The Spike

The Spike

Author: Mark Humphries

Publisher: Princeton University Press

Published: 2021-03-09

Total Pages: 232

ISBN-13: 0691213518

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The story of a neural impulse and what it reveals about how our brains work We see the last cookie in the box and think, can I take that? We reach a hand out. In the 2.1 seconds that this impulse travels through our brain, billions of neurons communicate with one another, sending blips of voltage through our sensory and motor regions. Neuroscientists call these blips “spikes.” Spikes enable us to do everything: talk, eat, run, see, plan, and decide. In The Spike, Mark Humphries takes readers on the epic journey of a spike through a single, brief reaction. In vivid language, Humphries tells the story of what happens in our brain, what we know about spikes, and what we still have left to understand about them. Drawing on decades of research in neuroscience, Humphries explores how spikes are born, how they are transmitted, and how they lead us to action. He dives into previously unanswered mysteries: Why are most neurons silent? What causes neurons to fire spikes spontaneously, without input from other neurons or the outside world? Why do most spikes fail to reach any destination? Humphries presents a new vision of the brain, one where fundamental computations are carried out by spontaneous spikes that predict what will happen in the world, helping us to perceive, decide, and react quickly enough for our survival. Traversing neuroscience’s expansive terrain, The Spike follows a single electrical response to illuminate how our extraordinary brains work.


The Everything Guide to the Human Brain

The Everything Guide to the Human Brain

Author: Rudolph C Hatfield

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 2013-05-18

Total Pages: 550

ISBN-13: 1440559236

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

An essential guide for understanding the inner workings of your brain! Do you really only use 10 percent of your brain? Can a bump to the head really restore memories? Does your brain ever lie to you? Why do you always forget where your glasses are, but never how to read? The brain makes you who you are. This fascinating organ creates your personality and controls your reactions and emotions. It's responsible for how you perceive the world around you--all while controlling hundreds of physical functions like breathing, moving, circulation, and digestion. The brain is simply amazing! The Everything Guide to the Human Brain will help you to unlock the mysteries of the brain. You'll learn how the brain communicates with each part of the body, how it affects your emotional life, why you dream, and how you remember things. And you'll also get in-depth descriptions of brain disorders and how science and medicine are working to heal or reverse them. Written in plain English, this ultimate user's guide will help you learn about the most influential part of your body!


Mind and Brain

Mind and Brain

Author: Roberta Conlan

Publisher: Time Life Medical

Published: 1993

Total Pages: 148

ISBN-13: 9780783510002

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Donated.


Unthinkable

Unthinkable

Author: Helen Thomson

Publisher: HarperCollins

Published: 2018-06-26

Total Pages: 296

ISBN-13: 0062391186

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

In this Indiebound bestseller, the award-winning science writer unlocks the biggest mysteries of the human brain by examining nine extraordinary cases. Our brains are far stranger than we think. We take it for granted that we can remember, feel emotion, navigate, empathize and understand the world around us, but how would our lives change if these abilities were dramatically enhanced—or disappeared overnight? Helen Thomson has spent years travelling the world, tracking down incredibly rare brain disorders. In Unthinkable she tells the stories of nine extraordinary people she encountered along the way. From the man who thinks he’s a tiger to the doctor who feels the pain of others just by looking at them to a woman who hears music that’s not there, their experiences illustrate how the brain can shape our lives in unexpected and, in some cases, brilliant and alarming ways. Story by remarkable story, Unthinkable takes us on an unforgettable journey through the human brain. Discover how to forge memories that never disappear, how to grow an alien limb and how to make better decisions. Learn how to hallucinate and how to make yourself happier in a split second. Find out how to avoid getting lost, how to see more of your reality, even how exactly you can confirm you are alive. Think the unthinkable. “Helen Thomson’s remarkable book is an astonishing tour of the human brain in all its awesome power and bewildering variation . . . Unthinkable will enrich your brain, blow your mind, and warm your heart.” —Ed Yong, Pulitzer Prize-winning author


Beyond the Zonules of Zinn

Beyond the Zonules of Zinn

Author: David Bainbridge

Publisher: Harvard University Press

Published: 2009-06-30

Total Pages: 349

ISBN-13: 0674020421

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

In his latest book, Bainbridge combines an otherworldly journey through the central nervous system with an accessible and entertaining account of how the brain's anatomy has often misled anatomists about its function. Bainbridge uses the structure of the brain to set his book apart from the many volumes that focus on brain function.


