From the tangled underpinnings of our food taste to the complex dynamics of our playlists, our preferences and opinions are constantly being shaped by countless forces. In the digital age, a nonstop procession of "thumbs up" and "likes" is helping dictate our choices. Vanderbilt stalks the elusive beast of taste, probing research in psychology, marketing, and neuroscience to answer complex and fascinating questions, in an intellectual journey that helps us better understand how we perceive, judge, and appreciate the world around us.

Introduction : What's your favorite color (and why do you even have one)? -- What would you like? : thinking about our taste for food -- The fault is not in our stars, but in ourselves : liking in a networked age -- How predictable is our taste? : what your playlist says about you (and what you say about your playlist) -- How do we know what we like? : the ecstasies and anxieties of art -- Why (and how) tastes change -- Beer, cats, and dirt: how do experts decide what's good? -- Conclusion : Tasting notes : how to like.