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NARRATOR: Stop. Pay attention.
Because while watching this show,
you'll not only have to use your brain,
you'll have to use your body in a head to head challenge against
the National Champion Triathlete, Rick Krupa.
It's a simple game.
All you have to do is stand up and clap one time,
just like this.
RICK KRUPA: (CLAPS)
Got it? Whoever stands up and claps first wins.
But we still think you're going to lose, so go ahead.
Take a second to stretch out.
When you hear the starter pistol, stand up and clap!
Best out of three, wins.
Okay. Take a seat and get ready.
On your mark, get set! RICK KRUPA: (CLAPS)
Did you win that one? Then it's you, one, Rick, zero.
But you didn't really think it would be that easy, did you?
Part of any great athlete's plan is psyching out the competition.
Okay. Sit down, Rick.
You should take your seat as well.
Because it's time for round two.
On your marks, get set!
RICK KRUPA: (CLAPS) How'd you do?
There's a good chance you lost that time,
so you're probably tied.
But remember, it's best out of three,
so you've got one more shot to beat our elite athlete.
Right now, you're probably on the edge of your seat,
and if you're not, I suggest you get there,
because this guy's pretty quick.
Ready?
On your mark, get set, actually, before we get to round three,
we have a question for you.
Are you starting to feel all psyched up?
Are your competitive juices flowing?
Is winning this game suddenly very important to you?
If so, there's a reason for it. That reason is all on your head.
To find out what it is, stick around.
You've got a front row seat to "The Brain Games."
REFEREE #1: Let's do it.
NARRATOR: This is a show about your brain, and competition.
SHENNA: Jump, jump, jump, jump.
NARRATOR: We're going to mess with your mind.
MALE #1: What?
NARRATOR: We'll put you through a series of games
and experiments. FEMALE 1: Come on!
NARRATOR: Designed to show how it's sometimes better to compete
smarter.
FEMALE #2: What's the riddle? NARRATOR: Not harder.
Why some people may be born to compete,
and how a little sibling rivalry can help you climb to the top.
FEMALE #2: You got it, girl.
NARRATOR: You've got to be in it to win it.
SHENNA: You get in. MALE #1: Ah!
MALE #2: Come around, come around.
NARRATOR: On Brain Games. FEMALE #1: Argh!
NARRATOR: You do it at school. At work.
VOICE #1: Free food in the conference room!
NARRATOR: Sometimes, on your way to school or work.
Whether you're trying to get to the head of the class,
earn the big promotion, or just find a parking spot, every day,
you're competing with yourself, and with others.
JASON SILVA: Whether you actively compete,
root for a team, or just try to be the best that you can be,
competition is a part of life.
And who doesn't want to be on the winning side, right?
MALE #3: You got lucky, Silva. I'll get you next time.
NARRATOR: Thanks for the workout!
JASON SILVA: So what is it about the human brain that makes
you want to win, sometimes at all costs?
NARRATOR: To help answer that, we're going to finish that game
from before, and give you one last shot to beat
our elite athlete.
Looks like Rick's ready to go. Are you?
Remember, to win this tiebreaker,
all you have to do is stand up and clap one time before
Rick does.
On your mark, get set. RICK KRUPA: (CLAPS)
JASON SILVA: So how'd you do?
If you lost, take consolation that you just lost to a guy
who's a National Champion Triathlete.
Besides, you're going to have plenty of chances to win during
The Brain Games.
But first, we need to assign you a team.
NARRATOR: So, if your birthday falls between January and June,
you're on the Blue Team.
And if your birthday falls between July and December,
you're on the Red Team.
Now, follow along with your new teammates
as we let the games begin!
JASON SILVA: So what we're gonna do is we're gonna play a video
and it's gonna have two bicycle wheels that are gonna be
spinning.
You guys are gonna have to huddle together and decide
which wheel is spinning faster.
NARRATOR: But first, we're giving you a shot at home.
Which wheel do you think is spinning faster?
Bike A, or bike B? Made your choice?
Before we reveal the answer, let's see what your teammates
think.
Remember, their decision will determine if you win
this round or not.
