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| biology of the brain: Discovering the Brain National Academy of Sciences, Institute of Medicine, Sandra Ackerman, 1992-01-01 The brain ... There is no other part of the human anatomy that is so intriguing. How does it develop and function and why does it sometimes, tragically, degenerate? The answers are complex. In Discovering the Brain, science writer Sandra Ackerman cuts through the complexity to bring this vital topic to the public. The 1990s were declared the Decade of the Brain by former President Bush, and the neuroscience community responded with a host of new investigations and conferences. Discovering the Brain is based on the Institute of Medicine conference, Decade of the Brain: Frontiers in Neuroscience and Brain Research. Discovering the Brain is a field guide to the brainâ€an easy-to-read discussion of the brain's physical structure and where functions such as language and music appreciation lie. Ackerman examines: How electrical and chemical signals are conveyed in the brain. The mechanisms by which we see, hear, think, and pay attentionâ€and how a gut feeling actually originates in the brain. Learning and memory retention, including parallels to computer memory and what they might tell us about our own mental capacity. Development of the brain throughout the life span, with a look at the aging brain. Ackerman provides an enlightening chapter on the connection between the brain's physical condition and various mental disorders and notes what progress can realistically be made toward the prevention and treatment of stroke and other ailments. Finally, she explores the potential for major advances during the Decade of the Brain, with a look at medical imaging techniquesâ€what various technologies can and cannot tell usâ€and how the public and private sectors can contribute to continued advances in neuroscience. This highly readable volume will provide the public and policymakersâ€and many scientists as wellâ€with a helpful guide to understanding the many discoveries that are sure to be announced throughout the Decade of the Brain. |
| biology of the brain: Biology of the Brain Rodolfo R. Llinas, 1988 |
| biology of the brain: Ecology of the Brain Thomas Fuchs, 2018 Present day neuroscience places the brain at the centre of study. But what if researchers viewed the brain not as the foundation of life, rather as a mediating organ? Ecology of the Brain addresses this very question. It considers the human body as a collective, a living being which uses the brain to mediate interactions. Those interactions may be both within the human body and between the human body and its environment. Within this framework, the mind is seen not as a product of the brain but as an activity of the living being; an activity which integrates the brain within the everyday functions of the human body. Going further, Fuchs reformulates the traditional mind-brain problem, presenting it as a dual aspect of the living being: the lived body and the subjective body - the living body and the objective body. The processes of living and experiencing life, Fuchs argues, are in fact inextricably linked; it is not the brain, but the human being who feels, thinks and acts. For students and academics, Ecology of the Brain will be of interest to those studying or researching theory of mind, social and cultural interaction, psychiatry, and psychotherapy. |
| biology of the brain: The Art of Changing the Brain James E. Zull, 2023-07-03 Neuroscience tells us that the products of the mind--thought, emotions, artistic creation--are the result of the interactions of the biological brain with our senses and the physical world: in short, that thinking and learning are the products of a biological process.This realization, that learning actually alters the brain by changing the number and strength of synapses, offers a powerful foundation for rethinking teaching practice and one's philosophy of teaching.James Zull invites teachers in higher education or any other setting to accompany him in his exploration of what scientists can tell us about the brain and to discover how this knowledge can influence the practice of teaching. He describes the brain in clear non-technical language and an engaging conversational tone, highlighting its functions and parts and how they interact, and always relating them to the real world of the classroom and his own evolution as a teacher. The Art of Changing the Brain is grounded in the practicalities and challenges of creating effective opportunities for deep and lasting learning, and of dealing with students as unique learners. |
| biology of the brain: The Biological Mind Alan Jasanoff, 2018-03-13 A pioneering neuroscientist argues that we are more than our brains To many, the brain is the seat of personal identity and autonomy. But the way we talk about the brain is often rooted more in mystical conceptions of the soul than in scientific fact. This blinds us to the physical realities of mental function. We ignore bodily influences on our psychology, from chemicals in the blood to bacteria in the gut, and overlook the ways that the environment affects our behavior, via factors varying from subconscious sights and sounds to the weather. As a result, we alternately overestimate our capacity for free will or equate brains to inorganic machines like computers. But a brain is neither a soul nor an electrical network: it is a bodily organ, and it cannot be separated from its surroundings. Our selves aren't just inside our heads -- they're spread throughout our bodies and beyond. Only once we come to terms with this can we grasp the true nature of our humanity. |
