''Brain Games'' is an American

popular science Popular science (also called pop-science or popsci) is an interpretation of science intended for a general audience. While science journalism focuses on recent scientific developments, popular science is more broad ranging. It may be written ...

television series that explores

cognitive science Cognitive science is the interdisciplinary, scientific study of the mind and its processes. It examines the nature, the tasks, and the functions of cognition (in a broad sense). Mental faculties of concern to cognitive scientists include percep ...

by focusing on

illusion An illusion is a distortion of the senses, which can reveal how the mind normally organizes and interprets sensory stimulation. Although illusions distort the human perception of reality, they are generally shared by most people. Illusions may ...

psychological experiment Experimental psychology is the work done by those who apply experimental methods to psychological study and the underlying processes. Experimental psychologists employ human participants and animal subjects to study a great many topics, inclu ...

s, and

counterintuitive A paradox is a logically self-contradictory statement or a statement that runs contrary to one's expectation. It is a statement that, despite apparently valid reasoning from true or apparently true premises, leads to a seemingly self-contradictor ...

thinking. The series debuted on

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly ''The National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as ''Nat Geo'') is an American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. The magazine was founded in 1888 as a scholarly journal, nine ...

in 2011 as a special. Its return as an original series in 2013 set a record for the highest premiere rating for any National Geographic original series with 1.5 million viewers.

Neil Patrick Harris Neil Patrick Harris (born June 15, 1973) is an American actor, singer, writer, producer, and television host. Primarily known for his comedic television roles and dramatic and musical stage roles, he has received List of awards and nominations ...

was the unseen narrator in the first season, replaced by

Jason Silva Jason Luis Silva Mishkin (born February 6, 1982) is a Venezuelan-American television personality, short filmmaker, futurist, and public speaker. He is known for hosting the National Geographic documentaries '' Brain Games'' and ''Origins''. He ...

for the remainder of the series as its host and presenter; in addition,

sleight-of-hand Sleight of hand (also known as prestidigitation or ''legerdemain'' () comprises fine motor skills used by performing artists in different art forms to entertain or manipulate. It is closely associated with close-up magic, card magic, card flou ...

artist

Apollo Robbins Apollo Robbins (born May 23, 1974) is an American sleight-of-hand artist, security consultant, self-described gentleman thief and deception specialist. ''Forbes'' has called him "an artful manipulator of awareness". Early life Robbins was born ...

has been a frequent consultant and illusionist guest on the show. As time passed, Magician Eric Leclerc took over this role in seasons 4 and 5. The show is interactive, encouraging television viewers, often along with a handful of live volunteers, to engage in visual, auditory, and other cognitive experiments, or "brain games", that emphasize the main points presented in each episode. Experts like Sri Sarma also explain why humans react in a certain way because of the brain. The series is deemed acceptable for use toward E/I credits, and

Litton Entertainment The Hearst Media Production Group, formerly Litton Syndications and Litton Entertainment, is an American media production and syndication based in New York City, New York and a subsidiary of the Hearst Television division of Hearst Communicatio ...

added repurposed reruns of the show to its syndicated '' Go Time'' block in fall 2016, and

The CW The CW Network, LLC (commonly referred to as The CW or simply CW) is an American commercial broadcast television network which is controlled by Nexstar Media Group through a 75% ownership interest. The network's name is derived from the firs ...

's ''

One Magnificent Morning One Magnificent Morning (OMM) is an American programming block that is programmed by Hearst Media Production Group (formerly Litton Entertainment) and distributed by CBS Media Ventures, and debuted on October 4, 2014, as a replacement for the an ...

'' block in fall 2017. In December 2019, it was announced that a new format of this series, hosted by

Keegan-Michael Key Keegan-Michael Key (born March 22, 1971) is an American comedian, actor, producer, and writer. He and Jordan Peele co-created and co-starred in the sketch series '' Key & Peele'' (2012–2015) for which he received one Primetime Emmy Award from ...