Hopefully, they'll make the right call.
JASON SILVA: Blue team, which wheel is spinning faster?
FEMALE #3: We're gonna go with definitely A.
JASON SILVA: Okay. Red team?
FEMALE #2: Well, we actually think that this is a trick,
and we think the faster bicycle is bicycle B.
JASON SILVA: Okay. So, let's see who's right.
NARRATOR: Like the blue team said,
it does look like "bike A" is moving faster,
but if we remove some of the extra reflectors,
you can see "bike A's" tires were actually moving
slightly slower than "bike B's"!
Don't believe me?
Watch what happens when we count the number of rotations
on both tires.
We promise we're not changing the image in any way.
In fact, we'll add those extra reflectors back in to prove it.
Looks like in competition, as in life,
you can't always believe what you see.
JASON SILVA: That's a victory for the Red team!
RED TEAM: Yeah! Woo!!
NARRATOR: Of course some, of you at home on the Blue team
might be thinking you knew bike B was faster,
and your teammates just let you down.
But that's all part of the competition and what it means
to be on a team.
The real question is, why would you feel let down at all?
Well, once you were invested in the game by being assigned
a team, your brain's reward system was activated
as it waited for a payoff.
And when the winner was announced,
you may have felt a sudden surge of happiness, or disappointment!
Either way, it's totally normal!
JASON SILVA: These feelings, thrill of victory and the agony
of defeat are triggered by something called dopamine.
That's one of the keys to the survival of the entire
human race!
NARRATOR: Dopamine is a neurotransmitter,
or chemical that's used to send signals between nerve cells
in the "reward system" of your brain.
When released in higher than usual amounts,
such as after winning a competition,
it produces a powerful pleasure response and a feeling
of deep satisfaction.
In other words, your brain is hardwired to seek out
opportunities to win, which is why you may often find yourself
striving to beat your own personal best, or outdo others,
like in that challenge with Rick.
Even though we told you were going to lose,
we bet most of you still tried to beat Rick anyway.
In fact, some of you may have hit rewind on your TV
to give yourself another shot at winning.
If so, there's a chance you may have been born more competitive.
RICK KRUPA: (CLAPS)
Here to explain is the University of Pennsylvania's
Coren Apicella.
COREN APICELLA: There are those who enjoy competition
and those who don't.
This is commonly referred to as the warrior
versus worrier brain.
So even though your survival depends on competition,
there's an evolutionary reason why we have both warriors
and worriers.
If we were all warriors, it would be a free for all
and many of us wouldn't survive, and if we were all worriers,
we wouldn't have been as successful as we are.
NARRATOR: No matter where you fall on that spectrum,
I bet this next game will spark even the least competitive
of you into becoming warriors.
(Boxing bell)
JASON SILVA: The object of this challenge is to knock over
that bottle of water that you see over there without actually
touching it.
Now you're gonna have to use any or all of these tools
that we're providing.
NARRATOR: Including a coin, a packing peanut, a paperclip,
a straw, a feather, and you also have that large punching bag
over there.
JASON SILVA: And you're gonna have to work together as a team
because this is a timed event and only one of you guys
is gonna be in the ring at any given time.
You can always tag-team your partner and switch out to keep
trying out different ideas. So, are you guys ready?
ALL: Yeah!
NARRATOR: Before your teammates square off,
do you think you can figure out how to knock over the bottle
using just these items, but without physically touching
the water bottle yourself?
There are actually a few ways to do it.
While you think it over, your teammates will be competing one
team at a time with only one person in the ring at a time,
tagging out as often as they want for fresh ideas.
Think your team can crack this in less than 2 minutes?
JASON SILVA: Red Team, who's gonna go first?
FEMALE #2: I wanna go! MALE #1: Yes, do it.
MALE #1: Try it...
ALL: Jump! jump! jump! jump!
NARRATOR: The Red Team tries to shake things up by rattling
the floor enough to tip the bottle over.
How do you think the Blue team is doing?
FEMALE #3: Yeah, you can do it!
NARRATOR: Looks like great minds think alike.
JASON SILVA: That's a nice dance.
NARRATOR: But that bottle hasn't budged.
