Statistics show that we are interrupted every three minutes during the course of the work day. Multitasking between email, cell-phone, text messages, and four or five websites while listening to an iPod forces the brain to process more and more informaton at greater and greater speeds. And yet the human brain has hardly changed in the last 40,000 years. Are all these high-tech advances overtaxing our Stone-Age brains or is the constant flood of information good for us, giving our brains the daily exercise they seem to crave?In The Overflowing Brain, cognitive scientist Torkel Klingberg takes us on a journey into the limits and possibilities of the brain. He suggests that we should acknowledge and embrace our desire for information and mental challenges, but try to find a balance between demand and capacity. Klingberg explores the cognitive demands, or "complexity," of everyday life and how the brain tries to meet them. He identifies different types of attention, such as stimulus-driven and controlled attention, but focuses chiefly on "working memory," our capacity to keep information in mind for short periods of time. Dr Klingberg asserts that working memory capacity - long thought to be static and hardwired in the brain - can be improved by training, and that the increasing demands on working memory may actually have a constructive effect: as demands on the human brain increase, so does its capacity.The book ends with a discussion of the future of brain development and how we can best handle information overload in our everyday lives. Klingberg suggests how we might find a balance between demand and capacity and move from feeling overwhelmed to deeply engaged.

    Schacter explores instances of what we would consider memory failure—absent-mindedness, transience, blocking, misattribution, suggestibility, bias, and persistence—and suggests instead that these miscues are actually indications that memory is functioning as designed. Drawing from vivid scientific research and creative literature, as well as high-profile events in which memory has figured significantly (Bill Clinton's grand jury testimony, for instance), The Seven Sins of Memory provides a more nuanced understanding of how memory and the mind influence each other and shape our lives.

    In 50 Human Brain Ideas You Really Need to Know, Mo Costandi condenses all we know about the brain and how it works into series of introductions to the most important concepts.Outlining both long-standing theories - such as the function of neurons and synaptic transmission - and cutting-edge ideas - including neuroethics and brain-computer interfacing - with straightforward narrative and clear two-colour illustrations, this book is a perfect beginner's guide to the most powerful and mysterious organ in the body.The ideas explored include: The nervous impulse; Differences between the male and female brain; The root of addiction; Neurobiological basis for personality; The relationship between sleep and memory.

    Nick Chater has blown my mind' Tim Harford'A total assault on all lingering psychiatric and psychoanalytic notions of mental depths ... Light the touchpaper and stand well back' New ScientistWe all like to think we have a hidden inner life. Most of us assume that our beliefs and desires arise from the murky depths of our minds, and, if only we could work out how to access this mysterious world, we could truly understand ourselves. For more than a century, psychologists and psychiatrists have struggled to discover what lies below our mental surface.In The Mind Is Flat, pre-eminent behavioural scientist Nick Chater reveals that this entire enterprise is utterly misguided. Drawing on startling new research in neuroscience, behavioural psychology and perception, he shows that we have no hidden depths to plumb, and unconscious thought is a myth. Instead, we generate our ideas, motives and thoughts in the moment. This revelation explains many of the quirks of human behaviour - for example why our supposedly firm political beliefs, personal preferences and even our romantic attractions are routinely proven to be inconsistent and changeable.As the reader discovers, through mind-bending visual examples and counterintuitive experiments, we are all characters of our own creation, constantly improvising our behaviour based on our past experiences. And, as Chater shows us, recognising this can be liberating.

    An exhilarating account of Sapolsky’s twenty-one-year study of a troop of rambunctious baboons in Kenya, A Primate’s Memoir interweaves serious scientific observations with wry commentary about the challenges and pleasures of living in the wilds of the Serengeti — for man and beast alike. Over two decades, Sapolsky survives culinary atrocities, gunpoint encounters, and a surreal kidnapping, while witnessing the encroachment of the tourist mentality on the farthest vestiges of unspoiled Africa. As he conducts unprecedented physiological research on wild primates, he becomes evermore enamored of his subjects — unique and compelling characters in their own right — and he returns to them summer after summer, until tragedy finally prevents him.By turns hilarious and poignant, A Primate’s Memoir is a magnum opus from one of our foremost science writers.

    Now he offers a completely new book, providing fresh, iconoclastic ideas about the relationship between the brain and the mind. In The New Executive Brain, Goldberg paints a sweeping panorama of cutting-edge thinking in cognitive neuroscience and neuropsychology, one that ranges far beyond the frontal lobes. Drawing on the latest discoveries, and developing complex scientific ideas and relating them to real lifethrough many fascinating case studies and anecdotes, the author explores how the brain engages in complex decision-making; how it deals with novelty and ambiguity; and how it addresses moral choices. At every step, Goldberg challenges entrenched assumptions. For example, we know that the lefthemisphere of the brain is the seat of language--but Goldberg argues that language may not be the central adaptation of the left hemisphere. Apes lack language, yet many also show evidence of asymmetric hemispheric development. Goldberg also finds that a complex interaction between the frontal lobesand the amygdale--between a recently evolved and a much older part of the brain--controls emotion, as conscious thoughts meet automatic impulses. The author illustrates this observation with a personal example: the difficulty he experienced when trying to pick up a baby alligator he knew to beharmless, as his amygdala battled his effort to extend his hand. In the years since the original Executive Brain, Goldberg has remained at the front of his field, constantly challenging orthodoxy. In this revised and expanded edition, he affirms his place as one of our most creative and insightful scientists, offering lucid writing and bold, paradigm-shifting ideas.

