Dr. James R. Doty is a professor in the Dept of Neurosurgery and the founder and director of the Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education a.k.a CCARE, at Stanford School of Medicine.

In his book, “Into the Magic Shop - A neurosurgeon’s quest to discover the mysteries of the brain and secrets of the heart” Dr. Doty talks about his challenging childhood. When he was 12 years old, he wandered “Into a magic shop” and met a woman who saw the potential in him and taught him how to manifest his greatest desires through a series of techniques and meditative exercises. With her, he learnt a unique relationship between the brain and the heart that lead to incredible success and happiness in life.

Dr. Doty collaborates with scientists from a number of disciplines examining the neural bases for compassion and altruism. He is an inventor, entrepreneur and philanthropist. His work has been published in a variety of research journals.