, would premiere on January 20, 2020; neuroscientist

Daniel Levitin Daniel Joseph Levitin, FRSC (born December 27, 1957) is an American-Canadian polymath, cognitive psychologist, neuroscientist, writer, musician, and record producer. He is the author of four ''New York Times'' best-selling books, including '' T ...

was brought in as a script consultant for the season to ensure accuracy. Its sneak peek was played on December 29, 2019. On January 17, 2020, a ninth season was announced, but production was delayed due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. The ninth season was branded as "Brain Games: On the Road", and was hosted by

Chuck Nice Chuck Nice (born July 10, 1975) is an American stand-up comedian, television, and radio personality from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he started his career hosting a show atop a new-wave dance club The Bank. He got his name from DJ Chuck Nic ...

and was released on both National Geographic and

Disney+ The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

Cast

Main

– Narrator (season 1) *

– host (season 2–7) *

– host (season 8) *

– host (season 9) *

–

artist, "deception specialist" (season 1) *Eric Leclerc –

illusionist Magic, which encompasses the subgenres of close-up magic, parlor magic, and stage magic, among others, is a performing art in which audiences are entertained by tricks, effects, or illusions of seemingly impossible feats, using natural me ...

*Max Darwin – illusionist *

Ben Bailey Benjamin Ray Bailey (born October 30, 1970) is an American comedian. He is best known for hosting the Emmy Award-winning game show '' Cash Cab'' in New York City. Early life Bailey was born in Bowling Green, Kentucky, and raised in Chatham ...

– comedian *Jay Painter – comedian (season 2 episode 5, "Power of Persuasion") *Andrei Jikh – cardist (season 4 episode 9, "Patterns") *Shara Ashley Zeiger – improviser *Bill Hobbs – author *Jordan Hirsch – improviser *Amanda Hirsch – improviser *

Lior Suchard Lior Suchard (, ; born 6 December 1981) is an Israeli mentalist, entrepreneur, businessman, entertainer, performer, and master of ceremonies. Early life Suchard was born in Haifa, Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a count ...

– mentalist (season 8)

Featured

*Art Shapiro –

American University The American University (AU or American) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Its main campus spans 90-acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, in the Spri ...

* Amy Bastian *Alex Todorov –

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

*Brady Barr *Brian Scholl –

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

*Coren Apicella –

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and explanation, interpretatio ...

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

*Chess Stetson –

Caltech The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech) is a private university, private research university in Pasadena, California, United States. The university is responsible for many modern scientific advancements and is among a small g ...

*Dan Simons *

Daniel Goldstein Daniel G. Goldstein (born 1969) is an American cognitive psychologist known for the specification and testing of heuristics and models of bounded rationality in the field of judgment and decision making. He is an honorary research fellow at Lon ...

–

Microsoft Research Microsoft Research (MSR) is the research subsidiary of Microsoft. It was created in 1991 by Richard Rashid, Bill Gates and Nathan Myhrvold with the intent to advance state-of-the-art computing and solve difficult world problems through technologi ...

Frans de Waal Franciscus Bernardus Maria de Waal (29 October 1948 – 14 March 2024) was a Dutch-American primatologist and ethologist. He was the Charles Howard Candler Professor of Primate Behavior in the Department of Psychology at Emory University in ...

–

Emory University Emory University is a private university, private research university in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It was founded in 1836 as Emory College by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory. Its main campu ...

Forrest Griffin Forrest Griffin (born July 1, 1979) is an American retired mixed martial artist and former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. He was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame in 2013 and is the Vice President of Athlete Development at the UFC Performan ...

– UFC fighter (season 3 episode 8, "Mind Your Body") * Helen Fisher –

anthropologist An anthropologist is a scientist engaged in the practice of anthropology. Anthropologists study aspects of humans within past and present societies. Social anthropology, cultural anthropology and philosophical anthropology study the norms, values ...

Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...

* Jim Coan – psychologist,

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

Jonah Berger Jonah Berger (born c. 1981) is an American professor and author. He serves as a Marketing Professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Biography Born in Washington, D.C., Berger was raised in Chevy Chase, Maryland, and at ...

–

*Joshua Ackerman –

MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of modern technology and sc ...

