|
|
List Price: $16.00Amazon.com's Price: $10.88 You Save: $5.12 (32%)Prices subject to change.
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
This item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping.
Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 612.82
EAN: 9780688172176
ISBN: 0688172172
Label: Harper Perennial
Manufacturer: Harper Perennial
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 352
Publication Date: September 07, 1999
Publisher: Harper Perennial
Release Date: August 18, 1999
Studio: Harper Perennial
Editorial Review:
Amazon.com Review:
What would you say about a woman who, despite stroke-induced paralysis crippling the entire left side of her body, insists that she is whole and strong--who even sees her left hand reach out to grasp objects? Freud called it "denial"; neurologists call it "anosognosia." However it may be labeled, this phenomenon and others like it allow us peeks into other mental worlds and afford us considerable insight into our own.
The writings of Oliver Sacks and others have shown us that we can learn much about ourselves by looking closely at the deficits shown by people with neurological problems. V.S. Ramachandran has seen countless patients suffering from anosognosia, phantom limb pain, blindsight, and other disorders, and he brings a remarkable mixture of clinical intuition and research savvy to bear on their problems. He is one of the few scientists who are able and willing to explore the personal, subjective ramifications of his work; he rehumanizes an often too-sterile field and captures the spirit of wonder so essential for true discovery. Phantoms in the Brain is equal parts medical mystery, scientific adventure, and philosophical speculation; Ramachandran's writing is smart, caring, and very, very funny.
Whether you're curious about the workings of the brain, interested in alternatives to expensive, high-tech science (much of Ramachandran's research is done with materials found around the home), or simply want a fresh perspective on the nature of human consciousness, you'll find satisfaction with Phantoms in the Brain. --Rob Lightner
Product Description:
Neuroscientist V.S. Ramachandran is internationally renowned for uncovering answers to the deep and quirky questions of human nature that few scientists have dared to address. His bold insights about the brain are matched only by the stunning simplicity of his experiments -- using such low-tech tools as cotton swabs, glasses of water and dime-store mirrors. In Phantoms in the Brain, Dr. Ramachandran recounts how his work with patients who have bizarre neurological disorders has shed new light on the deep architecture of the brain, and what these findings tell us about who we are, how we construct our body image, why we laugh or become depressed, why we may believe in God, how we make decisions, deceive ourselves and dream, perhaps even why we're so clever at philosophy, music and art. Some of his most notable cases:
- A woman paralyzed on the left side of her body who believes she is lifting a tray of drinks with both hands offers a unique opportunity to test Freud's theory of denial.
- A man who insists he is talking with God challenges us to ask: Could we be "wired" for religious experience?
- A woman who hallucinates cartoon characters illustrates how, in a sense, we are all hallucinating, all the time.
Dr. Ramachandran's inspired medical detective work pushes the boundaries of medicine's last great frontier -- the human mind -- yielding new and provocative insights into the "big questions" about consciousness and the self.
Average Rating: 
Rating:  -
Diabetes: Sugar-Coated Crisis: Who Gets it, Who Profits and How to Stop it
This is a marvelous book, far deeper than most pop science and much more entertaining than any book I've read that reaches for such profound truths. I've been a health science writer for years -- see my books The Art of Getting Well and Diabetes: Sugar-coated Crisis on Amazon - and I've always taken a mind/body/social/environmental view. I thought my holistic approach gave a pretty complete picture. But ... Read More
Rating: -
This is one of the most interesting book about the brain I've ever read. Dr. Ramachandran teach every aspect in such a easy way, that you will love this book
Rating: -
Neurology and the field's bizarre unsolved problems are some of the most fascinating and intriguing things. I love reading and pondering on such things as "the Phantom Limb" - experiencing pain in amputated limbs, "Somatoparaphrenia" - the perception that one's limb(s) belong to someone else, "Cotard's syndrome" - the perception that one is dead, "Anosognosia" - the inability to perceive that one has physical defects, dispite obvious evidence to the contrary. These are just some of the intriguing ... Read More
Rating: -
Phantoms in the Brain is a summary of V.S. Ramachandran's experiences as a researcher in the field of neuroscience. In Phantoms in the Brain, Ramachandran combines personal anecdotes, well-designed experiments, and educated conjecture in an entertaining, well-written narrative suitable for anyone interested in discovering more about how the human mind works.
Phantoms is laid out in an easy-to-follow, consistent manner. In general, each chapter introduces a new case study, and Ramachandran ... Read More
Rating:  -
This book is a compilation of interesting clinical cases in neurosciences, brain injury and therapy, mainly unrelated to one another. You could easily read only those chapters of your interest.
It seemed to me that as "unifying thesis", the author chose the idea of the "self" and how it might be only a "phantom" of our brain, suggesting that the "unity" and individuality that we perceive as self might be an illusion created by the way our mind works. He illustrates how this illusion of unity ... Read More
|
