The book has eight major sections. The people referenced in each section are listed below.
Introduction: Doing What Can't Be Done
Howard Armstrong
Through the Eye of an Iconoclast
Dale Chihuly, Paul Lauterbur, Nolan Bushnell
From Perception to Imagination
Walt Disney, Florence Nightingale, Branch Rickey, Kary Mullis
Fear: The Inhibitor of Action
Jackie Robinson, Dixie Chicks, Computer Associates, Rite-Solutions
How Fear Distorts Perception
Richard Feynman, Solomon Asch, Morgan Freeman, Martin Luther King Jr.
Why the Fear of Failure Makes People Risk Averse
David Dreman, Bill Miller, Henry Ford
Brain Circuits for Social Networking
Pablo Picasso, Vicent van Gogh, Stanley Milgram, Ray Kroc, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linus Torvalds, Warren Buffett
Private Spaceflight: A Case Study of Iconoclasts Working Together
Burt Rutan, Richard Branson, Peter Diamandis, Rick Homans
When Iconoclast Becomes Icon
Arthur Jones, Jonas Salk, Steve Jobs
Appendix: The Iconoclast's Pharmacopeia
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"Iconoclast is an eye-opener that will both inform and inspire you. Though most of us want to be innovative thinkers, we just don't understand the barriers in the way of our success. In this book, Gregory Berns deftly blends intriguing case studies with exciting neuroscientific findings to show how and why iconoclasts overcome these barriers and thrive."
—Michael J. Mauboussin, chief investment strategist at Legg Mason Capital Management and author of More Than You Know: Finding Financial Wisdom in Unconventional Places
"Iconoclast introduces you to people in every field who make success look easy. These people can reconcile the brain's quest for certainty with life's inherent uncertainty by seeing different facets of life. They ask questions that do not occur to the population that simply accepts consensus answers. You'll be inspired to emulate these iconoclasts in your own life."
—Dean LeBaron, Chairman, virtualquest
"In Iconoclast, Gregory Berns tells the stories of monumental events in art, medicine, technology, and more. Through the eyes of a neuroscientist, he helps us understand the underlying processes that either hinder or encourage creativity and an iconoclastic perspective. In today's world we cannot afford to be ignorant of either these processes or our history."
—Dun Ariely, Author, Predictably Irrational