Minds Behind The Brain A History Of The Pioneers And Their Discoveries

Download or read book Minds behind the Brain : A History of the Pioneers and Their Discoveries written by Department of Psychology Washington University Stanley Finger Professor and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2000-03-02 with total page 380 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Attractively illustrated with over a hundred halftones and drawings, this volume presents a series of vibrant profiles that trace the evolution of our knowledge about the brain. Beginning almost 5000 years ago, with the ancient Egyptian study of "the marrow of the skull," Stanley Finger takes us on a fascinating journey from the classical world of Hippocrates, to the time of Descartes and the era of Broca and Ramon y Cajal, to modern researchers such as Sperry. Here is a truly remarkable cast of characters. We meet Galen, a man of titanic ego and abrasive disposition, whose teachings dominated medicine for a thousand years; Vesalius, a contemporary of Copernicus, who pushed our understanding of human anatomy to new heights; Otto Loewi, pioneer in neurotransmitters, who gave the Nazis his Nobel prize money and fled Austria for England; and Rita Levi-Montalcini, discoverer of nerve growth factor, who in war-torn Italy was forced to do her research in her bedroom. For each individual, Finger examines the philosophy, the tools, the books, and the ideas that brought new insights. Finger also looks at broader topics--how dependent are researchers on the work of others? What makes the time ripe for discovery? And what role does chance or serendipity play? And he includes many fascinating background figures as well, from Leonardo da Vinci and Emanuel Swedenborg to Karl August Weinhold--who claimed to have reanimated a dead cat by filling its skull with silver and zinc--and Mary Shelley, whose Frankenstein was inspired by such experiments. Wide ranging in scope, imbued with an infectious spirit of adventure, here are vivid portraits of giants in the field of neuroscience--remarkable individuals who found new ways to think about the machinery of the mind.

Download or read book Minds Behind the Brain written by Stanley Finger and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2000 with total page 379 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Illustrated with over a hundred halftones and drawings, this volume presents a series of profiles that trace the evolution of our knowledge about the brain. Beginning with the ancient Egyptian study of the marrow of the skull, it takes us on a journey from the classical world of Hippocrates to modern researchers such as Sperry.

Download or read book Minds Behind the Brain written by Stanley Finger and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2004-12-30 with total page 364 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Traces the study of the brain from the ancient Egyptians, through the classical world of Hippocrates, the time of Descartes, and the era of Broca, to modern researchers such as Sperry, and examines their sources and tools.

Download or read book A History of the Brain written by Andrew P. Wickens and published by Psychology Press. This book was released on 2014-12-08 with total page 405 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A History of the Brain tells the full story of neuroscience, from antiquity to the present day. It describes how we have come to understand the biological nature of the brain, beginning in prehistoric times, and progressing to the twentieth century with the development of Modern Neuroscience. This is the first time a history of the brain has been written in a narrative way, emphasizing how our understanding of the brain and nervous system has developed over time, with the development of the disciplines of anatomy, pharmacology, physiology, psychology and neurosurgery. The book covers: beliefs about the brain in ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome the Medieval period, Renaissance and Enlightenment the nineteenth century the most important advances in the twentieth century and future directions in neuroscience. The discoveries leading to the development of modern neuroscience gave rise to one of the most exciting and fascinating stories in the whole of science. Written for readers with no prior knowledge of the brain or history, the book will delight students, and will also be of great interest to researchers and lecturers with an interest in understanding how we have arrived at our present knowledge of the brain.

Download or read book Origins of Neuroscience written by Stanley Finger and published by . This book was released on 2001 with total page 484 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With over 350 illustrations, this impressive volume traces the rich history of ideas about the functioning of the brain from its roots in the ancient cultures of Egypt, Greece, and Rome through the centuries into relatively modern times. In contrast to biographically oriented accounts, this book is unique in its emphasis on the functions of the brain and how they came to be associated with specific brain regions and systems. Among the topics explored are vision, hearing, pain, motor control, sleep, memory, speech, and various other facets of intellect. The emphasis throughout is on presenting material in a very readable way, while describing with scholarly acumen the historical evolution of the field in all its amazing wealth and detail. From the opening introductory chapters to the concluding look at treatments and therapies, this monumental work will captivate readers from cover to cover. It will be valued as both an historical reference and as an exciting tale of scientificdiscovery. It is bound to attract a wide readership among students and professionals in the neural sciences as well as general readers interested in the history of science and medicine.

Download or read book Social written by Matthew D. Lieberman and published by Crown. This book was released on 2013-10-08 with total page 390 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We are profoundly social creatures--more than we know. In Social, renowned psychologist Matthew Lieberman explores groundbreaking research in social neuroscience revealing that our need to connect with other people is even more fundamental, more basic, than our need for food or shelter. Because of this, our brain uses its spare time to learn about the social world--other people and our relation to them. It is believed that we must commit 10,000 hours to master a skill. According to Lieberman, each of us has spent 10,000 hours learning to make sense of people and groups by the time we are ten. Social argues that our need to reach out to and connect with others is a primary driver behind our behavior. We believe that pain and pleasure alone guide our actions. Yet, new research using fMRI--including a great deal of original research conducted by Lieberman and his UCLA lab--shows that our brains react to social pain and pleasure in much the same way as they do to physical pain and pleasure. Fortunately, the brain has evolved sophisticated mechanisms for securing our place in the social world. We have a unique ability to read other people’s minds, to figure out their hopes, fears, and motivations, allowing us to effectively coordinate our lives with one another. And our most private sense of who we are is intimately linked to the important people and groups in our lives. This wiring often leads us to restrain our selfish impulses for the greater good. These mechanisms lead to behavior that might seem irrational, but is really just the result of our deep social wiring and necessary for our success as a species. Based on the latest cutting edge research, the findings in Social have important real-world implications. Our schools and businesses, for example, attempt to minimalize social distractions. But this is exactly the wrong thing to do to encourage engagement and learning, and literally shuts down the social brain, leaving powerful neuro-cognitive resources untapped. The insights revealed in this pioneering book suggest ways to improve learning in schools, make the workplace more productive, and improve our overall well-being.

Download or read book Seven Views of Mind written by Lise Wallach and published by Psychology Press. This book was released on 2012-10-12 with total page 130 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title 2013! This book examines seven different answers to the question, "What are we talking about when we talk about the mind?" It begins by considering the dualistic view, frequently taken for granted by students, that words like "belief," "anger," and "jealousy" refer to a realm quite distinct from the physical world, and notes the difficulties associated with this view as well as why many find it compelling. The book then describes six further major views of mind alternative to dualism that have been developed by psychologists, philosophers, and neuroscientists: Some claim that such words are just about behavior. Some claim that such words are theoretical constructs, like "quarks" in physics. Some identify the mind with the brain or with a kind of program in the brain like the software in a computer. Some think there is nothing to which such words refer. Some think mental talk reflects nothing but convention. Students in psychology learn about different views of mind in various courses, but they tend to be left on their own to deal with the conflicts among them. How to conceive of mind is usually addressed in the context not of psychology but of philosophy, where it tends to be treated in ways that may seem esoteric to psychology students. Seldom discussed in one place, this book presents all seven views and the reasons for and against each in a relatively nontechnical, informal manner designed to appeal to psychology students and their instructors, permitting comparisons and possible resolutions.