Maybe a teammate has a better strategy.
FEMALE #2: All right, Sheena. Go, go, go. Go Sheena!
SHENNA: All right.
NARRATOR: She's grabbing the coin and the feather
ROSS: Come on. Try it with the coin.
FEMALE #2: You got it. Yes, use that feather girl!
NARRATOR: But, they don't seem to be much help.
JASON SILVA: All right.
What are you gonna do? What are you gonna do?
NARRATOR: What's this guy going to do with the coin?
FEMALE #1: What are you doing then?
MALE #2: Where you going? Where you going?
JASON SILVA: Are you quitting already?
MALE #2: [Inaudible] FEMALE #1: Whoo, come on.
Okay. Swing it. Okay swing it.
NARRATOR: Interesting idea. FEMALE #1: Whoo!
NARRATOR: But also ineffective.
MALE #2: Tag her in! Tag her in! Come on.
FEMALE #1: You got it. Get in there, little one.
NARRATOR: Time to tag out again for some fresh ideas.
FEMALE #2: Here's an idea. Come on.
FEMALE #3: Okay. Maybe.
NARRATOR: Ah, that punching bag is definitely heavy enough
to deliver the knockout blow. ROSS: Try doing...
FEMALE #2: Oh, yeah. Push it hard. Push it! Push, push, push.
NARRATOR: But it doesn't quite have the reach!
MALE #2: You gotta push it harder!
FEMALE #1: Come on, you've got it! Okay.
NARRATOR: Now he's thinking outside the box.
ROSS: All right. Come on, MacGyver.
RED TEAM: Oh!
NARRATOR: That water bottle is still standing strong.
JASON SILVA: Somebody else, quick!
FEMALE #1: Okay. MALE #4: Go ahead.
FEMALE #1: I got this. I got this.
NARRATOR: What about you at home?
Have you been able to get to the bottom of this problem yet?
FEMALE #2: Come on! MALE #1: Come on. Come on, man.
NARRATOR: The answer might just blow your mind.
FEMALE #1: (Laughs)
NARRATOR: We challenged our teams to knock over a bottle of
water in less than two minutes using just the tools provided.
You at home should be rooting for the team that shares
your birth month, blue for January through June,
and red for July through December.
With time running out, can you solve this puzzle?
If so, shout your answer at the TV.
Maybe your teammates will hear you.
FEMALE #2: Go, Ross! Go, Ross!
JASON SILVA: Oh, man, look at this guy. What is he doing?
SHENNA: All right. FEMALE #2: Oh, he's legit!
NARRATOR: Both teams are trying similar strategies,
but how do you think a flimsy straw can be used to knock over
that heavy water bottle?
RED TEAM: Chug, chug, chug! MALE #1: Nice.
NARRATOR: Which team will blow away the competition?
MALE #2: Get more, get more!
Now try to stomp! Now try to stomp!
Stomp, stomp, stomp, stomp. RED TEAM: Chug, chug, chug!
MALE #2: Stomp, stomp, stomp, stomp.
FEMALE #2: Whoo! That's right. Go, Ross.
MALE #1: Awesome. There it is. There it is.
RED TEAM: Whoo!
NARRATOR: Great job, Red Team! FEMALE #2: Yes.
MALE #1: Oh, good, good. MALE #2: Come on, come on.
JASON SILVA: Time's up! Oh guys, you were close.
NARRATOR: So, were you able to figure this one out,
or were you left grasping at straws?
JASON SILVA: And congratulations, Red team!
RED TEAM: Yeah! MALE #1: Yes!
NARRATOR: Demonstrations like this show that our brains,
prompted by a little healthy competition,
can be pushed to find new solutions to seemingly
unsolvable problems.
JASON SILVA: How did you guys figure it out?
MALE #1: Ross put it together. He thought,
"Get the water out first, and then it'll probably go over."
JASON SILVA: But the most effective solution isn't always
found through competition. Sometimes, it takes cooperation.
NARRATOR: It was competition plus cooperation to help
put a man on the moon.
VOICE #2: It's one small step for man.