    Into this crisis stepped Walter Freeman, M.D., who saw a solution in lobotomy, a brain operation intended to reduce the severity of psychotic symptoms. Drawing on Freeman’s documents and interviews with Freeman's family, Jack El-Hai takes a penetrating look at the life and work of this complex scientific genius.The Lobotomist explores one of the darkest chapters of American medicine: the desperate attempt to treat the hundreds of thousands of psychiatric patients in need of help during the middle decades of the twentieth century. Into this crisis stepped Walter Freeman, M.D., who saw a solution in lobotomy, a brain operation intended to reduce the severity of psychotic symptoms. Although many patients did not benefit from the thousands of lobotomies Freeman performed, others believed their lobotomies changed them for the better. Drawing on a rich collection of documents Freeman left behind and interviews with Freeman's family, Jack El-Hai takes a penetrating look into the life of this complex scientific genius and traces the physician's fascinating life and work.

    Dr Carl Sagan takes us on a great reading adventure, offering his vivid and startling insights into the brains of humans & beasts, the origin of human intelligence, the function of our most haunting legends and their amazing links to recent discoveries.

    Grab it while it's practically FREE.Thanks to your support, "How to Master Lucid Dreaming" became a #1 Bestseller in 6 different categories including: Spirituality, Personal Growth, Self-Help. You're missing out on an ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE part of your life. It's time to change that. There are a ridiculous amount of techniques online for lucid dreaming. Too many. Enough to overwhelm any beginner and annoy any expert. This book is a journey into mastery of lucid dreaming. No more trying random techniques from forums. It's time to build a sustainable practice and delve into the depths of your consciousness.I've helped thousands of people with lucid dreaming over the past 9 years. It's your turn. What's Included in the Book - The Biggest Obstacle to Lucid Dreaming and How to Overcome It- How to Achieve Anything You Set Your Mind To- How to Use Your Mind as a Rocket Booster Instead of Dead Weight- How to Remember More of Your Life With a Stupidly Simple Practice- The Forgotten Jewel of a Hidden Type of Memory- Why You've Been Doing Reality Checks Completely Wrong (and totally wasting your time)- How to Completely Let Go of Your Stressful Day- How Not To Waste Time With Lucid Dreaming Techniques- The 5 Things Every Good Lucid Dreaming Technique Has in Common- 5 Steps to Mastering Your TechniqueIf you just want to experience lucid dreaming once, then move on, this book isn't for you. But if you want to master lucid dreaming and be able to experience it any time you want, get this book. What are the Benefits of Lucid Dreaming? - Deep personal and spiritual exploration into the nature of consciousness and who you really are- Receive life-changing information from your subconscious- Artistic and creative Inspiration (imagine composing music while flying in the sky with rainbow colored sound streaming all around you...)- Wipe away years of minor depression- FUN! Fun! FUN! Tons of fun- Overcome fears that are holding you back in life- Explore different realms that you'll suddenly have access to- Heal emotional traumas through interacting directly with your subconscious mind- Overcome nasty nightmares that leave you feeling crappy in the morning- Add more hours of actually being ALIVE every day- Shift your entire perspective on life, reality, consciousness and what it's all about- Soar like a bird in the sky, feeling the wind against your skin (one of the most amazing experiences ever) What people are saying about the book "I'm on day 3 of the program today and had my first lucid dream last night! Thank you sooooo much for this book, I am loooving it and soo excited about my own lucid journey!"- Jess Webb"I’ve got LaBerge’s course, Lucid Dreaming Secrets Unveiled by Darius Thomas, Robert Waggoner’s Lucid Dream Workshop, etc. etc...

    Fotuhi. Depending on the things we do or neglect to do, we can actually get smarter and measurably improve our brain speed. In Boost Your Brain, the founder of the NeurExpand Brain Center and host of the PBS series Fight Alzheimer’s Early offers a three-month brain-optimization program—with noticeable results in just a few weeks.Boost Your Brain explores the very latest neuroscience research and offers actionable, authoritative advice on how readers of every age can experience the benefits of a bigger, better brain. Featuring more than two dozen black-and-white illustrations, Boost Your Brain: The New Art and Science Behind Enhanced Brain Performance includes a foreword by Michael Roizen, M.D., coauthor of the bestselling YOU series and author of the Real Age books.