Journey from Cognition to Brain to Gene

Journey from Cognition to Brain to Gene

Author: Ursula Bellugi

Publisher: MIT Press

Published: 2001

Total Pages: 224

ISBN-13: 9780262523127

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

A blueprint for the investigation of neurodevelopmental disorders, this book presents the work of a team of scientists using a multidisciplinary, integrated approach to link genes with human behavior. Using Williams syndrome as a model, leading researchers in neuroanatomy, neurocognition, neurophysiology, and molecular genetics have built bridges between disciplines to link higher cognitive functions, their underlying neurobiological bases, and their molecular genetic underpinnings. One of the book's many strengths is that the scientists from each discipline studied the same individuals with Williams syndrome. As the book shows, Williams syndrome is a fascinating disorder because of the "peaks and valleys" among cognitive domains: severe intellectual deficits but remarkably spared and effusive language; specific impairment in spatial construction but great strength in face processing and sociability. By capitalizing on these dissociations in higher cognitive functioning, the book provides a model for the study of brain-behavior relationships as well as for the mapping of brain and behavior phenotypes to the genome and beyond. Contributors Ralph Adolphs, Twyla Alvarez, Lawrence Appelbaum, Ursula Bellugi, Dennis Burian, Xiao-Ning Chen, Michael Chiles, Stephan Eliez, Albert Galaburda, Hanao Hirota, Wendy Jones, Julie Korenberg, Zona Lai, Liz Lichtenberger, Alan Lincoln, Rumiko Matsuoka, Debra Mills, Helen Neville, Judy Reilly, Allan Reiss, Bruce Roe, Marie St. George, J. Eric Schmidtt, Erica Straus


Neuroleadership

Neuroleadership

Author: Argang Ghadiri

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2013-01-26

Total Pages: 168

ISBN-13: 3642301657

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This book takes you on a journey through the brain, its function and its impact on leadership. The young business field of neuroleadership is founded on the belief that understanding the brain can give leaders new and powerful insights into human behaviour and how to effectively tap into that knowledge to generate better returns in business. The book approaches the background, history, and major thinkers in the field, but also reassesses the fundamental concept of neuroleadership. The authors look into the fundamental basic needs of human beings, how they are represented in the neural networks, and how this manifests in motivational drives. The book also focuses explicitly on how impactful organisational tools can be from the viewpoint of the brain. By following this methodology, the reader will be able to use the knowledge of neuroscience at the workplace to better address individuals’ brains and hence tap into the full power of brains in business.


Brainstorm

Brainstorm

Author: Daniel J. Siegel, MD

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2014-01-07

Total Pages: 338

ISBN-13: 110163152X

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

In this New York Times–bestselling book, Dr. Daniel Siegel shows parents how to turn one of the most challenging developmental periods in their children’s lives into one of the most rewarding. Between the ages of twelve and twenty-four, the brain changes in important and, at times, challenging ways. In Brainstorm, Dr. Daniel Siegel busts a number of commonly held myths about adolescence—for example, that it is merely a stage of “immaturity” filled with often “crazy” behavior. According to Siegel, during adolescence we learn vital skills, such as how to leave home and enter the larger world, connect deeply with others, and safely experiment and take risks. Drawing on important new research in the field of interpersonal neurobiology, Siegel explores exciting ways in which understanding how the brain functions can improve the lives of adolescents, making their relationships more fulfilling and less lonely and distressing on both sides of the generational divide.


Jung and Eastern Thought

Jung and Eastern Thought

Author: Harold Coward

Publisher: State University of New York Press

Published: 1985-07-01

Total Pages: 238

ISBN-13: 079149991X

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Jung and Eastern Thought is an assessment of the impact of the East on Jung's life and teaching. Along with the strong and continuing interest in the psychology of Carl Jung is a growing awareness of the extent to which Eastern thought, especially Indian ideas, influenced his thinking. This book identifies those influences that he found useful and those he rejected. In Hindu, Buddhist, and Taoist cultures, yoga is a central conception and practice. Jung was at once fascinated and critical of yoga. Part I of the book examines Jung's encounter with yoga and his strong warning against the uncritical adoption of yoga by the modern West. In Part II Jung's love/hate relationship with Eastern thought is examined in light of his attitude toward karma and rebirth, Kundalini yoga, mysticism, and Patanjali's Yoga Sutras. Coward's observations are rounded out by contributions from J. Borelli and J. Jordens. Dr. Borelli's Annotated Bibliography is an invaluable contribution to bibliographic material on Jung, yoga, and Eastern religion. A special feature is the Introduction by Joseph Henderson, Jung's most senior North American student and one of the few Jungians to have recognized the important influence of the East on Jung's thinking.