The Performance Cortex
The Performance Cortex

Author: Zach Schonbrun

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2019-04-09

Total Pages: 354

ISBN-13: 1101986352

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“A must-read for the cerebral sports fan . . . like Moneyball except nerdier. Much nerdier.” —Sports Illustrated Why couldn’t Michael Jordan, master athlete that he was, crush a baseball? Why can’t modern robotics come close to replicating the dexterity of a five-year-old? Why do great quarterbacks always seem to know where their receivers are? On a quest to discover what actually drives human movement and its spectacular potential, journalist, sports writer, and fan Zach Schonbrun interviewed experts on motor control around the world. The trail begins with the groundbreaking work of two neuroscientists in Major League Baseball who are upending the traditional ways scouts evaluate the speed with which great players read a pitch. Across all sports, new theories and revolutionary technology are revealing how the brain’s motor control system works in extraordinarily talented athletes like Stephen Curry, Tom Brady, Serena Williams, and Lionel Messi; as well as musical virtuosos, dancers, rock climbers, race-car drivers, and more. Whether it is timing a 95 mph fastball or reaching for a coffee mug, movement requires a complex suite of computations that many take for granted—until they read The Performance Cortex. Zach Schonbrun ushers in a new way of thinking about the athletic gifts we marvel over and seek to develop in our own lives. It’s not about the million-dollar arm anymore. It’s about the million-dollar brain.

The Cortex and the Critical Point
The Cortex and the Critical Point

Author: John M. Beggs

Publisher: MIT Press

Published: 2022-08-30

Total Pages: 217

ISBN-13: 0262544032

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How the cerebral cortex operates near a critical phase transition point for optimum performance. Individual neurons have limited computational powers, but when they work together, it is almost like magic. Firing synchronously and then breaking off to improvise by themselves, they can be paradoxically both independent and interdependent. This happens near the critical point: when neurons are poised between a phase where activity is damped and a phase where it is amplified, where information processing is optimized, and complex emergent activity patterns arise. The claim that neurons in the cortex work best when they operate near the critical point is known as the criticality hypothesis. In this book John Beggs—one of the pioneers of this hypothesis—offers an introduction to the critical point and its relevance to the brain. Drawing on recent experimental evidence, Beggs first explains the main ideas underlying the criticality hypotheses and emergent phenomena. He then discusses the critical point and its two main consequences—first, scale-free properties that confer optimum information processing; and second, universality, or the idea that complex emergent phenomena, like that seen near the critical point, can be explained by relatively simple models that are applicable across species and scale. Finally, Beggs considers future directions for the field, including research on homeostatic regulation, quasicriticality, and the expansion of the cortex and intelligence. An appendix provides technical material; many chapters include exercises that use freely available code and data sets.

The Neurobiology of Brain and Behavioral Development
The Neurobiology of Brain and Behavioral Development

Author: Robbin Gibb

Publisher: Academic Press

Published: 2017-10-23

Total Pages: 497

ISBN-13: 012804084X

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The Neurobiology of Brain and Behavioral Development provides an overview of the process of brain development, including recent discoveries on how the brain develops. This book collates and integrates these findings, weaving the latest information with core information on the neurobiology of brain development. It focuses on cortical development, but also features discussions on how the other parts of the brain wire into the developing cerebral cortex. A systems approach is used to describe the anatomical underpinnings of behavioral development, connecting anatomical and molecular features of brain development with behavioral development.The disruptors of typical brain development are discussed in appropriate sections, as is the science of epigenetics that presents a novel and instructive approach on how experiences, both individual and intergenerational, can alter features of brain development. What distinguishes this book from others in the field is its focus on both molecular mechanisms and behavioral outcomes. This body of knowledge contributes to our understanding of the fundamentals of brain plasticity and metaplasticity, both of which are also showcased in this book. - Provides an up-to-date overview of the process of brain development that is suitable for use as a university textbook at an early graduate or senior undergraduate level - Breadth from molecular level (Chapters 5-7) to the behavioral/cognitive level (Chapters 8-12), beginning with Chapters 1-4 providing a historical context of the ideas - Integrates the neurobiology of brain development and behavior, promoting the idea that animal models inform human development - Presents an emphasis on the role of epigenetics and brain plasticity in brain development and behavior

Rewire Your Anxious Brain
Rewire Your Anxious Brain

Author: Catherine M. Pittman

Publisher: New Harbinger Publications

Published: 2015-01-02

Total Pages: 261

ISBN-13: 1626251150

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Do you ever wonder what is happening inside your brain when you feel anxious, panicked, and worried? In Rewire Your Anxious Brain, psychologist Catherine Pittman and author Elizabeth Karle offer a unique, evidence-based solution to overcoming anxiety based in cutting-edge neuroscience and research. In the book, you will learn how the amygdala and cortex (both important parts of the brain) are essential players in the neuropsychology of anxiety. The amygdala acts as a primal response, and oftentimes, when this part of the brain processes fear, you may not even understand why you are afraid. By comparison, the cortex is the center of “worry.” That is, obsessing, ruminating, and dwelling on things that may or may not happen. In the book, Pittman and Karle make it simple by offering specific examples of how to manage fear by tapping into both of these pathways in the brain. As you read, you’ll gain a greater understanding how anxiety is created in the brain, and as a result, you will feel empowered and motivated to overcome it. The brain is a powerful tool, and the more you work to change the way you respond to fear, the more resilient you will become. Using the practical self-assessments and proven-effective techniques in this book, you will learn to literally “rewire” the brain processes that lie at the root of your fears.

