Westward

Inspiration for Optimists

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Summer ‘19 Mind-Mover

Now, we're reading this.

Synopsis Dr. Rakesh Sarin—Professor of Decisions, Operations & Technology Management at UCLA Anderson—presents Engineering Happiness, a fascinating work that fuses 10 years of research focused on identifying the laws that govern happiness with the latest thinking in management science, psychology and economics. Co-authored with one of his former UCLA students, Engineering Happiness has something to offer those at any stage of life—regardless of background, profession or aspiration—who want to better understand, control and attain a more joyful life.

About the Author Rakesh Sarin has been a member of the UCLA Anderson faculty since 1979 and was awarded the Paine Chair in Management in 1990. His theoretical interests include preference theory, decisions under uncertainty and equity, and fairness in decision-making. In addition to his work on happiness, Dr. Sarin has developed models that have found applications in project evaluation, new product development decisions, and analyzing risks to human health and the environment. He also served as the editor-in-chief of Decision Analysis, a peer-reviewed journal, and as a consultant to several private and public organizations.

Spring ‘19 Mind-Mover

Just finished a really good one...

Synopsis Dr. Alan Castel of UCLA’s Memory & Lifespan Cognition Lab presents Better with Age—an engaging new work that brings together cutting-edge research and personal stories of inspiration to help us understand the effects of aging on memory, emotion and interpersonal behavior.

Better with Age addresses the many myths and paradoxes about the aging process. Although most people think of their later years in terms of decline, they can be one of the best times in life. This book presents the latest scientific research about the psychology of aging, coupled with insights from those who have succeeded in doing it well, such as Maya Angelou, Bob Newhart, John Glenn, and John Wooden.

About the Author Alan D. Castel, PhD is a Professor in the Department of Psychology and head of the Memory & Lifespan Cognition Lab. His research focuses on how cognition changes with age and how people selectively remember important events. His work has been supported by the National Institute on Aging and has been featured in the New York Times and Time Magazine. He received his PhD from the University of Toronto in 2004, completed a post-doctoral fellowship at Washington University in St. Louis, and has been a faculty member in the Department of Psychology at UCLA since 2006.

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