The Human Brain Book: An Illustrated Guide to its Structure, Function, and Disorders

The Human Brain Book: An Illustrated Guide to its Structure, Function, and Disorders

by Rita Carter
ISBN-10:
1465416021
ISBN-13:
9781465416025
Pub. Date:
03/03/2014
Publisher:
DK
ISBN-10:
1465416021
ISBN-13:
9781465416025
Pub. Date:
03/03/2014
Publisher:
DK
The Human Brain Book: An Illustrated Guide to its Structure, Function, and Disorders

The Human Brain Book: An Illustrated Guide to its Structure, Function, and Disorders

by Rita Carter
$40.0 Current price is , Original price is $40.0. You
$40.00 
  • SHIP THIS ITEM
    This item is available online through Marketplace sellers.
  • PICK UP IN STORE
    Check Availability at Nearby Stores
$12.62 
  • SHIP THIS ITEM

    Temporarily Out of Stock Online

    Please check back later for updated availability.

    • Condition: Good
    Note: Access code and/or supplemental material are not guaranteed to be included with used textbook.

This item is available online through Marketplace sellers.


Overview

Combining the latest findings from neuroscience with new brain imaging techniques, as well as developments on infant brains, telepathy, and brain modification, this new edition of DK's The Human Brain Book covers brain anatomy, function, and disorders in unprecedented detail.

With its unique 22-page atlas, illustrated with MRI scans, and an interactive DVD, The Human Brain Book is a perfect resource for families, students, or anyone interested in human biology, anatomy, and neuroscience.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781465416025
Publisher: DK
Publication date: 03/03/2014
Pages: 264
Product dimensions: 10.20(w) x 11.90(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Rita Carter is a science and medical writer who contributes to many publications, including New Scientist and numerous newspapers. She has twice been awarded the Medical Journalists' Association prize for her outstanding contribution to medical journalism. She is the author of several books that have been published internationally, including Consciousness, Multiplicity: The New Science of Personality and Mapping the Mind, which was shortlisted for the Rhône-Poulenc Prize (now the Royal Society Prize for Science Books). Rita also lectures about the brain at seminars, conferences, and workshops around the world.

Interviews

A Conversation with Rita Carter, author of The Human Brain Book

1. What made you interested in undertaking the massive creation of this book? What were your biggest challenges in making sure everything was included?

In the last ten years brain science has revealed astonishing things about the way we think, feel and behave. It has shown how we generate emotions like, fear, joy, and anger, provided explanations for otherwise mysterious faculties like altruism, empathy and love, shown why and how we each think and act differently, and helped us understand what goes wrong with our minds, and why.

I believe, passionately, that people should know about all this, because it affects every area of our lives. So my plan with this book was to cover the whole field of neuroscience in a way that makes it understandable to everyone, even those with no knowledge or interest in science.

It was difficult to get everything in because there has been such an explosion of knowledge and things are still moving at a ferocious pace. But I think we have succeeded in making The Human Brain Book as comprehensive and up-to-date as is possible and I'm terrifically proud to be associated with it.

2. What do you find to be the most intriguing or surprising function of the brain?

Far and away the most amazing thing the brain does is generate consciousness. We take our awareness of our own perceptions and feelings so much for granted that we rarely question how a lump of electro-chemically charged flesh can produce it. Neuroscience hasn't answered that one yet - but it has given us some intriguing clues.

3. Can you briefly offer yourthoughts on the efficacy of creating implantable "memory chips" in the brains of those with failing memories?

It is already possible to implant brain "pacemakers" which can fix damaged brain functions: there are some that can turn the symptoms of Parkinson's Disease on and off, for example, and experiments are being made with similar devices to control Tourette Syndrome and depression.
Memory failure poses greater problems because memory is so complicated. I think it will be possible, perhaps quite soon, to improve working memory function - that is, the ability to hold things in mind short-term, I am less sure that a chip of some sort could help maintain and retrieve long term memories because these are distributed throughout the brain. My bet is that drugs will remain a better bet for that aspect of memory improvement.

4. Brain science has shown that we sometimes start to follow through with actions before we actually decide to do them. How do you see the resulting implications of the idea of freewill, and does this change how we ultimately see ourselves as human beings?

I think the notion of freewill will eventually go the same way as the idea of the eternal soul . . . . We'll come to recognize it as a rather unhelpful illusion. People want to hang on to it, I think because they feel it makes us humans "special" - a sort of conceit. But l think it is good for us to recognize that we are just like any other creature or, indeed, any other object We can't decide what we do any more than a raindrop can decide to fall upwards- what seems to be a decision to act is really just a sort of "advance warning" of what we are about to do anyway..

The implications of this realization can't be over-stated. For a start we will have completely rethink our ideas about criminal justice: how can you punish people for actions over which they no control? We will have to develop more kindly ways of maintaining social control.

The freewill issue is already impacting on the way law is practiced and in the next few years I think it will start to affect every area of public and private life, from the way we bring up our children to the way we deal with global issues. It's not just a scientific revolution, but a cultural one.

5. Can brain imaging really spot a potential terrorist? If so, how? How reliable are brain scans for detecting potential behaviors?

Brain imaging can reveal things like deceit, aggression, hatred, intention and fear - that is, brain states that a potential terrorist is likely to have at some stage. But of course, this isn't the same as spotting a terrorist, so the technology would always have to be used with great discretion.

I do think it will prove useful though, in detection work. Studies suggest that in certain circumstances, brain imaging can reveal when a person is lying almost 100% of the time. And that's a lot better than your average jury member!

6. How are chemicals in the brain linked to obesity, eating disorders and addictive behaviors like gambling, drinking and smoking?

Every compulsion - over-eating, uncontrolled gambling, excessive drinking - is underpinned by brain activity which is modulated by chemicals. So if you can control those chemicals you can control the behavior- even it was originally brought about by something that happened in the person's childhood, or some stressful event in their present life.

People often argue that its best to treat the "root" cause, rather than trying some quick pharmaceutical fix, but I believe that if you first tackle the immediate, chemical cause of harmful behavior you can then deal more effectively with the deeper causes.- if there are any. In many cases the chemistry IS the problem: in most people, for example, brain chemistry constantly urges them to eat more than they need. Once that was very useful for survival because, in a world where food was scarce it pushed people to find enough. Now it pushes us to empty the food cupboard. If we want to solve the obesity crisis before we eat ourselves to death I think a chemical "fix" for the obesity crisis would be a great- and perhaps the only -solution.


7. Can you explain what the "Haunted Brain" is?

I use this phrase to mean our brain's natural inclination towards magic, superstition, and fantasy. They are the faculties that make us imaginative, creative and filled with wonder - but they also cause us to see ghosts, invent gods and suffer hallucinations. I am fascinated by this double-edged aspect of brain function, and I think it explains an enormous amount about us. Hence I have included the latest experimental work on the subject in the book and I think it makes astonishing reading.

8. The meaning and function of dreaming have always been popular topics. Can you briefly deconstruct the most recent scientific advances in our understanding of the dreaming process?

For a long time the scientific consensus was that dreams were meaningless, but the latest studies show that they really do reflect our waking concerns in ways that are useful to analyze. And we are starting to understand why dreams take the ridiculous form they do, and why we don't stop to question them.

9. What is next on your plate?

I'm becoming increasingly interested in the inner lives of other animals. Recent studies make it clear that in many ways we are not as different from other species as like to believe: animals also seem to have intense, conscious emotions, complicated social interactions and sometimes extraordinarily high intelligence. My next plan is to draw this work together and take a fresh look at animal minds.

From the B&N Reads Blog

Customer Reviews