NARRATOR: And led to countless innovations such as
the automobile, the cell phone, and perhaps the most defining
achievement of cooperation, the internet.
JASON SILVA: Of course, sometimes too much cooperation
can backfire.
It's like that old saying, "Too many cooks can spoil the broth."
At some point, cooperation can actually be counterproductive
and you end up at a loss. How do I look?
NARRATOR: It's also why most of is tend to live and work
in smaller groups or teams, otherwise known as "families."
Living in packs clearly helps ensure our survival,
but it also makes life more enjoyable.
And one of the most enjoyable aspects about teams is rooting
for your favorite one!
Just like you may be identifying with your new brain games team
based on when your birth month is.
As you pick and root for your favorite sports team,
often based on an equally arbitrary fact like where
you grew up, you and that team become part of the same tribe.
MALE #5: Yeah!
NARRATOR: This is what scientists refer to
as social identity.
And along with competition and cooperation,
it's what keeps the human race alive and kicking.
So whether it's scoring the winning goal,
or helping your teammates solve a tricky problem like this one,
it's often a healthy mix of competition and cooperation
that leads to victory.
Which the blue team is going to need since they're down by 2.
But there's still plenty of time.
And this competition is about to get personal!
JASON SILVA: We've all heard of sibling rivalries,
but is there any link between birth order and competitiveness?
Well, we're about to find out in this next game.
NARRATOR: We're pitting a brother on the blue team against
his younger sister on the red team in a drawing competition.
With family pride on the line, who do you think will be more
competitive, older, or younger sibling?
JASON SILVA: Are you guys competitive?
FEMALE #2: Yes, we are. Well, one of us is.
JASON SILVA: Hah, and who would that be?
FEMALE #2: That'd be me obviously.
MALE #4: We're pretty competitive,
but I'd have to go with me. JASON SILVA: You?
MALE #4: Yeah.
NARRATOR: So each sibling thinks they're more competitive
than the other.
But who do you think has the bigger drive to win?
And will that drive lead to victory?
Play along as our teams have one minute to guess
the phrase being drawn by our competitive siblings.
JASON SILVA: Here's the phrase. FEMALE #2: Okay.
JASON SILVA: Start.
FEMALE #3: Circle. ROSS: Circle. Square.
SHENNA: A Person. FEMALE #3: Head.
MALE #2: What's that line? What's that...?
SHENNA: Jumping? Jumping jacks!
MALE #1: Jumping person? Jumping up and down. Happy.
FEMALE #3: Curly hair. ROSS: Hairspray?
SHENNA: What the heck is that?
NARRATOR: Do you have any idea what that is?
FEMALE #1: Head. Face.
MALE #2: Person, person!
Catcher's mit?
Catcher!
FEMALE #1: Brain!
NARRATOR: That's part of the answer.
FEMALE #1: Brain!
But the winner of this sibling rivalry will need
more than just brains.
SHENNA: Jumping. MALE #1: What?
FEMALE #1: Brain, another person.
NARRATOR: What about you at home?
Have you figured it out yet?
Which sibling do you think is trying harder to win?
ROSS: Muscles. Working out.
Muscles. Hand muscles.
MALE #2: Arm. FEMALE #3: Arm.
MALE #2: Peanut arm.
NARRATOR: This could go either way.
Have you solved it at home yet? MALE #1: Cloud. A cloud?
NARRATOR: If you know the answer, shout it out!
SHENNA: Oh, brain! Brain.
NARRATOR: Wow, she's really fired up!
MALE #1: Brain dead!
NARRATOR: While her brother seems to be playing it cool.
MALE #2: Oh, what about the arm? What about the arm?
What about the... FEMALE #1: It's a muscle.
SHENNA: Brain over. FEMALE #2: Yeah.
SHENNA: Man? FEMALE #2: Oh, my God.
NARRATOR: The younger sister seems much more competitive
than her older brother, but which team will be quick
on the draw, and which team will be drawing a blank?
JASON SILVA: Clock is ticking. Clock is ticking!
BLUE TEAM: Keep going. Keep going.
FEMALE #1: Brawn! Brain over brawn! Brain over brawn!
