The Molecule of More

How a Single Chemical in Your Brain Drives Love, Sex, and Creativity - And Will Determine the Fate of the Human Race

By: Daniel Z. Lieberman MD, Michael E. Long

Narrated by: Tom Parks

Length: 8 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's summary

Why are we obsessed with the things we want and bored when we get them?

Why is addiction “perfectly logical” to an addict?

Why does love change so quickly from passion to disinterest?

Why are some people diehard liberals and others hardcore conservatives?

Why are we always hopeful for solutions even in the darkest times - and so good at figuring them out?

The answer is found in a single chemical in your brain: dopamine. Dopamine ensured the survival of early man. Thousands of years later, it is the source of our most basic behaviors and cultural ideas - and progress itself.

Dopamine is the chemical of desire that always asks for more - more stuff, more stimulation, and more surprises. In pursuit of these things, it is undeterred by emotion, fear, or morality. Dopamine is the source of our every urge, that little bit of biology that makes an ambitious business professional sacrifice everything in pursuit of success, or that drives a satisfied spouse to risk it all for the thrill of someone new. Simply put, it is why we seek and succeed; it is why we discover and prosper. Yet, at the same time, it’s why we gamble and squander.

From dopamine’s point of view, it’s not the having that matters. It’s getting something - anything - that’s new. From this understanding - the difference between possessing something versus anticipating it - we can understand in a revolutionary new way why we behave as we do in love, business, addiction, politics, religion - and we can even predict those behaviors in ourselves and others.

In The Molecule of More: How a Single Chemical in Your Brain Drives Love, Sex, and Creativity—And will Determine the Fate of the Human Race, George Washington University professor and psychiatrist Daniel Z. Lieberman, MD, and Georgetown University lecturer Michael E. Long present a potentially life-changing proposal: Much of human life has an unconsidered component that explains an array of behaviors previously thought to be unrelated, including why winners cheat, why geniuses often suffer with mental illness, why nearly all diets fail, and why the brains of liberals and conservatives really are different.

©2018 Daniel Z. Lieberman, MD, and Michael E. Long. (P)2018 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved. Publishing by arrangement with BenBella Books.

Critic reviews

"One might consider it Freakonomics for the mind."— Greg Roth, "The Idea Enthusiast"

"Daniel Lieberman and Michael Long have pulled off an amazing feat. They have made a biography of a neurotransmitter a riveting read. Once you understand the power and peril of dopamine, you’ll better understand the human condition itself.” —Daniel H. Pink, author of Drive and When

"Meet a molecule whose fingerprint rests upon every aspect of human nature—from desire and drugs to politics and progress. Lieberman and Long tell the epic saga of dopamine as a page-turner that you simply can't put down."—David Eagleman, PhD, neuroscientist at Stanford and New York Times bestselling author

A great way to know why you always want more!

I like this book. It has given me insight into why I want more of something, and then once I have it, I want something else. A must read to a more productive, and happier life.

No What I Expected

Not being as expected is not bad. I learned a lot more than I had thought I would. I learned in ways that I wasn't expecting. I didnt realize how basic my understanding of dopamine was. I didn't realize all that dopamine affects. I also did not put that in the context of the world we live in nor why the world we live in exists. I see the dangers and joy. It is scary and beautiful at the same time. I see the necessity yet the impracticality of too much. I like how this gets into the science/ research to explain behaviors and decisions. This could be helpful when trying to understand your or another person's choices by understanding what is influencing them. If there is something you would like to change, this can help to take the emotions out and help to make different choices a little more clear since you know why you are geared towards certain choices. You may be more empathetic towards those since you understand the why/how.

A very accessable introduction to one neurochemica

Dopamine is a compound that has many functions in the brain, including the stimulation of "drive" or "desire" centres. It can make us want. Lieberman and Long provide an accessible and interesting introduction to this compound and explain how this one compound can help shape what we often think of as voluntary behaviours and emotions.

You don't need a degree in medicine or biochemistry to enjoy this book. If you do have one, yes, they simplify the hormonal environment that drives emotions, but it's still a great first-order explanation that is easy to grasp. If you enjoyed this book, you may want to follow through by learning more about the other chemicals that control our behaviours, including oxytocin and ACh.

Very Interesting

I really did not know what to expect. However, the summary sounded like this book was worth listening to, if for no other reason, we are all affected by this special molecule. It could have been a dry presentation, heavy on facts. But, the book is well written, easy to understand,, well narrated and an interesting, educational listen. I enjoyed the book.

VeryInformative!

This book was packed full of information from a medical, social, and psychological viewpoint. Although, I knew alot of this I relearned and reviewed positively on topics touched on in this book, excellent read and listen, should be used in college courses, highly recommended!

Pleasantly surprised.

Wonderful exploration of the various ways in which dopamine influences our lives. At times I thought the authors tried to fit too many things under the umbrella of dopamine driven behavior- like forays into politics and AI but in the end I did see the connection. I’m satisfied and will probably start listening to it again soon.

Dopamine Unraveled

I found this book so interesting! I will listen in again. It definitely has a scientific feel to it. Confirmed much of what I’ve experienced as a high dopamine, high H & N person.

one of the best books on this subject

This book was recommended by Sam Harris along with dopamine nation and I'm really grateful for that recommendation.

it is brilliant and flows smoothly with lots of great examples on how to improve ones understanding and therefore one's life by understanding dopamine and the Here and Now Network.

Life changing

The first half of this book gave me clues to retire my brain and change behavior patterns. In chapter 5 (or 7 in Audible) there are numerous studies to show why liberals and conservatives are different. The conclusion is wonderful as it states liberals true desire is for people to be better and live better lives and conservatives true desire is for people to be happy. The second half of the book looks at more cultural and group dynamics where dopamine plays a role.

The narrator, Mr. Tom Parks was easy to understand and made the book more interesting.

Very insightful and thought provoking

Listening was easy. Would be nice to recall stuff and terminology so that you can remember and stay with the flow