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Are We Natural Optimists?

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Part 3 of the TED Radio Hour episode The Case For Optimism

About Tali Sharot's TED Talk

Cognitive neuroscientist Tali Sharot makes the case for why humans are wired to have what she calls an "optimism bias."

About Tali Sharot

Tali Sharot is a cognitive neuroscientist who received her doctorate degree in psychology and neuroscience from New York University and a bachelor's degree in economics and psychology from Tel Aviv University.

Sharot is the director of the Affective Brain Lab at University College London and a faculty member of the Department of Cognitive, Perceptual and Brain Sciences at University College London. Much of her research has focused on the the neuroscience of optimism, emotional memories and cognitive dissonance.

In 2012, she wrote the book, The Optimism Bias. Her research has been published in several scientific journals including Nature, Science, Nature Neuroscience and Psychological Science.

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