Mysteries of the Mind

An Alchemy of Mind: The Marvel and Mystery of the Brain. Diane Ackerman. NY: Scribner, 2004. 320pp. $25.00. ISBN 0-7432-4672-1.
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Alchemy, the fantastic process of transmutation, is the metaphor used by the author to describe the internally lived world of the mind. Alchemy also describes the author's ability to transform the written word into a phantasmagorical journey of art and science. The reader experiences the excitement and thrill of exploration of one's internal landscape. Ackerman skillfully weaves literature, metaphor, self exploration, and scientific discoveries together to create an intricate pattern of examination of the mind. By combining detailed descriptions of neuroscientific findings, often at the cellular level, with the internal musings of her own experience and the literary descriptions of others, she has created a masterful description of how the mind works and encourages us to seek further discoveries in the vast frontier portrayed by the mind. This book is an interesting, insightful, and intriguing read.

The Birth of the Mind: How a Tiny Number of Genes Creates the Complexities of Human Thought. Gary Marcus. (Illus.) NY: Basic Books, 2004. 240pp. $26.00. ISBN 0-465-04405-0.
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My own definition of "the mind" is "what the brain does for a living," and I think that the author of this volume would agree with this definition in principle. Understand this concept and you are well on your way to understanding this terrific book. First of all, the author approaches the concept of "mind" with a well-balanced point of view. From the opening chapter, "Neither is Better?", he demonstrates how the human mind is a product of both genetics and environment. The book is well annotated, with excellent references and a valuable glossary. I highly recommend it to everyone who is interested in this subject and applaud the author for making a very complicated, but fascinating, subject quite readable.

A Brief History of the Mind: From Apes to Intellect and Beyond. William H. Calvin. (Illus.) NY: Oxford, 2004. xx+220pp. $26.00. ISBN 0-19-515907-1. Index; C.I.P.
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William H. Calvin's A Brief History of the Mind is an excellent overview of the human mind, how it developed, and where it may go from here. Calvin starts his history 7 million years ago and tells a story of how the mind developed as nonhuman primates evolved to hominids and then to humans. His journey highlights numerous milestones in the evolution of the mind, the brain, and cognition, building toward a "Big Bang of the Mind" and hypothesizing about the future of Homo sapiens' minds. Calvin's attention to detail as he chronicles this history is superb. He provides definitions to help laypersons orient themselves, and he gives specific examples of research to support his hypotheses. His style of writing engages the reader immediately, so the book reads almost like a novel--one with an excellent story line and a not-so-predictable ending.

A Brief Tour of Human Consciousness. V.S. Ramachandran. (Illus.) NY: Pi Press, 2004. xiv+192pp. $23.95. ISBN 0-13-148686-1. Index; C.I.P.
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This brief, but highly informative, book contains a wealth of information about several aspects of brain function in an attempt to inform a general audience about some aspects of neuroscience. The author, who has impeccable credentials, is very highly regarded in this field. His expertise arises from clinical work with patients with actual brain injuries, and that adds a sense of reality to the book. The book is really not for the average person; however, the reader who has some background in neuroscience or truly applies him- or herself will be justly rewarded by the insights the author provides.

How Brains Make Up Their Minds. Walter J. Freeman. (From the Maps of the Mind Series.) NY: Columbia University Press, 2001. 172pp. $24.95. ISBN 0231120087. Index; C.I.P.
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In this book's pages, the author seeks to describe the physical basis of consciousness. He begins with a fairly philosophical discussion of the arguments for and against free will and then proceeds to discussions involving neuroanatomy and neurophysiology. After laying down some scientific basics, he describes his own theory of consciousness, using a variety of arguments gleaned from supporting evidence. The basic science presented seems sound, and there is a fair amount of discussion of the philosophy of science and how the scientific approach and society interface.

