Dr. Barb Oakley Speaks At CFI/West, Sunday, April 17
Dr. Barbara Oakley is speaking on Pathological Altruism and her great new book, "Cold-Blooded Kindness" at Center For Inquiry Los Angeles on Sunday, April 17, 11 am (4:30 pm at CFI/Costa Mesa), and I am introducing in LA.

She's an amazing speaker and this is a fascinating topic -- on how people can play on your best qualities (like compassion) to get you to do things you'd otherwise never do.

From the posting at CFI:

Pathological Altruism - When Does Caring Go Too Far?

Are some people predisposed to kindness - to the point of being destructive to themselves and others? How much of our help is fulfilling our own needs, including those of our hidden passions? Can neuroscience help us understand how we can keep from being hurt while retaining and building our best traits?

Dr. Barbara Oakley, author of the best-selling Evil Genes and who previously spoke at CFI-L.A., takes the audience on a spellbinding voyage of personal discovery through the lens of a murder case in her new book, Cold-Blooded Kindness. Harvard's E.O. Wilson has called her research "wonderful!", while National Book Award winner Joyce Carol Oates has called her writing "riveting and disturbing." Oakley will bring extraordinary insight to our deepest questions. Is kindness always the right answer? Is kindness always what it seems?

A professor of engineering at Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan, Oakley also is the editor of the forthcoming academic book, Pathological Altruism. She is a Fellow of the World Academy of Art and Science as well as the American Institute of Biological and Medical Engineers, and a recent Vice President of the IEEE-Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society - the world's largest bioengineering organization. Oakley holds a doctorate in the integrative discipline of systems engineering, and her research highlights how neuroscience is informing our understanding of complex societal issues. Her colorful background includes stints in the U.S. Army, working experience in China, Russia, Germany, Antarctica, and New Zealand, and extensive travels throughout Europe, Asia, and the Balkans.

Copies of Cold-Blooded Kindness: Neuroquirks of a Codependent Killer, or Just Give Me a Shot at Loving You, Dear, and Other Reflections on Helping That Hurts will be available for sale in the book store and for signing by the author.