    Why do you still feel fat after losing weight? What makes video games so addictive? How can “practicing” your favorite sport in your imagination improve your game? The answers can be found in body maps.Just as road maps represent interconnections across the landscape, your many body maps represent all aspects of your bodily self, inside and out. In concert, they create your physical and emotional awareness and your sense of being a whole, feeling self in a larger social world.Moreover, your body maps are profoundly elastic. Your self doesn’t begin and end with your physical body but extends into the space around you. This space morphs every time you put on or take off clothes, ride a bike, or wield a tool. When you drive a car, your personal body space grows to envelop it. When you play a video game, your body maps automatically track and emulate the actions of your character onscreen. When you watch a scary movie, your body maps put dread in your stomach and send chills down your spine. If your body maps fall out of sync, you may have an out-of-body experience or see auras around other people.The Body Has a Mind of Its Own explains how you can tap into the power of body maps to do almost anything better–whether it is playing tennis, strumming a guitar, riding a horse, dancing a waltz, empathizing with a friend, raising children, or coping with stress. The story of body maps goes even further, providing a fresh look at the causes of anorexia, bulimia, obsessive plastic surgery, and the notorious golfer’s curse “the yips.” It lends insights into culture, language, music, parenting, emotions, chronic pain, and more. Filled with illustrations, wonderful anecdotes, and even parlor tricks that you can use to reconfigure your body sense, The Body Has a Mind of Its Own will change the way you think–about the way you think.“The Blakeslees have taken the latest and most exciting finds from brain research and have made them accessible. This is how science writing should always be.”–Michael S. Gazzaniga, Ph.D., author of The Ethical Brain“Through a stream of fascinating and entertaining examples, Sandra Blakeslee and Matthew Blakeslee illustrate how our perception of ourselves, and indeed the world, is not fixed but is surprisingly fluid and easily modified. They have created the best book ever written about how our sense of ‘self’ emerges from the motley collection of neurons we call the brain.”–Jeff Hawkins, co-author of On Intelligence “The Blakeslees have taken the latest and most exciting finds from brain research and have made them accessible. This is how science writing should always be.”–Michael S. Gazzaniga, Ph.D., author of The Ethical Brain“A marvelous book. In the last ten years there has been a paradigm shift in understanding the brain and how its various specialized regions respond to environmental challenges. In addition to providing a brilliant overview of recent revolutionary discoveries on body image and brain plasticity, the book is sprinkled with numerous insights.”–V. S. Ramachandran, M.D., director, Center for Brain and Cognition, University of California, San Diego

    Based on over a decade of new research, Don Campbell, bestselling author of The Mozart Effect, and Alex Doman, an expert in the practical application of sound and listening, show how we can use music-and silence-to become more efficient, productive, relaxed, and healthy.Each chapter focuses on a single aspect of everyday life, providing advice, exercises, wide-ranging playlists, and links so readers can use the music they love to create the perfect soundtrack for any goal or task. Also included are "Sound Profiles"-brief stories showing how real people creatively tap the power of sound to improve their own and others' lives.Inspiring, practical, and truly enjoyable, Healing at the Speed of Sound opens the door to a fuller, richer, and much more harmonious life.

    Nothing you experience would be possible without the intricate power of your senses. But how much about them do you really know?Your ability to sense and perceive the world around you is so richly detailed and accurate as to be miraculous. No tool in the entire universe of scientific exploration can come close to matching the ability of your brain to use information sensed by your eyes, ears, skin, tongue, and nose to produce a rich sensory experience in just milliseconds.In recent years, neurobiologists and other scientists have uncovered new insights into how your senses work and the amazingly complex and fascinating things they can do. And now you can share in what they've discovered-through this intriguing series of 24 lectures from an award-winning teacher.Knowing how your senses work and the ways they shape how you see, interact with, and understand your life will help you think more critically about everything you sense and perceive, strengthen your appreciation of the senses that make this possible, prepare you to be an active consumer of new scientific evidence on how our senses work, and much more.With Professor Vishton as your guide, you'll. consider each of your senses from multiple perspectives:Explore how your brain processes different sensory informationConsider how your senses work together and within the context of the environment around youdiscover how your senses connect you to the world and other people.Using both cutting-edge research and simple experiments, tests, and demonstrations to hone your understanding, he has created a world-class learning experience that will change the way you think about your senses.

    Created primarily for medical and premedical students, 'Neuroscience' emphasizes the structure of the nervous system, the correlation of structure and function, and the structure/function relationships particularly pertinent to the practice of medicine.

     Her pioneering research on how the chemicals inside our bodies form a dynamic information network, linking mind and body, is not only provocative, it is revolutionary. By establishing the biomolecular basis for our emotions and explaining these new scientific developments in a clear and accessible way, Pert empowers us to understand ourselves, our feelings, and the connection between our minds and our bodies -- body-minds -- in ways we could never possibly have imagined before. Molecules of Emotion is a landmark work, full of insight and wisdom and possessing that rare power to change the way we see the world and ourselves.