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A few key insights from Chapter 1:

1. Andrew Irving, a British anthropologist and professor at the University of Manchester, recorded about 100 New Yorkers in 2010, all of whom were diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, on their thoughts and feelings on death. Unsurprisingly, these recordings were riddled with emotional pain, anxiety, and fear caused by the subjects’ diagnoses.

2. Irving conducted the same interview with around 100 other New Yorkers who were not diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, and these still resulted in negative thoughts about death. However, there was a general pattern with this group: their negative thoughts always seemed to come from past connections and memories.

3. The inner voices that directed the answers of the second group represent a basic human trait: the need to make sense of our experiences with our minds. The result is a dialogue with ourselves within our minds. This conversation is extremely influential to our lives, but hardly ever noticed.

4. Our brain is tasked to power our working memory, which is our ability to recall information throughout the day. It is vital to basic everyday operations, such as having a conversation or ordering food. While we eventually forget non-vital information, working memory allows us to function as typical humans.