System-on-Chip Design with Arm® Cortex®-M Processors
System-on-Chip Design with Arm® Cortex®-M Processors

Author: Joseph Yiu

Publisher: Arm Education Media

Published: 2019-08-29

Total Pages: 334

ISBN-13: 9781911531180

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The Arm(R) Cortex(R)-M processors are already one of the most popular choices for loT and embedded applications. With Arm Flexible Access and DesignStart(TM), accessing Arm Cortex-M processor IP is fast, affordable, and easy. This book introduces all the key topics that system-on-chip (SoC) and FPGA designers need to know when integrating a Cortex-M processor into their design, including bus protocols, bus interconnect, and peripheral designs. Joseph Yiu is a distinguished Arm engineer who began designing SoCs back in 2000 and has been a leader in this field for nearly twenty years. Joseph's book takes an expert look at what SoC designers need to know when incorporating Cortex-M processors into their systems. He discusses the on-chip bus protocol specifications (AMBA, AHB, and APB), used by Arm processors and a wide range of on-chip digital components such as memory interfaces, peripherals, and debug components. Software development and advanced design considerations are also covered. The journey concludes with 'Putting the system together', a designer's eye view of a simple microcontroller-like design based on the Cortex-M3 processor (DesignStart) that uses the components that you will have learned to create.

The Leading Brain
The Leading Brain

Author: Friederike Fabritius

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2017-02-21

Total Pages: 338

ISBN-13: 1101993200

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A cutting-edge guide to applying the latest research in brain science to leadership - to sharpen performance, encourage innovation, and enhance job satisfaction. **Featured on NPR, Success, Investor Business Daily, Thrive Global, MindBodyGreen, The Chicago Tribune, and more** There's a revolution taking place that most businesses are still unaware of. The understanding of how our brains work has radically shifted, exploding long-held myths about our everyday cognitive performance and fundamentally changing the way we engage and succeed in the workplace. Combining their expertise in both neuropsychology and management consulting, neuropsychologist Friederike Fabritius and leadership expert Dr. Hans W. Hagemann present simple yet powerful strategies for: - Sharpening focus - Achieving the highest performance - Learning and retaining information more efficiently - Improving complex decision-making - Cultivating trust and building strong teams Based on the authors' popular leadership programs, which have been delivered to tens of thousands of leaders all over the world, this clear, insightful, and engaging book will help both individuals and teams perform at their maximum potential, delivering extraordinary results. **Named a Best Business Book of 2017 by Strategy+Business**

The Cerebral Cortex in Neurodegenerative and Neuropsychiatric Disorders
The Cerebral Cortex in Neurodegenerative and Neuropsychiatric Disorders

Author: David F. Cechetto

Publisher: Academic Press

Published: 2016-10-14

Total Pages: 342

ISBN-13: 0128019565

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The Cerebral Cortex in Neurodegenerative and Neuropsychiatric Disorders: Experimental Approaches to Clinical Issues focuses on how pre-clinical investigations are addressing the clinical issues surrounding the involvement of the cerebral cortex in selected conditions of the nervous system, including Alzheimer's Disease, Parkinson's, addiction, and cardiovascular dysregulation. Each chapter is written by an expert in his/her field who provides a comprehensive review of the clinical manifestations of cortical involvement and experimental techniques currently available to tackle cortical issues in disease. Thus, this present title provides a link between cortical clinical problems and investigational approaches to help foster future research with high translational value. - Offers a comprehensive overview on the best available in vivo and in vitro models to study cortical involvement - Presents models and specific techniques that help to guide investigators in their choices on how to address research questions experimentally - Provides expert commentary and a perspective on future trends at the end of each chapter - Addresses translational advances and promising therapeutic options - Includes references to key articles for additional detailed study

Conn's Translational Neuroscience
Conn's Translational Neuroscience

Author: P. Michael Conn

Publisher: Academic Press

Published: 2016-09-28

Total Pages: 778

ISBN-13: 0128025964

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Conn's Translational Neuroscience provides a comprehensive overview reflecting the depth and breadth of the field of translational neuroscience, with input from a distinguished panel of basic and clinical investigators. Progress has continued in understanding the brain at the molecular, anatomic, and physiological levels in the years following the 'Decade of the Brain,' with the results providing insight into the underlying basis of many neurological disease processes. This book alternates scientific and clinical chapters that explain the basic science underlying neurological processes and then relates that science to the understanding of neurological disorders and their treatment. Chapters cover disorders of the spinal cord, neuronal migration, the autonomic nervous system, the limbic system, ocular motility, and the basal ganglia, as well as demyelinating disorders, stroke, dementia and abnormalities of cognition, congenital chromosomal and genetic abnormalities, Parkinson's disease, nerve trauma, peripheral neuropathy, aphasias, sleep disorders, and myasthenia gravis. In addition to concise summaries of the most recent biochemical, physiological, anatomical, and behavioral advances, the chapters summarize current findings on neuronal gene expression and protein synthesis at the molecular level. Authoritative and comprehensive, Conn's Translational Neuroscience provides a fully up-to-date and readily accessible guide to brain functions at the cellular and molecular level, as well as a clear demonstration of their emerging diagnostic and therapeutic importance. - Provides a fully up-to-date and readily accessible guide to brain functions at the cellular and molecular level, while also clearly demonstrating their emerging diagnostic and therapeutic importance - Features contributions from leading global basic and clinical investigators in the field - Provides a great resource for researchers and practitioners interested in the basic science underlying neurological processes - Relates and translates the current science to the understanding of neurological disorders and their treatment

Cerebral Cortex
Cerebral Cortex

Author: Edmund T. Rolls

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2016

Total Pages: 979

ISBN-13: 0198784856

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This book provides insights into the principles of operation of the cerebral cortex. These principles are key to understanding how we, as humans, function. The book includes Appendices on the operation of many of the neuronal networks described in the book, together with simulation software written in Matlab.