A successful Wall Street trader turned neuroscientist reveals how risk
taking and stress transform our body chemistry
Before he became a world-class scientist, John Coates ran a derivatives
trading desk in New York City. He used the expression "the hour between
dog and wolf" to refer to the moment of Jekyll-and-Hyde transformation
traders passed through when under pressure. They became cocky and
irrationally risk-seeking when on a winning streak, tentative and
risk-averse when cowering from losses. In a series of groundbreaking
experiments, Coates identified a feedback loop between testosterone and
success--one that can cloud men's judgment in high-pressure
decision-making. Coates demonstrates how our bodies produce the fabled
gut feelings we so often rely on, how stress in the workplace can impair
our judgment and even damage our health, and how sports science can help
us toughen our bodies against the ravages of stress. Revealing the
biology behind bubbles and crashes, The Hour Between Dog and Wolf
sheds new and surprising light on issues that affect us all.