The two-second advantage

What made Wayne Gretzky the greatest hockey player of all time wasn't his speed on the ice or the uncanny accuracy of his shots, but rather his ability to predict where the puck was going to be an instant before it arrived. In other words, it was Gretzky's brain that made him exceptional. Over the past 15 years, scientists have found that what distinguishes the greatest musicians, athletes, and performers from the rest of us isn't just their motor skills or athletic abilities -- it is the ability to anticipate events before they happen. In a powerful narrative that takes us from the research…