| biology of the brain: Biology of the Brain Kent MacLeod, 2019-12-05 In The Biology of the Brain, Kent MacLeod, pharmacist, founder and CEO of NutriChem Compounding Pharmacy and Clinic, breaks down why modern medicine is killing people instead of healing them. Instead of leaving the problem as it stands... |
| biology of the brain: Mental Biology William Robert Klemm, 2014 A leading neuroscientist offers the latest research and many new ideas on the connections between brain circuitry and conscious experience. How the mysterious three-pound organ in our heads creates the rich array of human mental experience, including the sense of self and consciousness, is one of the great challenges of 21st-century science. Veteran neuroscientist W. R. Klemm presents the latest research findings on this elusive brain-mind connection in a lucidly presented, accessible, and engaging narrative. The author focuses on how mind emerges from nerve-impulse patterns in the densely-packed neural circuits that make up most of the brain, suggesting that conscious mind can be viewed as a sort of neural-activity-based avatar. As an entity in its own right, mind on the conscious level can have significant independent action, shaping the brain that sustains it through its plans, goals, interests, and interactions with the world. Thus, in a very literal sense, we become what we think. Against researchers who argue that conscious mind is merely a passive observer and free will an illusion, the author presents evidence showing that mental creativity, freedom to act, and personal responsibility are very real. He also delves into the role of dream sleep in both animals and humans, and explains the brain-based differences between nonconscious, unconscious, and conscious minds. Written in a jargon-free style understandable to the lay reader, this is a fascinating synthesis of recent neuroscience and intriguing hypotheses. |
| biology of the brain: Neuronal Guidance Marc Tessier-Lavigne, Alex Kolodkin, 2011 During the development of the brain growing nerves send out neuronal processes (axons and dendrites) that connect them to other nerve cells, sensory organs, and muscle tissue. Correct targeting of these is the basis for wiring of the entire nervous system and depends on attractive and repulsive molecular cues that guide the developing neurons to the appropriate destination. Written and edited by experts in the field, this collection from Cold Spring Harbor Perspectives in Biology examines the mechanisms underlying neuronal guidance and branching and their roles in the development and function of the nervous system. The contributors examine the major guidance cues and their receptors, the intracellular signaling pathways they activate, and their function in the context of important phenomena such as laminar organization and dendrite spacing. Other chapters consider the roles of guidance cues in development of neuronal circuits dedicated to the processing of particular sensory stimuli, such as the visual and olfactory systems. In addition, they cover the roles played by guidance cues and their receptors in neuronal regeneration and human genetic disorders, revealing important clinical implications of work in this field. The book also contains chapters discussing the function of guidance molecules in other processes, such as neuronal cell body migration, axon pruning, and regulation of neuronal cell death. In addition, it explores their roles outside the nervous system for example, in development of the vasculature. This volume is thus of general interest to cell and developmental biologists, as well as all neurobiologists interested in how the nervous system develops and functions. |
| biology of the brain: Meaningful Information Anthony Reading, 2011-06-16 The book introduces a radically new way of thinking about information and the important role it plays in living systems. It opens up new avenues for exploring how cells and organisms change and adapt, since the ability to detect and respond to meaningful information is the key that enables them to receive their genetic heritage, regulate their internal milieu, and respond to changes in their environment. It also provides a way of resolving Descartes’ dilemma by explaining the workings of the brain in non-mechanical terms that are not tainted by spiritual or metaphysical beliefs. The types of meaningful information that different species and different cell types are able to detect are finely matched to the ecosystem in which they live, for natural selection has shaped what they need to know to function effectively in those circumstances. Biological detection and response systems range from the chemical configurations that govern genes and cell life to the relatively simple tropisms that guide single-cell organisms, the rudimentary nervous systems of invertebrates, and the complex neuronal structures of mammals and primates. The scope of meaningful information that can be detected and responded to reaches its peak in our own species, as exemplified by our special abilities in language, cognition, emotion, and consciousness, all of which are explored within this new framework. |