JASON SILVA: Nice! FEMALE #1: Yeah, right?
FEMALE #3: Whoo!
MALE #2: Good, good, good job. JASON SILVA: And Stop!
MALE #1: No! NARRATOR: Wow!
So it was the low-key older brother who lead his team
to victory. MALE #1: Yeah!
NARRATOR: Even though his younger sister seemed much
more competitive.
While being competitive may not always lead to victory,
it looks like this younger sibling has more
of a competitive fire, but why is that?
COREN APICELLA: Older children, they have an advantage when it
comes to competing for parental resources and attention.
GIRL: Give it to me.
COREN APICELLA: So younger children need to get creative
and innovative in order to compete for parental attention
even just food at the dinner table.
And this drive to compete seems to stay with younger siblings
for life.
NARRATOR: Even when they lose.
JASON SILVA: Are you pulsating with anger?
FEMALE #2: Like a knife in the heart.
JASON SILVA: You're turning red actually.
NARRATOR: So, after three games, the Blue team is down by one.
But we're adding a little twist to our final challenge.
FEMALE #1: Ah!
NARRATOR: This competition is still anybody's game!
Will your team climb their way to the top?
FEMALE #2: You got it, girl.
NARRATOR: Or will you be left stuck in the mud?
MALE #2: Come on!
NARRATOR: Our teams have been competing head-to-head
in "The Brain Games." You at home should be rooting
for the team that shares your birth month.
Blue for January through June, and red for July
through December. It's been a pretty close battle.
So we're adding a little twist to our next game.
JASON SILVA: In order to win our final challenge,
our teams will need to compete and cooperate.
Which means they'll not only have to play harder,
they'll also have to play smarter.
NARRATOR: And you at home will have to play smarter, too,
as you play along.
That's because we've set up a challenge that requires
both brains and brawn.
So this game is worth double the points,
making this last competition winner-take-all.
Our teams will race through this obstacle course one at a time.
Before each obstacle is a riddle.
Solve the riddle correctly, and you get to tackle
the easy obstacle.
Get it wrong, you'll have to rely on your brawn to help you
through, but you better be quick because the team
with the fastest time wins! MALE #1: Ah!
NARRATOR: Think your team will roll into the winner's circle?
MALE #2: Come on, push him through!
NARRATOR: Time to put on your game face and find out.
REFEREE #1: Let's do it! FEMALE #1: Let's do it!
REFEREE #1: (Whistles)
NARRATOR: Our teams are racing separately to the first riddle
and obstacle. If they solve the riddle correctly,
they get to load a teammate into this giant hamster ball
and roll it straight past the cones.
Get it wrong, they'll have to slalom their teammate
through the cones, which may slow them down.
REFEREE #2: Guess the phrase. FEMALE #4: Give.
MALE #1: Oh, gotta give to get. FEMALE #3: Get.
MALE #2: Get what you give. MALE #1: You give what you get.
FEMALE #3: Get give. FEMALE #2: Give,
what's the riddle?
NARRATOR: Both teams are stumped.
Have you guessed the phrase yet?
There is forget... FEMALE #3: Forgive and forget!
REFEREE #2: That's correct! FEMALE #3: Yeah!
NARRATOR: Blue team got it right!
So they get to take the straight path.
MALE #2: Go ahead. Go, go, go. Just go.
NARRATOR: This should save time, but it'll still be a bumpy ride.
FEMALE #1: Oh, my God, oh my God I feel like a hamster!
NARRATOR: Good job, Blue Team, you're on a roll!
FEMALE #1: Ah!
NARRATOR: But how do you think the red team is doing?
RED TEAM: You only get what you give?
REF 2: Time! FEMALE #2: Oh, okay. Go.
NARRATOR: Oh, too bad.
SHENNA: You get in. MALE #1: Me? Get in?
FEMALE #2: You got it. You got it.
NARRATOR: Now they've got to slalom through the cones.
ROSS: Turn, turn.
NARRATOR: Which may slow them down.
FEMALE #2: Push. ROSS: Come on, push!
MALE #1: Ah! FEMALE #2: Oh, my God.
