Stealing Fire: How Silicon Valley, the Navy SEALs, and Maverick Scientists Are Revolutionizing the Way We Live and Work
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Stealing Fire: How Silicon Valley, the Navy SEALs, and Maverick Scientists Are Revolutionizing the Way We Live and Work
Rather than pulling a caffeinated all-nighter to force a eureka insight, or devoting decades to becoming a monk, we now know that even a few days’ training in mindfulness can up the odds of a breakthrough considerably.
Steven Kotler • Stealing Fire: How Silicon Valley, the Navy SEALs, and Maverick Scientists Are Revolutionizing the Way We Live and Work
In 2007, working with Iraq War veterans at Camp Pendleton, occupational therapist Carly Rogers of the University of California, Los Angeles blended surfing (a reliable flow trigger) and talk therapy into a treatment for PTSD. It was essentially the same protocol Mithoefer used, only with the flow generated by action sports substituting for MDMA.
... See moreSteven Kotler • Stealing Fire: How Silicon Valley, the Navy SEALs, and Maverick Scientists Are Revolutionizing the Way We Live and Work
the myth of Prometheus,9 the original upstart rebel, who stole fire from the gods and shared it with humankind.
Steven Kotler • Stealing Fire: How Silicon Valley, the Navy SEALs, and Maverick Scientists Are Revolutionizing the Way We Live and Work
DARPA ran an experiment demonstrating just how simple this really was. In their study, a trained storyteller told an audience43 wired to EEG sensors and heart rate monitors a heart-wrenching tale of childhood bullying. Then she asked for donations to an organization working to end this behavior. Simply by reviewing the biometrics, DARPA scientists
... See moreSteven Kotler • Stealing Fire: How Silicon Valley, the Navy SEALs, and Maverick Scientists Are Revolutionizing the Way We Live and Work
electrical stimulation of the right temporal lobe can produce visions of God, sensed presences, and other notable altered states. Persinger built a helmet that directs electromagnetic pulses toward this brain region. More than two thousand people have tried out the device, and the majority have had some form of nonordinary experience. Already,
... See moreSteven Kotler • Stealing Fire: How Silicon Valley, the Navy SEALs, and Maverick Scientists Are Revolutionizing the Way We Live and Work
it doesn’t take much to bend this desire for personal change in more commercial directions. Consider a recent Jeep campaign,41 where they built mud bogs at county fairs. With thumping music and flashing lights amplifying the joyride, Jeep let fairgoers hop into one of their stationary rigs, floor the motors, spin the tires, and send dirt flying.
... See moreSteven Kotler • Stealing Fire: How Silicon Valley, the Navy SEALs, and Maverick Scientists Are Revolutionizing the Way We Live and Work
The Rise of Superman, a book about the neuroscience of peak performance and action sports.
Steven Kotler • Stealing Fire: How Silicon Valley, the Navy SEALs, and Maverick Scientists Are Revolutionizing the Way We Live and Work
“No one dances sober, unless he is insane.” —Cicero
Steven Kotler • Stealing Fire: How Silicon Valley, the Navy SEALs, and Maverick Scientists Are Revolutionizing the Way We Live and Work
“Tell me what you value and I might believe you,” management guru Peter Drucker once said, “but show me your calendar and your bank statement, and I’ll show you what you really value.”