The Oxford Companion to the Mind, Second Edition. Richard Gregory (Ed.). (Illus.) NY: Oxford, 2004. 1024pp. $75.00. ISBN 0-19-866224-6. Glossary; Index; C.I.P.
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The second edition of The Oxford Companion to the Mind is one of those texts that one wishes for enough hours in the day to read from cover to cover. This book is a single-volume 1004-page encyclopedia describing the ideas, studies, and individuals involved in the study of the "universe in our heads", the mind. Entries are organized alphabetically with a great deal of cross-referencing within this book. Included are entries that you would expect in a survey of the mind, such as brain development, Freud, and schizophrenia. However, more than a few entries are surprising but still fascinating, such as computer chess, manners, and tickling. For those interested in the mind, this is a wonderful reference and a resource for learning more about themselves.

The Oxford Guide to the Mind: Understand the Everyday Mysteries of the Human Mind. Geoffrey Underwood (Ed). (Illus.) NY: Oxford, 2001. 245pp. $19.95. ISBN 0198600836. Index; C.I.P.
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This book represents an attempt to describe those human brain functions which are generally considered to be mental. The editor introduces each chapter with an overview, and experts writing sections of each make the information timely and accurate. The material is most worthwhile for the interested person with some background knowledge. The alphabetic listing of entries makes it easy to find a specific topic, but the book lacks references such as a bibliography or a list of Web sites that would enable the reader to pursue any topic in more depth. On the whole, however, this book serves as a good introduction to a highly complex subject.

The Private Life of the Brain: Emotions, Consciousness, and the Secret of the Self. Susan Greenfield. Washington, DC: Wiley, 2000. xi+258pp. $27.95. ISBN 0471183431. Index; C.I.P.
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As our scientific understanding of the brain advances, neuroscientists find themselves pondering questions that were once the exclusive purview of philosophers. What is the mind? What constitutes consciousness? Such are the heady questions posed by a neuroscientist in this intriguing book. Like the philosophers before them, neuroscientists also run into the vexing problems of materialism, mind-body dualism, reductionism, and the nature-vs.-nurture debate. Author Susan Greenfield is to be commended for stimulating a new approach to these issues. Probably because the author is a scientist, the scientific discussions are well developed and heavily referenced. Complicated scientific principles of neurochemistry are rendered understandable to the general reader.

The Seven Sins of Memory: How the Mind Forgets and Remembers. Daniel L. Schacter. NY: Houghton Mifflin, 2001. 288pp. $24.00. ISBN 0618040196. Index; C.I.P.
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In this book, Schacter organizes and integrates the vast and complex literature on memory into a coherent, lucid, and entertaining story. After detailing the psychological and biological evidence for seven ways in which memory fails us, Schacter uses evolutionary theory to show how the "sins are by-products of otherwise adaptive features of memory, a price we pay for processes and functions that serve us well in many respects" (p. 184). The results of experimental studies are illustrated by a colorful array of real-world and literary examples. Whereas the researcher will find a novel integration of the recent and historical scientific literature into the "seven sins" framework, the book is written in a conversational style that assumes little and is fully accessible to nonspecialists as well.

What Makes You Tick? The Brain in Plain English. Thomas B. Czerner, M.D. (Illus.) Washington, DC: Wiley, 2001. 240pp. $24.95. ISBN 0471371009. Index; C.I.P.
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What Makes You Tick? The Brain in Plain English is a nice little book that is written just as the title suggests. The book takes a very "from-the-ground-up approach," assuming little knowledge on the part of the reader; then it builds as it goes along and finishes with some sophisticated concepts on brain function. The book would be well suited to those of the general public who are interested in brain science. It could also be used in high school science classes to give the more advanced student an insight into neuroscience. The volume would probably not serve well as a stand-alone textbook for a course. It would be an excellent addition to a public library.

Wider Than the Sky: The Phenomenal Gift of Consciousness. Gerald M. Edelman. (Illus.) New Haven, CT: Yale, 2004. 185pp. $24.00. ISBN 0-300-10229-1. Index.
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Edelmans' Wider Than the Sky: The Phenomenal Gift of Consciousness is a discussion of human consciousness from a biological and philosophical viewpoint. The book begins with a historical perspective on the study of consciousness followed by some definitions of consciousness. A basic description of the brain, including how experiences alter it, is followed by a discussion of memory and how all of these elements play a role in consciousness. The author intends for this slim volume to be read by anyone, regardless of his or her experience with science. Edelman does accomplish this; however, the ideas described are complex and require close study to gain a basic understanding.