Lifehacker.com has a great article on The Science of Storytelling that explains why stories are so powerful, and why a good one works so well with an audience.
My favourite quote:
When we are being told a story, things change dramatically. Not only are the language processing parts in our brain activated, but any other area in our brain that we would use when experiencing the events of the story are too.
Read the whole article here.
Neat!