The Performance Cortex: How Neuroscience Is Redefining Athletic Genius

A must-read for the cerebral sports fan . . . like Moneyball except nerdier. Much nerdier. Sports Illustrated Why couldnt Michael Jordan, master athlete that he was, crush a baseball? Why cant modern robotics come close to replicating the dexterity of a five-year-old? Why do great quarterbacks always seem to know where their receivers are? On a quest to discover what actually drives human movement and its spectacular potential, journalist, sports writer, and fan Zach Schonbrun interviewed experts on motor control around the world. The trail begins with the groundbreaking work of two neuroscientists in Major League Baseball who are upending the traditional ways scouts evaluate the speed with which great players read a pitch. Across all sports, new theories and revolutionary technology are revealing how the brains motor control system works in extraordinarily talented athletes like Stephen Curry, Tom Brady, Serena Williams, and Lionel Messi; as well as musical virtuosos, dancers, rock climbers, race-car drivers, and more. Whether it is timing a 95 mph fastball or reaching for a coffee mug, movement requires a complex suite of computations that many take for granteduntil they read The Performance Cortex. Zach Schonbrun ushers in a new way of thinking about the athletic gifts we marvel over and seek to develop in our own lives. Its not about the million-dollar arm anymore. Its about the million-dollar brain.