Phantoms in the Brain
V S Ramachandran
(Author)
21,000+ Reviews
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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.
Product Details
Price
$17.99
$16.73
Publisher
Mariner Books
Publish Date
August 18, 1999
Pages
352
Dimensions
6.19 X 9.21 X 0.7 inches | 0.96 pounds
Language
English
Type
Paperback
EAN/UPC
9780688172176
BISAC Categories:
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Become an affiliateAbout the Author
V. S. Ramachandran is the director of the Center for Brain and Cognition and a Distinguished Professor with the Psychology Department and Neurosciences Program at the University of California, San Diego. He lives in Del Mar, California.
Reviews
"Enthralling . . . eloquent." -- "The New York Times Book Review ""This is a splendid book." -- Dr. Francis Crick, Nobel Laureate