| biology of the brain: Cognitive Biology Luca Tommasi, Mary A. Peterson, Lynn Nadel, 2009 In the past few decades, sources of inspiration in the multidisciplinary field of cognitive science have widened. In addition to ongoing vital work in cognitive and affective neuroscience, important new work is being conducted at the intersection of psychology and the biological sciences in general. This volume offers an overview of the cross-disciplinary integration of evolutionary and developmental approaches to cognition in light of these exciting new contributions from the life sciences. This research has explored many cognitive abilities in a wide range of organisms and developmental stages, and results have revealed the nature and origin of many instances of the cognitive life of organisms. Each section of this book deals with a key domain of cognition: spatial cognition; the relationships among attention, perception, and learning, representations of numbers and economic values; and social cognition. Contributors discuss each topic from the perspectives of psychology and neuroscience, brain theory and modeling, evolutionary theory, ecology, genetics, and developmental science. |
| biology of the brain: From Molecules to Minds Institute of Medicine, Board on Health Sciences Policy, Forum on Neuroscience and Nervous System Disorders, 2008-12-07 Neuroscience has made phenomenal advances over the past 50 years and the pace of discovery continues to accelerate. On June 25, 2008, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) Forum on Neuroscience and Nervous System Disorders hosted more than 70 of the leading neuroscientists in the world, for a workshop titled From Molecules to Minds: Challenges for the 21st Century. The objective of the workshop was to explore a set of common goals or Grand Challenges posed by participants that could inspire and rally both the scientific community and the public to consider the possibilities for neuroscience in the 21st century. The progress of the past in combination with new tools and techniques, such as neuroimaging and molecular biology, has positioned neuroscience on the cusp of even greater transformational progress in our understanding of the brain and how its inner workings result in mental activity. This workshop summary highlights the important issues and challenges facing the field of neuroscience as presented to those in attendance at the workshop, as well as the subsequent discussion that resulted. As a result, three overarching Grand Challenges emerged: How does the brain work and produce mental activity? How does physical activity in the brain give rise to thought, emotion, and behavior? How does the interplay of biology and experience shape our brains and make us who we are today? How do we keep our brains healthy? How do we protect, restore, or enhance the functioning of our brains as we age? |
| biology of the brain: From Neurons to Neighborhoods National Research Council, Institute of Medicine, Board on Children, Youth, and Families, Committee on Integrating the Science of Early Childhood Development, 2000-11-13 How we raise young children is one of today's most highly personalized and sharply politicized issues, in part because each of us can claim some level of expertise. The debate has intensified as discoveries about our development-in the womb and in the first months and years-have reached the popular media. How can we use our burgeoning knowledge to assure the well-being of all young children, for their own sake as well as for the sake of our nation? Drawing from new findings, this book presents important conclusions about nature-versus-nurture, the impact of being born into a working family, the effect of politics on programs for children, the costs and benefits of intervention, and other issues. The committee issues a series of challenges to decision makers regarding the quality of child care, issues of racial and ethnic diversity, the integration of children's cognitive and emotional development, and more. Authoritative yet accessible, From Neurons to Neighborhoods presents the evidence about brain wiring and how kids learn to speak, think, and regulate their behavior. It examines the effect of the climate-family, child care, community-within which the child grows. |
| biology of the brain: Divided Brains Lesley J. Rogers, Giorgio Vallortigara, Richard J. Andrew, 2013-01-17 Discusses brain asymmetry from four perspectives - function, evolution, development and causation - covering a wide range of species, including humans. |
| biology of the brain: Human Learning: Biology, Brain, and Neuroscience Aaron S. Benjamin, J. Steven de Belle, Bruce Etnyre, Thad A. Polk, 2008-08-15 Human learning is studied in a variety of ways. Motor learning is often studied separately from verbal learning. Studies may delve into anatomy vs function, may view behavioral outcomes or look discretely at the molecular and cellular level of learning. All have merit but they are dispersed across a wide literature and rarely are the findings integrated and synthesized in a meaningful way. Human Learning: Biology, Brain, and Neuroscience synthesizes findings across these levels and types of learning and memory investigation.Divided into three sections, each section includes a discussion by the editors integrating themes and ideas that emerge across the chapters within each section. Section 1 discusses general topics in human learning and cognition research, including inhibition, short term and long term memory, verbal memory, memory disruption, and scheduling and learning. Section 2 discusses cognitive neuroscience aspects of human learning. Coverage here includes models, skill acquisition, declarative and non declarative memory, age effects on memory, and memory for emotional events. Section 3 focuses on human motor learning.This book is suitable for cognitive neuroscientists, cognitive psychologists, kinesthesiologists, and graduate courses in learning. - Synthesizes research from a variety of disciplines, levels, and content areas - Provides section discussions on common findings between chapters - Covers motor and verbal learning |