NARRATOR: Whoa, I'm getting dizzy just watching!
FEMALE #2: Over. Oh!
NARRATOR: It looks like the Red Team has fallen a good five
seconds behind the Blue Team who are already sprinting toward
the second obstacle and riddle.
A correct answer this time allows teams to crawl
on the clean side.
Incorrect answer, means they'll be slowed down by some cold,
disgusting mud.
BLUE TEAMMATE: "What can run but never walks,
has a mouth but never talks, has a bed but never sleeps?"
FEMALE #1: Some type of animal?
A bear? No, bears sleep.
MALE #2: Come on. Come on. A mouth, bed.
NARRATOR: Looks like the blue team is struggling.
Think the Red Team can solve this one and catch up?
FEMALE #2: "Has a mouth but never talks,
has a bed but never sleeps?" Food.
SHENNA: Human?
NARRATOR: Can you solve this riddle at home?
REFEREE #2: Time!
NARRATOR: This one stumped the Blue Team,
so now they've got to belly crawl through the muddy side!
FEMALE #3: ...Coming...
NARRATOR: Which will cost them precious time.
MALE #2: Come on. Come on. Come on. Hurry up, come on.
NARRATOR: Can the Red Team solve it and avoid the mud?
RED TEAM: An animal? REF: Time!
NARRATOR: Ooh, they also got stumped.
They'll have to really pick up the pace now
since they still have a few seconds to make up.
And if you're wondering what the answer was to that last riddle,
it was "A River." Something these teams might be wishing
they could jump in to wash off that mud!
Female: Yeah!
NARRATOR: Wow, the red team really zipped
through that belly crawl.
So our teams are neck and neck as they race toward the final
obstacle! A correct answer gets the short wall,
a wrong answer gets the big one.
Think you can crack this final riddle before your team does?
REF 3: Go!
MALE #1: "What word do you break when you say it?"
NARRATOR: Any ideas?
FEMALE #1: What word do you break?
MALE #2: Break dance? MALE #1: Secret?
FEMALE #2: Secrets. FEMALE #1: Break up.
MALE #2: Break time?
NARRATOR: How about you at home, what word do you break
when you say it? ROSS: Wind?
BLUE TEAMMATES: Break. Break. Break. Break. Break glass.
MALE #4: Relationship. SHENNA: Silence! Silence.
REFEREE #1: Go, you got the short wall!
FEMALE #2: Good job! MALE: Let's go, Ross.
Let's get over. You [indistinct] SHENNA: Guys first.
FEMALE #2 All right. Ross first.
SHENNA: You break when you say it... Come on. Come on.
REFEREE #1: Time!
You got the big wall!
NARRATOR: This one's coming down to the wire!
Which team will climb their way to success?
MALE #2: Come on. Come on. Come on. Come on.
NARRATOR: And remember, we're doubling the points
for this obstacle course, so whoever has the fastest time
not only wins this round, but the entire "Brain Games"!
Think your team will take the prize?
FEMALE #1: Let's go. FEMALE #5: All right.
Let's go. Let's go.
NARRATOR: Time to find out who's a champ, and who's a chump.
REFEREE #2: Both the Blue and Red Team did great.
REFEREE #1: But the winner of this competition
as well as the overall competition
is...
the Red Team! RED TEAM: CHEERING!
NARRATOR: Looks like winning this competition was important
to our two teams, and maybe even to you at home!
Are you also feeling the thrill of victory or the agony
of defeat? Guess what?
We have one final surprise for you.
You didn't really win or lose anything!
By assigning you a team, we tricked your brain to feeling
competitive.
Just like rooting for your favorite sports team,
you don't earn any money or a trophy when they win
nor do you lose anything when they go down in defeat.
But your brain still enjoys playing along as if it does.
That's because win, lose, or draw,
your brain can get high just from the act of competing!
And it plays along simply for the love of the game.
So the next time you feel yourself getting "too invested"
in your favorite sports team, or a friendly match
with your buddy, just relax! And remember,
RICK: Oh, come on! NARRATOR: It's all in your head.
JASON SILVA: It's just a game.
RICK: Sorry. I like to win.