Alex Hutchinson: The Explorer's Gene, Gebunden

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New York Times-bestselling author of Endure Alex Hutchinson returns with a fresh, provocative investigation into the decision-making behind how exploration, uncertainty, and risk shape our behavior and help us find meaning.

Off the beaten path, following unmarked trails, we are wired to explore. More than just a need to get outside, the search for the unknown is a primal urge that has shaped the history of our species and continues to mold our behavior in ways we are only beginning to understand. In fact, the latest neuroscience and cognitive science suggests that exploration in any form---whether it's trying a new restaurant, changing careers, or deciding to run a marathon---is an essential ingredient of human life. Exploration, it turns out, isn't merely a hobby---it's our story.

In this much-anticipated follow-up to his New York Times bestseller Endure , Alex Hutchinson refutes the myth that, in our fully mapped digital world, the age of exploration is dead. Instead, the itch to discover new things-a core part of our human potential-persists in all of us, expressed not just on the slopes of Everest but in the ways we work, play, and live. From paddling the lost rivers of the northern Canadian wilderness to the ocean-spanning voyages of the Polynesians to the search for next-generation quantum computers, The Explorer's Gene combines riveting stories of exploration with cutting-edge insights from behavioral psychology and neuroscience, making a powerful case that our lives are better---more productive, more meaningful, and more fun---when we break our habits and chart a new path.

This compelling work of popular science unpacks the explore-exploit dilemma and reveals why we thrive on the unknown:

• Adventure Nonfiction: Travel from the lost rivers of the Canadian wilderness to the ocean-spanning voyages of the Polynesians in riveting, true-life stories of exploration.
• Neuroscience Insights: Learn how the latest findings in brain science reveal an innate "uncertainty bonus" that rewards us for trying new things.
• Behavioral Psychology: Uncover the explore-exploit dilemma that shapes our choices in everything from changing careers to choosing a restaurant.
• Human Migration: Discover the surprising genetic trait, the so-called "explorer's gene," that may have propelled our ancestors across the globe.