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INTRODUCTION TO BRAIN STIMULATION BY PSYCHOCONDUCTION

A well-illustrated children’s activity, but its power to induce neuroplasticity is implausible and unconvincing.

An educational game that’s designed to sharpen players’ mental acuity. 

Novelist and psychologist Litvin (Life of the Sailor, 2010, etc.) argues that academic underperformance isn’t necessarily a sign of intellectual deficiency. Rather, it could be the consequence of insufficient brain stimulation, which, he says, can hinder the processing of complex information. However, there are various mental exercises that can change the structure of one’s brain cells, he asserts, thereby optimizing one’s capacity for memory, increasing focus and concentration, and ultimately paving the way to academic success. His game involves various “modes of expression” that aim to involve multiple parts of the brain. Litvin described this approach’s underlying psychology in 2011’s Litvin’s Code, and in nearly identical terms; however, in this book, he describes the process of “translating” one perceptual stimulus into another, calling it “psychoconduction.” The game itself is fairly simple in concept: A player is presented with pictures of boxes, with some containing symbolic codes that represent numbers in rudimentary mathematical equations. (The pictures can also be expressed in audio form as a series of knocks, or in “kinesthetic” form as opening or closing hands.) The child figures out the equations by translating these codes into numbers, which, according to the author, provokes a full engagement of the senses. The bulk of the book is devoted to these numerous exercises, which are helpfully illustrated. However, as in Litvin’s Code, the author makes bold claims about both the effectiveness of his method and its underlying brain science, but he never provides scientific evidence as confirmation. For example, how precisely will this game cause simple brain cells to “act as complex” ones—a claim that seems dubious? Despite this, he reports impressive success; without offering any specifics or concrete proof, he says that all of the youngsters who tried his method went to college, including one with “severe dyslexia,” and that it improved the memory of elderly people with dementia. 

A well-illustrated children’s activity, but its power to induce neuroplasticity is implausible and unconvincing. 

Pub Date: Sept. 29, 2011

ISBN: 978-1-4269-7336-9

Page Count: 88

Publisher: Trafford

Review Posted Online: Aug. 15, 2019

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THE ELEMENTS OF STYLE

50TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION

Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...

Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.

Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").

Pub Date: May 15, 1972

ISBN: 0205632645

Page Count: 105

Publisher: Macmillan

Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972

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NUTCRACKER

This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

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