Altered Traits

Science journalist Daniel Goleman and neuroscientist Richard J. Davidson, collaborators since their Harvard graduate school years in the 1970s, examine what meditation does to the mind, brain and body. For the book they reviewed more than 6,000 studies and kept the 60 they judged most rigorous. Their focus is on altered traits, changes that last after practice ends, rather than passing states during a session. Topics include stress reactivity, compassion, attention, the sense of self, inflammation and depression, along with Davidson's lab studies of advanced yogis such as Mingyur Rinpoche. The authors compare the benefits for beginners, long-term practitioners and Olympic-level meditators. It appeared in 2017, and in Britain under the title The Science of Meditation.

Peter Attia listed it in the show notes for his episode on why he meditates, and Andrew Huberman called it an excellent book.