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In 1980, Richard Cytowic was having dinner at a friend's house, when his host exclaimed, "Oh, dear, there aren't enough points on the chicken." With that casual comment began Cytowic's journey into the condition known as synesthesia.The ten people in one million who are synesthetes are born into a world where one sensation (such as sound) conjures up one or more others (such as taste or color).
Although scientists have known about synesthesia for two hundred years, until now the condition has remained a mystery. Extensive experiments with more than forty synesthetes led Richard Cytowic to an explanation of synesthesia--and to a new conception of the organization of the mind, one that emphasized the primacy of emotion over reason.Because there were not enough points on chicken served at a dinner almost two decades ago, Cytowic came to explore a deeper reality that he believes exists in all individuals, but usually below the surface of awareness. In this medical detective adventure, he reveals the brain to be an active explorer, not just a passive receiver, and offers a new view of what it means to be human--a view that turns upside down conventional ideas about reason, emotion, and who we are.*
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| Foreword to the MIT Press Edition | ||
| List of Illustrations and Tables | ||
| Acknowledgements | ||
| Pt. 1 | A Medical Mystery Tale | |
| 1 | February 10, 1980: Not Enough Points on the Chicken | 3 |
| 2 | The World Turned Inside Out | 6 |
| 3 | 1957-Down in the Basement: The Making of a Neurologist | 9 |
| 4 | How the Brain Works: The Standard View | 18 |
| 5 | Winters 1977 and 1978: "There Is Nothing Wrong With Your Eyes" | 26 |
| 6 | Direct Experience, Technology, and Inner Knowledge | 36 |
| 7 | March 25, 1980: Blinding Red Jaggers | 46 |
| 8 | Down in the Basement: The History of Synesthesia | 51 |
| 9 | April 10, 1980: "Taste This!" | 64 |
| 10 | Diagnosing Synesthesia | 73 |
| 11 | April 25, 1980: Where Is the Link? | 80 |
| 12 | Painting the Ceiling | 89 |
| 13 | Summer 1980: Bringing Things to a Close | 99 |
| 14 | September 1983: "Bizarre Medical Oddity Affects Millions!" | 111 |
| 15 | Form Constants and Explaining Ineffable Experiences | 118 |
| 16 | Altered States of Consciousness | 127 |
| 17 | May 21, 1981: Taking Drugs | 138 |
| 18 | June 29, 1981: Bride of Frankenstein, Revisited | 144 |
| 19 | How the Brain Works: The New View | 153 |
| 20 | The Implications of Synesthesia | 163 |
| 21 | October 5, 1982: The Reverend and Martinis | 172 |
| Pt. 2 | Essays on the Primacy of Emotion | |
| 1 | The Anthropic Principle | 186 |
| 2 | Free Lunch and Imagination | 189 |
| 3 | Consciousness Is a Type of Emotion | 194 |
| 4 | The Limits of Artificial Intelligence | 197 |
| 5 | Different Kinds of Knowledge | 202 |
| 6 | The Experience of Metaphor | 206 |
| 7 | Emotion Has a Logic of Its Own | 211 |
| 8 | Other People's Experience | 216 |
| 9 | The Depth at Which We Really Live | 218 |
| 10 | Reason Is the Endless Paperwork of the Mind | 222 |
| 11 | Science and Spirituality | 225 |
| Afterword | 231 | |
| Notes | 257 | |
| Suggested Reading | 268 | |
| Index | 271 |
Anonymous
Posted June 7, 2002
Easy to read for anyone with a basic knowledge of science. It is a very interesting book and I would recommend it to anyone.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted April 23, 2001
The conclusions are unremarkable in the context of Perennial Wisdom, but in reaching them from a neurological perspective the book illustrates a fascinating triumph of science over Scientism.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted July 12, 2010
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Overview
In 1980, Richard Cytowic was having dinner at a friend's house, when his host exclaimed, "Oh, dear, there aren't enough points on the chicken." With that casual comment began Cytowic's journey into the condition known as synesthesia.The ten people in one million who are synesthetes are born into a world where one sensation (such as sound) conjures up one or more others (such as taste or color).
Although scientists have known about synesthesia for two hundred years, until now the...