| biology of the brain: Sex on the Brain Deborah Blum, 1998-07-01 Go beyond the headlines and the hype to get the newest findings in the burgeoning field of gender studies. Drawing on disciplines that include evolutionary science, anthropology, animal behavior, neuroscience, psychology, and endocrinology, Deborah Blum explores matters ranging from the link between immunology and sex to male/female gossip styles. The results are intriguing, startling, and often very amusing. For instance, did you know that. . . • Male testosterone levels drop in happy marriages; scientists speculate that women may use monogamy to control male behavior • Young female children who are in day-care are apt to be more secure than those kept at home; young male children less so • Anthropologists classify Western societies as mildly polygamous The Los Angeles Times has called Sex on the Brain superbly crafted science writing, graced by unusual compassion, wit, and intelligence, that forms an important addition to the literature of gender studies. |
| biology of the brain: Why God Won't Go Away Andrew Newberg, M.D., Eugene G. D'Aquili, 2008-12-10 Why have we humans always longed to connect with something larger than ourselves? Why does consciousness inevitably involve us in a spiritual quest? Why, in short, won't God go away? Theologians, philosophers, and psychologists have debated this question through the ages, arriving at a range of contradictory and ultimately unprovable answers. But in this brilliant, groundbreaking new book, researchers Andrew Newberg and Eugene d'Aquili offer an explanation that is at once profoundly simple and scientifically precise: the religious impulse is rooted in the biology of the brain. Newberg and d'Aquili base this revolutionary conclusion on a long-term investigation of brain function and behavior as well as studies they conducted using high-tech imaging techniques to examine the brains of meditating Buddhists and Franciscan nuns at prayer. What they discovered was that intensely focused spiritual contemplation triggers an alteration in the activity of the brain that leads us to perceive transcendent religious experiences as solid and tangibly real. In other words, the sensation that Buddhists call oneness with the universe and the Franciscans attribute to the palpable presence of God is not a delusion or a manifestation of wishful thinking but rather a chain of neurological events that can be objectively observed, recorded, and actually photographed. The inescapable conclusion is that God is hard-wired into the human brain. In Why God Won't Go Away, Newberg and d'Aquili document their pioneering explorations in the field of neurotheology, an emerging discipline dedicated to understanding the complex relationship between spirituality and the brain. Along the way, they delve into such essential questions as whether humans are biologically compelled to make myths; what is the evolutionary connection between religious ecstasy and sexual orgasm; what do Near Death Experiences reveal about the nature of spiritual phenomena; and how does ritual create its own neurological environment. As their journey unfolds, Newberg and d'Aquili realize that a single, overarching question lies at the heart of their pursuit: Is religion merely a product of biology or has the human brain been mysteriously endowed with the unique capacity to reach and know God? Blending cutting-edge science with illuminating insights into the nature of consciousness and spirituality, Why God Won't Go Away bridges faith and reason, mysticism and empirical data. The neurological basis of how the brain identifies the real is nothing short of miraculous. This fascinating, eye-opening book dares to explore both the miracle and the biology of our enduring relationship with God. |
| biology of the brain: Brain Development in Drosophila melanogaster Gerhard Martin Technau, 2009-01-08 The fruitfly Drosophila melanogaster is an ideal model system to study processes of the central nervous system This book provides an overview of some major facets of recent research on Drosophila brain development. |
| biology of the brain: Neurobiology of Brain Disorders Michael J. Zigmond, Joseph T. Coyle, Lewis P. Rowland, 2014-12-03 Neurobiology of Brain Disorders is the first book directed primarily at basic scientists to offer a comprehensive overview of neurological and neuropsychiatric disease. This book links basic, translational, and clinical research, covering the genetic, developmental, molecular, and cellular mechanisms underlying all major categories of brain disorders. It offers students, postdoctoral fellows, and researchers in the diverse fields of neuroscience, neurobiology, neurology, and psychiatry the tools they need to obtain a basic background in the major neurological and psychiatric diseases, and to discern connections between basic research and these relevant clinical conditions. This book addresses developmental, autoimmune, central, and peripheral neurodegeneration; infectious diseases; and diseases of higher function. The final chapters deal with broader issues, including some of the ethical concerns raised by neuroscience and a discussion of health disparities. Included in each chapter is coverage of the clinical condition, diagnosis, treatment, underlying mechanisms, relevant basic and translational research, and key unanswered questions. Written and edited by a diverse team of international experts, Neurobiology of Brain Disorders is essential reading for anyone wishing to explore the basic science underlying neurological and neuropsychiatric diseases. - Links basic, translational, and clinical research on disorders of the nervous system, creating a format for study that will accelerate disease prevention and treatment - Covers a vast array of neurological disorders, including ADHD, Down syndrome, autism, muscular dystrophy, diabetes, TBI, Parkinson, Huntington, Alzheimer, OCD, PTSD, schizophrenia, depression, and pain - Illustrated in full color - Each chapter provides in-text summary points, special feature boxes, and research questions - Provides an up-to-date synthesis of primary source material |
