The Value of Neuroscience

A reader asks:

What's the hardest question you've gotten about the new book? Is there one you were totally unprepared to answer?

This is a slightly embarrassing confession, but one of the most difficult questions I've been asked is also one of the most obvious. It goes something like this:

"What practical knowledge have we gained by looking at decision-making in the brain that we didn't already have, either through introspection or behavioral studies?"

When I was first asked this question, I