Below is the Q & A with Dr. David Eagleman regarding his life outside of the laboratory:

Q: What did you complete your undergraduate degree in?  Why did you get a Ph.D. in Neuroscience?

A: Dr. David Eagleman completed his undergraduate degree in British and American Literature at Rice University.  He then moved to Los Angeles to become a screenwriter.  After little success in the industry, Eagleman applied to BCM (months after deadline) to obtain a Ph.D. in Neuroscience.

Q: What do you do in your free time?

A: Dr. David Eagleman reports that most of his day is filled with laboratory and lecture tasks however, at night, he enjoys writing.

Q: Why write novels as opposed to journal articles?

A: Eagleman believes that few people read journal articles and that writing novels has a bigger impact on society as whole.  Eagleman believes he has great ideas and thinks the masses should know about them. Therefore, publishing a book outweighs publishing in a journal.  This is seen in the 27 translations of Sum, the New York Times bestseller.

Q: What courses would you recommend for undergraduate students?

A: Eagleman believes that Neuroscience is moving into an era of computation.  Therefore, undergraduates should look to take some computer science programs to keep them up-to-date and competitive.  He believes that the future of Neuroscience partially lies in computational modeling.  Other than that, he believes students should pursue their passions as he did in completing an undergraduate degree in literature.