| biology of the brain: Behave Robert M. Sapolsky, 2017-05-02 Why do we do the things we do? Over a decade in the making, this game-changing book is Robert Sapolsky's genre-shattering attempt to answer that question as fully as perhaps only he could, looking at it from every angle. Sapolsky's storytelling concept is delightful but it also has a powerful intrinsic logic: he starts by looking at the factors that bear on a person's reaction in the precise moment a behavior occurs, and then hops back in time from there, in stages, ultimately ending up at the deep history of our species and its genetic inheritance. And so the first category of explanation is the neurobiological one. What goes on in a person's brain a second before the behavior happens? Then he pulls out to a slightly larger field of vision, a little earlier in time: What sight, sound, or smell triggers the nervous system to produce that behavior? And then, what hormones act hours to days earlier to change how responsive that individual is to the stimuli which trigger the nervous system? By now, he has increased our field of vision so that we are thinking about neurobiology and the sensory world of our environment and endocrinology in trying to explain what happened. Sapolsky keeps going--next to what features of the environment affected that person's brain, and then back to the childhood of the individual, and then to their genetic makeup. Finally, he expands the view to encompass factors larger than that one individual. How culture has shaped that individual's group, what ecological factors helped shape that culture, and on and on, back to evolutionary factors thousands and even millions of years old. The result is one of the most dazzling tours de horizon of the science of human behavior ever attempted, a majestic synthesis that harvests cutting-edge research across a range of disciplines to provide a subtle and nuanced perspective on why we ultimately do the things we do...for good and for ill. Sapolsky builds on this understanding to wrestle with some of our deepest and thorniest questions relating to tribalism and xenophobia, hierarchy and competition, morality and free will, and war and peace. Wise, humane, often very funny, Behave is a towering achievement, powerfully humanizing, and downright heroic in its own right. |
| biology of the brain: Out of Our Heads Alva Noë, 2010-02-02 Alva Noë is one of a new breed—part philosopher, part cognitive scientist, part neuroscientist—who are radically altering the study of consciousness by asking difficult questions and pointing out obvious flaws in the current science. In Out of Our Heads, he restates and reexamines the problem of consciousness, and then proposes a startling solution: Do away with the two hundred-year-old paradigm that places consciousness within the confines of the brain. Our culture is obsessed with the brain—how it perceives; how it remembers; how it determines our intelligence, our morality, our likes and our dislikes. It's widely believed that consciousness itself, that Holy Grail of science and philosophy, will soon be given a neural explanation. And yet, after decades of research, only one proposition about how the brain makes us conscious—how it gives rise to sensation, feeling, and subjectivity—has emerged unchallenged: We don't have a clue. In this inventive work, Noë suggests that rather than being something that happens inside us, consciousness is something we do. Debunking an outmoded philosophy that holds the scientific study of consciousness captive, Out of Our Heads is a fresh attempt at understanding our minds and how we interact with the world around us. |
| biology of the brain: The Human Brain - Biology for Kids | Children's Biology Books Baby Professor, 2017-06-15 The human brain controls your thoughts and actions. It is the king of all organs working consistently inside your body to keep you alive. In this biology book, we're going to read about the human brain. Learn some interesting facts about this squishy gray organ sitting on top our heads. How do you enrich your brain functions? How do you protect it from harm? Read up today! |
| biology of the brain: The Feeling Brain: The Biology and Psychology of Emotions Elizabeth Johnston, Leah Olson, 2015-05-11 A reader-friendly exploration of the science of emotion. After years of neglect by both mainstream biology and psychology, the study of emotions has emerged as a central topic of scientific inquiry in the vibrant new discipline of affective neuroscience. Elizabeth Johnston and Leah Olson trace how work in this rapidly expanding field speaks to fundamental questions about the nature of emotion: What is the function of emotions? What is the role of the body in emotions? What are feelings,” and how do they relate to emotions? Why are emotions so difficult to control? Is there an emotional brain? The authors tackle these questions and more in this tasting menu of cutting-edge emotion research. They build their story around the path-breaking 19th century works of biologist Charles Darwin and psychologist and