some of the claims made by medium Allison Dubois are uncannily specific, she points to others that are quite general, because of these generalities, Roach remains unconvinced of the medium’s ability.  Roach’s next stop if Arthur Findlay’s College in England to take a three day course on the “Fundamental’s of Mediumship”, she attempts to visualize and “read” her classmates and has some degree of success but attributes it to reading the person rather than to psychic powers.  Some ghost hunters attempt to make recordings of spiritual encounters but these often prove to be only interference from nearby radio stations or accidental recordings from the ghost hunters themselves or random sounds which the ghost hunters give meaning to.  Roach is off to Iowa to find out more about the case of a changed will.  A man in Iowa claimed that his dead father appeared to him as he slept to tell him that he had changed his will from leaving everything to the eldest son’s widow to splitting everything evenly between his children.  The ghost indicated that the new will was hidden in his old overcoat lining, and in fact it was found in that location.  The case was brought to court but before a judge could make a decision, the widow agreed to abide by the new will.  Roach visits with the decedents of the family who stand by the ghost story, when Roach brings the new will to a handwriting expert, he determines that the new will is a forgery and although the family continues to believe, Roach is unmoved.  Finally, she visits a hospital at the University of Virginia hospital, which is attempting to find out more about people’s out of body and near death experiences.  In patients having heart surgery, they are effectively dead for a few moments while a procedure is completed to embed a defibrillators in their body.  Professor Bruce Greyson wants to discover if those who claim to have out of body experiences can see a screen mounted far above the surgical table to determine if these individuals can describe what is on the screen.  He has not yet had any luck but holds out that through continued experimentation he may discover more about these out of body experiences that some people report.  For now, Mary Roach remains unconvinced, but holds out for the possibility in the afterlife but wants scientific proof first.

Other Related Resources
Website for the book Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife
http://www.maryroach.net/spook.html

Psychological Figures and Concepts
Aristotle
Descartes
Leonardo DaVinci
Franz Joseph Gall
Franz Anton MesmerHallucinations
Melatonin production
Perceptual sets
Phrenology
Pineal gland
Temporal lobes