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Who am “I”?
How is happiness achieved?
What is the key to memory?
How do babies become adults?
Is personality determined?
What function do emotions serve?
Are we hardwired to be moral?
The mind is a riddle that has vexed philosophers, psychologists, biologists, and artists for thousands of years. In this invaluable volume, John Brockman, editor and publisher of Edge, gathers the world’s most influential scientists and thinkers to present their deepest thoughts and cutting-edge theories in short, accessible essays about the essential aspects of human consciousness and the complex workings of the brain.
Contributors and topics include
Steven Pinker on how the human brain works • Martin Seligman on happiness and what it means to live a good life • Philip Zimbardo on the impact of environment on personality • V. S. Ramachandran on the question of self—who “you” are • Simon Baron-Cohen on the innate differences between boys and girls • George Lakoff on the role of the body and brain on different types of reasoning • Alison Gopnik on why human children are the best learning machines in the universe • Jonathan Haidt on the connection between emotions, morality, and religious belief
Introduction ix
1 Organs of Computation Steven Pinker 1
2 Phïlosophy in the Flesh George Lakoff 11
3 Parallel Memories: Putting Emotions Back into the Brain Joseph Ledoux 31
4 Sexual Selection and the Mind Geoffrey Miller 49
5 Rescuing Memory Steven Rose 63
6 How Is Personality Formed? Frank Sulloway 79
7 Mirror Neurons and Imitation Learning as the Driving Force Behind "the Great Leap Forward" in Human Evolution V. S. Ramachandran 101
8 A Self Worth Having Nicholas Humphrey 113
9 You Can't Be a Sweet Cucumber in a Vinegar Barrel Philip Zimbardo 129
10 The Neurology of Self-Awareness V. S. Ramachandran 147
11 Eudaemonia: The Good Life Martin Seligman 153
12 What Are Numbers, Really? A Cerebral Basis for Number Sense Stanislas Dehaene 169
13 The Assortative Mating Theory Simon Baron-Cohen 181
14 Toxo: The Parasite that Is Manipulating Human Behavior Robert Sapolsky 191
15 Amazing Babies Alison Gopnik 201
16 Signatures of Consciousness Stanislas Dehaene 217
17 How Can Educated People Continue to Be Radical Environmentalists? David Lykken 239
18 Moral Psychology and the Misunderstanding of Religion Jonathan Haidt 251
Anonymous
Posted October 22, 2011
No text was provided for this review.
Overview
Who am “I”?
How is happiness achieved?
What is the key to memory?
How do babies become adults?
Is personality determined?
What function do emotions serve?
Are we hardwired to be moral?
The mind is a riddle that has vexed philosophers, psychologists, biologists, and artists...