David Eagleman is a neuroscientist and bestselling author. He is a Guggenheim Fellow, a council member on the World Economic Forum, and a professor at Baylor University. In earlier times in our evolution, there was no real way to interact with others at a distance any farther than that allowed by hands, feet, or possibly a stick. That distance of interaction was salient and consequential, and this is what our emotional reaction reflects. In modern times, the situation differs: generals and even soldiers commonly find themselves far removed from the people they kill. In Shakespeare's Henry VI, Part 2, the rebel Jack Cade challenges Lord Say, mocking the fact that he has never known the firsthand danger of the battlefield: 'When struck'st thou one blow in the field?' Lord Say responds, 'Great men have reaching hands: oft have I struck those that I never saw, and struck them dead.' In modern times, we can launch forty Tomahawk surface-to-surface missiles from the deck of navy ships in the Persian Gulf and Red Sea with the touch of a button. The result of pushing that button may be watched by the missile operators live on CNN, minutes later, when Baghdad's buildings disappear in plumes. The proximity is lost, and so is the emotional influence. This impersonal nature of waging war makes it disconcertingly easy. In the 1960s, one political thinker suggested that the button to launch a nuclear war should be implanted in the chest of the President's closest friend. That way, should the President want to make the decision to annihilate millions of people on the other side of the globe, he would first have to physically harm his friend, ripping open his chest to get to the button. That would at least engage his emotional system in the decision making, so as to guard against letting the choice be impersonal.
Because both of the neural systems battle to control the single output channel of behavior, emotions can tip the balance of decision making. This ancient battle has turned into a directive of sorts for many people: if it feels bad, it is probably wrong. There are many counter examples to this (for example, one may find oneself put off by another's sexual preference but still deem nothing morally wrong with that choice), but emotion nonetheless serves as a generally useful steering mechanism for decision making.

1. Based on the text and any background information provided, what can you conclude about the author?

A. The author believes that we have benefitted from the modern technology that allows us to interact with people at a distance.

B. The author is speaking about emotional decision making more from his own personal experience than his professional expertise.

C. The author’s professional experience and expertise have led him to form the ideas and opinions presented in this book.

2. Who do you think is the primary audience for this text?

A. Based on the tone of the text and the vocabulary, the target audience is likely to be middle school students.

B. Based on the fact that the source is a book and the topic is presented scientifically, with precise vocabulary, the target audience is likely to be an educated person interested in how the brain works.

C. Based on the tone of the text and the vocabulary, the target audience is likely to be governmental leaders developing decision-making protocols.

3. What is the author trying to achieve with this text?

A. The author’s purpose is to explain that if something makes you feel badly, you need to make a different decision.
B. The author’s purpose is to explain one way that personal connection and emotion affect how we make decisions.

C. The author’s purpose is to show that important decisions should not be made by people who are alone or detached from others.

4. What is the best text evidence to support the inference that a result of modern technology is that we can do things that have a direct, specific effect on people thousands of miles away from us?

A. “We can launch 40 surface-to-surface Tomahawk missiles from the deck of navy ships . . . with the touch of a button.”

B. “This impersonal nature of waging war makes it disconcertingly easy.”

C. “That would at least engage his emotional system in the decision making.”

5. How would you describe the tone of this text?

A. The tone of the text is excited and alarming.
B. The tone of this text is illuminating and cautionary.
C. The tone of the text is objective and dry.

6. Which of the following statements expresses the author’s opinion?

A. “Generals and even soldiers commonly find themselves far removed from the people they kill.”

B. “Emotion nonetheless serves as a generally useful steering mechanism for decision making.”

C. “Both of the neural systems battle to control the single output channel of behavior.”