Right brain magic, price of wine, happiness, loving one's hands

• The TED talk by neuroanatomist Jill Bolte Taylor gets a very high rating from Presentation Zen. Don't miss it!
• What do MIT MBA students' social security numbers have to do with how much they would be willing to pay for a bottle of 1998 Cotes du Rhone? Dan Ariely, author of Predictably Irrational, explains. Hat tip: via Mark Thoma.
• Are you happy? Sue Halpern reviews five books on happiness research for NYRB.
• Arati on why she is in love with her hands.

And here's a bonus:

• Peter Griffin: Portrait of a Bureaucrat Playing With Himself.