*Kamran Fallahpour – Brain Resource Center *

Karen Wynn Karen Wynn is an artist and a Canadian and American Yale University Professor Emerita of psychology and cognitive science. She was born in Austin, Texas, and grew up on the Canadian prairies in Regina, Saskatchewan. Her research explores the cogn ...

Laurie R. Santos Laurie Renee Santos (born 1975) is an American cognitive scientist and professor of psychology at Yale University. She is the director of Yale's Comparative Cognition Laboratory, Director of Yale's Canine Cognition Lab, and former Head of Yale's ...

–

* Mark Changizi – theoretical neurobiologist *

Michael Bisping Michael Gavin Joseph Bisping (; born 28 February 1979) is an English former mixed martial artist, sports commentator, analyst, and actor. He competed in the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions of the Ultimate Fighting Championship ( ...

– UFC fighter (season 3 episode 8, "Mind Your Body) *Rhoda Boone – Food artist (season 4 episode 7, "Food") *

Shankar Vedantam Shankar Vedantam is an American journalist, writer, and science correspondent. His reporting focuses on human behavior and the social sciences. He is best known for his ''Hidden Brain'' family of products: book, podcast, and radio program. Educat ...

–

NPR National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

science correspondent *

Steve Schirripa Steven Ralph Schirripa ( ; born September 3, 1957) is an American actor. He is regularly credited as Steven R. Schirripa, including his total of over 300 total appearances in three long running series, playing: Bobby Bacala on ''The Sopranos''; ...

(season 2 episode 12, "Liar, Liar") *Susan Carnell –

Johns Hopkins University The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...

*Suzanne Dikker – New York University * Sri Sarma – Asst. Professor,

Scott Barry Kaufman Scott Barry Kaufman is an American cognitive scientist, author, podcaster, coach, and popular science writer. His writing and research focuses on intelligence, creativity, and human potential. Most media attention has focused on Kaufman's attempt ...

Sara Mednick Sara C. Mednick is a sleep researcher at the University of California, Irvine. Her research focuses on the relationship between napping and performance. She is the author of several papers and a mass market book, ''Take a Nap! Change Your Life.'' ...

–

University of California The University of California (UC) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university, research university system in the U.S. state of California. Headquartered in Oakland, California, Oakland, the system is co ...

* Harrison Greenbaum – Debunker of Physic Phenomenon (season 4 episode 6, "Superstition") *

Dave Goelz David Charles Goelz ( born July 16, 1946) is an American puppeteer and actor known for his work with the Muppets. He is best known for performing the characters Gonzo the Great, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Zoot, and Beauregard. He joined Jim Hens ...

– Dr. Bunsen Honeydew *

David Rudman David Rudman (born June 1, 1963) is an American puppeteer, puppet builder, writer, director, and producer known for his involvement with the Muppets and ''Sesame Street''. Rudman currently performs the roles of Scooter, Janice, and Beaker for ...

– Beaker *

– Professor, McGill University

Production

National Geographic announced that the show would return as a 2-hour live event in the fall of 2018, but no live event has been broadcast.

Episodes

Series overview

Season 1 (2011)

Season 1 consists of three one-hour pilot episodes.

Season 2 (2013)

Jason Silva takes over as the new host.

Season 3 (2013–14)

Often games are less intense than season 2 and experiments with random people on the street are done.

Season 4 (2014)

Graphics get an update. The show introduces new experts and illusionists/magicians.

Season 5 (2015)

Shocking fails, moments, and confusion show how the brain can be easily deterred from its goal. The show abandons the studio in favor of more real-life application.

Season 6 (2015)

How the brain acts and thinks is explored. The show continues to abandon the transparent studio for real-life experiences.

Season 7 (2016)

Episodes are now one hour. The show is told from a real-world perspective with Jason Silva outside in the world with real people. Small games the audience can play along with are shown as well.

Season 8 (2020)

Season 9: On the Road (2022)

The show is now a competition and takes place outside. Teams of 4 compete in challenges. This show is separate from the seasons before it and is a spin-off series.

Awards

References

External links

* * {{National Geographic TV 2011 American television series debuts 2020s American television series 2022 American television series endings Adult education television series American educational television series American television series revived after cancellation American English-language television shows National Geographic (American TV channel) original programming Science education television series