philosopher William James. James's 1884 article What Is an Emotion? continues to guide contemporary debate about minds, brains, and emotions, while Darwin's treatise on The Expression of Emotions in Animals and Humans squarely located the study of emotions as a critical concern in biology. Throughout their study, Johnston and Olson focus on the key scientists whose work has shaped the field, zeroing in on the most brilliant threads in the emerging tapestry of affective neuroscience. Beginning with early work on the brain substrates of emotion by such workers such as James Papez and Paul MacLean, who helped define an emotional brain, they then examine the role of emotion in higher brain functions such as cognition and decision-making. They then investigate the complex interrelations of emotion and pleasure, introducing along the way the work of major researchers such as Antonio Damasio and Joseph LeDoux. In doing so, they braid diverse strands of inquiry into a lucid and concise introduction to this burgeoning field, and begin to answer some of the most compelling questions in the field today. How does the science of normal emotion inform our understanding of emotional disorders? To what extent can we regulate our emotions? When can we trust our emotions and when might they lead us astray? How do emotions affect our memories, and vice versa? How can we best describe the relationship between emotion and cognition? Johnston and Olson lay out the most salient questions of contemporary affective neuroscience in this study, expertly situating them in their biological, psychological, and philosophical contexts. They offer a compelling vision of an increasingly exciting and ambitious field for mental health professionals and the interested lay audience, as well as for undergraduate and graduate students. |
| biology of the brain: Cytokines and the Brain , 2008-06-18 This book opens a new page of neuro-immunobiology providing substantive experimental and clinical data to support current understanding in the field, and potential applications of this knowledge in the treatment of disease. The volume is a collection of complex, new data drawn from multiple areas of investigation in the field. The contents summarize current understanding on the presence and function of CNS cytokines and their receptors in a variety of CNS cells during health and disease. The chapters are a collection of complex, new data demonstrating the presence and synthesis of cytokines in brain cells, as well as their receptors on cell membranes in health and disease. The strength of the volume are the descriptions of the authors own investigations, together with those of others in the field pertaining to a large number of cytokines in brain function, as well as mechanisms involved in the development of CNS disorders, including multiple sclerosis and Alzheimer's disease. Also included are novel approaches to the treatment of CNS disorders based on new experimental data. The contributors to this volume are internationally known scientists and clinical researchers in their respective fields of investigation and treatment.*Opens a new page of neuro-immunobiology and provides substantive evidence for the promise of this field in the treatment of disease*Summarizes current understanding on the presence and function of central nervous system (CNS) cytokines and their receptors in a variety of CNS cells during health and disease*Includes novel approaches to the treatment of CNS disorders based on new experimental data*Offers new insight into triggers for the development of autoimmune diseases in the brain and the possibilities for treatment |
| biology of the brain: The Biology of Mind M. Deric Bownds, 1999-06-29 This new book makes state-of-the-art research on the human mind accessible and exciting for a wide variety of readers. It covers the evolution of mind, examines the transitions from primate through early hominid to modern human intelligence, and reviews modern experimental studies of the brain structures and mechanisms that underlie vision, emotions, language, memory, and learning. |
| biology of the brain: Cell Biology of Brain William Eric Watson, 1976 |
| biology of the brain: Downward Causation and the Neurobiology of Free Will Nancey Murphy, George F.R. Ellis, Timothy O'Connor, 2009-09-30 How is free will possible in the light of the physical and chemical underpinnings of brain activity and recent neurobiological experiments? How can the emergence of complexity in hierarchical systems such as the brain, based at the lower levels in physical interactions, lead to something like genuine free will? The nature of our understanding of free will in the light of present-day neuroscience is becoming increasingly important because of remarkable discoveries on the topic being made by neuroscientists at the present time, on the one hand, and its crucial importance for the way we view ourselves as human beings, on the other. A key tool in understanding how free will may arise in this context is the idea of downward causation in complex systems, happening coterminously with bottom up causation, to form an integral whole. Top-down causation is usually neglected, and is therefore emphasized in the other part of the book’s title. The concept is explored in depth, as are the ethical and legal implications of our understanding of free will. This book arises out of a workshop held in California in April of 2007, which was chaired by Dr. Christof Koch. It was unusual in terms of the breadth of people involved: they included physicists, neuroscientists, psychiatrists, philosophers, and theologians. This enabled the meeting, and hence the resulting book, to attain a rather broader perspective on the issue than is often attained at academic symposia. The book includes contributions by Sarah-Jayne Blakemore, George F. R. Ellis , Christopher D. Frith, Mark Hallett, David Hodgson, Owen D. Jones, Alicia Juarrero, J. A. Scott Kelso, Christof Koch, Hans Küng, Hakwan C. Lau, Dean Mobbs, Nancey Murphy, William Newsome, Timothy O’Connor, Sean A.. Spence, and Evan Thompson. |
