Useful Delusions: The Power and Paradox of the Self-Deceiving Brain, by Shankar Vedantam and Bill Mesler A few years ago, former NPR journalist and Hidden Brain podcast host Shankar Vedantam became ...

A shipping clerk begins to think he’s been given a secret task of geopolitical significance. A government employee believes that descriptions of a certain actor in the newspaper are actually about her ...

Delusions of grandeur, also known as grandiose delusions (GDs), are a type of delusion, or false belief. People who experience delusions of grandeur may believe they are famous, God-like, wealthy, ...

Delusions—fixed false beliefs—can be tricky to study. And it's not yet clear how the brain gives rise to these departures from reality. Further, there are many types of delusions. Those with ...

A new study provides a novel theory for how delusions arise and why they persist. NYU Langone Medical Center researcher Orrin Devinsky, MD, performed an in-depth analysis of patients with certain ...

You know the cameras are everywhere, watching your every move. They are embedded in street lights and often confused with doorbell cameras. In the walls, lights, cars and every public space. You just ...

Listen to the radio, watch the news or log on to social media, and it won't be long until you encounter some crazy new delusion (you can probably think of one or two off the top of your head). Yet ...

A delusion is a belief based on an inaccurate interpretation of reality, despite clear evidence to the contrary. A delusional disorder causes a person to have delusional thoughts for a prolonged ...

In a new book, former NPR reporter Shankar Vedantam suggests attaining "a deeper psychological understanding of why people believe what they... 'Useful Delusions' Examines How Beliefs Can Be Powerful ...