| biology of the brain: The Brain from Inside Out György Buzsáki MD, PhD, 2019-04-18 Is there a right way to study how the brain works? Following the empiricist's tradition, the most common approach involves the study of neural reactions to stimuli presented by an experimenter. This 'outside-in' method fueled a generation of brain research and now must confront hidden assumptions about causation and concepts that may not hold neatly for systems that act and react. György Buzsáki's The Brain from Inside Out examines why the outside-in framework for understanding brain function has become stagnant and points to new directions for understanding neural function. Building upon the success of 2011's Rhythms of the Brain, Professor Buzsáki presents the brain as a foretelling device that interacts with its environment through action and the examination of action's consequence. Consider that our brains are initially filled with nonsense patterns, all of which are gibberish until grounded by action-based interactions. By matching these nonsense words to the outcomes of action, they acquire meaning. Once its circuits are calibrated by action and experience, the brain can disengage from its sensors and actuators, and examine what happens if scenarios by peeking into its own computation, a process that we refer to as cognition. The Brain from Inside Out explains why our brain is not an information-absorbing coding device, as it is often portrayed, but a venture-seeking explorer constantly controlling the body to test hypotheses. Our brain does not process information: it creates it. |
| biology of the brain: The Brain Book Rita Carter, 2019-01-03 This science ebook of award-wiining print edition uses the latest findings from neuroscience research and brain-imaging technology to take you on a journey into the human brain. CGI artworks and brain MRI scans reveal the brain's anatomy in unprecedented detail. Step-by-step sequences unravel and simplify the complex processes of brain function, such as how nerves transmit signals, how memories are laid down and recalled, and how we register emotions. The book answers fundamental and compelling questions about the brain: what does it means to be conscious, what happens when we're asleep,and are the brains of men and women different? Written by award-winning author Rita Carter, this is an accessible and authoritative reference book to a fascinating part of the human body. Thanks to improvements in scanning technology, our understanding of the brain is changing fast. Now in its third edition, the Brain Book provides an up-to-date guide to one of science's most exciting frontiers. With its coverage of over 50 brain-related diseases and disorders - from strokes to brain tumours and schizophrenia - it is also an essential manual for students and healthcare professionals. |
| biology of the brain: Principles of Brain Functioning Hermann Haken, 2013-03-12 It is increasingly being recognized that the experimental and theoretical study of the complex system brain requires the cooperation of many disciplines, in cluding biology, medicine, physics, chemistry, mathematics, computer science, linguistics, and others. In this way brain research has become a truly interdis ciplinary endeavor. Indeed, the most important progress is quite often made when different disciplines cooperate. Thus it becomes necessary for scientists to look across the fence surrounding their disciplines. The present book is written precisely in this spirit. It addresses graduate students, professors and scientists in a variety of fields, such as biology, medicine and physics. Be yond its mathematical representation the book gives ample space to verbal and pictorial descriptions of the main and, as I believe, fundamental new insights, so that it will be of interest to a general readership, too. I use this opportunity to thank my former students, some of whom are my present co-workers, for their cooperation over many years. Among them I wish to mention in particular M. Bestehorn, L. Borland, H. Bunz, A. Daf fertshofer, T. Ditzinger, E. Fischer, A. Fuchs, R. Haas, R. Honlinger, V. Jirsa, M. Neufeld, M. Ossig, D. Reimann, M. Schanz, G. Schoner, P. Tass, C. Uhl. My particular thanks go to R. Friedrich and A. Wunderlin for their constant help in many respects. Stimulating discussions with a number of colleagues from a variety of fields are also highly appreciated. |
| biology of the brain: The Biology of the Brain Rodolfo Riascos Llinás, 1989 |
| biology of the brain: Brain Tumors Davide Schiffer, 1997 Analogue to the first edition, the principal characteristic of this work is its casting of pathology as the common nosographic link in the diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of brain tumours. A result of the author's many years of experience in the study of brain tumours and their pathological and clinical characteristics, the book presents different aspects of neurooncology from the perspective of pathology and its biological and clinical correlates. This new, second and enlarged volume preserves all the qualities of the first edition while further amplifying clinical applications and updating biological and pathological problems. The references have been completely revised and new chapters have been added on topics such as neuroimaging, invasion and angiogenesis. Professor Schiffer is President of the Italian Association of Neurooncology and of the Italian Association of Neuropathology. |
| biology of the brain: Brain and Psyche Jonathan Winson, 1986 |
| biology of the brain: Reelin Glycoprotein S.H. Fatemi, 2008-06-04 Reelin glycoprotein is a serine protease with important roles in embryogenesis and during adult life. This comprehensive and integrative book examines the role that reelin plays in the etiology of various neuropsychiatric disorders, including schizophrenia and autism. The book provides an unprecedented analysis of this emerging and novel protein by examining evidence from genetic, neuroanatomic, biochemical, and behavioral studies. |
| biology of the brain: The Gendered Brain Gina Rippon, 2019-02-28 Barbie or Lego? Reading maps or reading emotions? Do you have a female brain or a male brain? Or is that the wrong question? On a daily basis we face deeply ingrained beliefs that our sex determines our skills and preferences, from toys and colours to career choice and salaries. But what does this mean for our thoughts, decisions and behaviour? Using the latest cutting-edge neuroscience, Gina Rippon unpacks the stereotypes that bombard us from our earliest moments and shows how these messages mould our ideas of ourselves and even shape our brains. Rigorous, timely and liberating, The Gendered Brain has huge repercussions for women and men, for parents and children, and for how we identify ourselves. ‘Highly accessible... Revolutionary to a glorious degree’ Observer |
| biology of the brain: The Biology of Desire Marc Lewis, 2015-07-14 Through the vivid, true stories of five people who journeyed into and out of addiction, a renowned neuroscientist explains why the disease model of addiction is wrong and illuminates the path to recovery. The psychiatric establishment and rehab industry in the Western world have branded addiction a brain disease. But in The Biology of Desire, cognitive neuroscientist and former addict Marc Lewis makes a convincing case that addiction is not a disease, and shows why the disease model has become an obstacle to healing. Lewis reveals addiction as an unintended consequence of the brain doing what it's supposed to do-seek pleasure and relief-in a world that's not cooperating. As a result, most treatment based on the disease model fails. Lewis shows how treatment can be retooled to achieve lasting recovery. This is enlightening and optimistic reading for anyone who has wrestled with addiction either personally or professionally. |
| biology of the brain: How Biology Shapes Philosophy David Livingstone Smith, 2017 A collection of original essays by major thinkers, addressing how the biological sciences inform and inspire philosophical research. |
| biology of the brain: The Biology of Thought Krishnagopal Dharani, 2014-08-28 The question of what is thought has intrigued society for ages, yet it is still a puzzle how the human brain can produce a myriad of thoughts and can store seemingly endless memories. All we know is that sensations received from the outside world imprint some sort of molecular signatures in neurons – or perhaps synapses – for future retrieval. What are these molecular signatures, and how are they made? How are thoughts generated and stored in neurons? The Biology of Thought explores these issues and proposes a new molecular model that sheds light on the basis of human thought. Step-by-step it describes a new hypothesis for how thought is produced at the micro-level in the brain – right at the neuron. Despite its many advances, the neurobiology field lacks a comprehensive explanation of the fundamental aspects of thought generation at the neuron level, and its relation to intelligence and memory. Derived from existing research in the field, this book attempts to lay biological foundations for this phenomenon through a novel mechanism termed the Molecular-Grid Model that may explain how biological electrochemical events occurring at the neuron interact to generate thoughts. The proposed molecular model is a testable hypothesis that hopes to change the way we understand critical brain function, and provides a starting point for major advances in this field that will be of interest to neuroscientists the world over. - Written to provide a comprehensive coverage of the electro-chemical events that occur at the neuron and how they interact to generate thought - Provides physiology-based chapters (functional anatomy, neuron physiology, memory) and the molecular mechanisms that may shape thought - Contains a thorough description of the process by which neurons convert external stimuli to primary thoughts |
| biology of the brain: Biology of the Brain Rodolfo R. Llinas, 1988 |
| biology of the brain: The Biology of Violence Debra Niehoff, 2002-02 A unique synthesis of breakthrough research, this landmark book shatters myths about the causes of aggression, maintaining that the roots of violent behavior lie in the way the brain works. |
| biology of the brain: Think Tank! the Human Brain and How It Works - Anatomy for Kids - Children's Biology Books Baby Iq Builder Books, 2016-06-08 You have think tank ticking day and night! You have a brain that's also busy with activities regardless of the time of the day. You have a brain that's filled with neurons that decide how and when you can process information. Learn more about your amazing brain through this interesting book created just for you! |
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