A science-writer reviews the theories and research that have produced the current view of the brain as a dynamic structure with only superficial resemblances to a digital computer.
McCrone (The Myth of Irrationality: The Science of the Mind from Plato to Star Trek, 1994, etc.) first identifies what have been the two principal camps in the consciousness debate: first, those who view the brain as a vast and wondrous computer whose structures and strategies can be pinpointed; second, those who have a more dynamic view of the brain and employ new insights from chaos and complexity theory to understand its operations. In language often fresh and lively, McCrone meticulously moves around the brain, describing advances made possible by PET technology, by MRI and MEG (magnetoencephalography) scanning; summarizing the discoveries of researchers all over the world; correcting common misconceptions (e.g., that right- and left-brain functions are discrete)—all the while creating a comprehensive view of consciousness that reaffirms the brain’s preeminence as nature’s most remarkable achievement. Among the most interesting of his revelations is that the brain is in a constant state of anticipation: even when nothing is really happening, neurons are firing, keeping circuits ready, checking to see what’s new. The latest research demonstrates, too, that the brain’s feedback structure has created its vast capacities: “The history of the brain has its impact on the processing of the moment,” he writes, “but then the processing of the moment has its impact on the history of the brain.” Near the end is a fascinating chapter arguing that the development of tools and language were necessary for the emergence of consciousness. Recognizing that much of the earliest fundamental research on brain function involved the damaging of animals (holes burned in cats’ eyeballs, entire portions of monkeys’ brains suctioned away), McCrone is insistent that most of the newest research uses scanners and dyes that hurt no one.
A magical mystery tour made comprehensible and exhilarating by McCrone’s erudition and impressive expository gifts. (8 pages color photographs)Pub Date: April 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-88064-262-9
Page Count: 368
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2001
Categories: PSYCHOLOGY
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The authors have created a sort of anti-Book of Virtues in this encyclopedic compendium of the ways and means of power.
Everyone wants power and everyone is in a constant duplicitous game to gain more power at the expense of others, according to Greene, a screenwriter and former editor at Esquire (Elffers, a book packager, designed the volume, with its attractive marginalia). We live today as courtiers once did in royal courts: we must appear civil while attempting to crush all those around us. This power game can be played well or poorly, and in these 48 laws culled from the history and wisdom of the world’s greatest power players are the rules that must be followed to win. These laws boil down to being as ruthless, selfish, manipulative, and deceitful as possible. Each law, however, gets its own chapter: “Conceal Your Intentions,” “Always Say Less Than Necessary,” “Pose as a Friend, Work as a Spy,” and so on. Each chapter is conveniently broken down into sections on what happened to those who transgressed or observed the particular law, the key elements in this law, and ways to defensively reverse this law when it’s used against you. Quotations in the margins amplify the lesson being taught. While compelling in the way an auto accident might be, the book is simply nonsense. Rules often contradict each other. We are told, for instance, to “be conspicuous at all cost,” then told to “behave like others.” More seriously, Greene never really defines “power,” and he merely asserts, rather than offers evidence for, the Hobbesian world of all against all in which he insists we live. The world may be like this at times, but often it isn’t. To ask why this is so would be a far more useful project.
If the authors are serious, this is a silly, distasteful book. If they are not, it’s a brilliant satire.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1998
ISBN: 0-670-88146-5
Page Count: 430
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1998
Categories: GENERAL BIOGRAPHY & MEMOIR | BIOGRAPHY & MEMOIR | PHILOSOPHY & RELIGION | PSYCHOLOGY | HISTORICAL & MILITARY
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BOOK TO SCREEN
The creator and host of the titular podcast recounts his lifelong struggles with depression.
With the increasing success of his podcast, Moe, a longtime radio personality and author whose books include The Deleted E-Mails of Hillary Clinton: A Parody (2015), was encouraged to open up further about his own battles with depression and delve deeper into characteristics of the disease itself. Moe writes about how he has struggled with depression throughout his life, and he recounts similar experiences from the various people he has interviewed in the past, many of whom are high-profile entertainers and writers—e.g. Dick Cavett and Andy Richter, novelist John Green. The narrative unfolds in a fairly linear fashion, and the author relates his family’s long history with depression and substance abuse. His father was an alcoholic, and one of his brothers was a drug addict. Moe tracks how he came to recognize his own signs of depression while in middle school, as he experienced the travails of OCD and social anxiety. These early chapters alternate with brief thematic “According to THWoD” sections that expand on his experiences, providing relevant anecdotal stories from some of his podcast guests. In this early section of the book, the author sometimes rambles. Though his experiences as an adolescent are accessible, he provides too many long examples, overstating his message, and some of the humor feels forced. What may sound naturally breezy in his podcast interviews doesn’t always strike the same note on the written page. The narrative gains considerable momentum when Moe shifts into his adult years and the challenges of balancing family and career while also confronting the devastating loss of his brother from suicide. As he grieved, he writes, his depression caused him to experience “a salad of regret, anger, confusion, and horror.” Here, the author focuses more attention on the origins and evolution of his series, stories that prove compelling as well.
The book would have benefited from a tighter structure, but it’s inspiring and relatable for readers with depression.Pub Date: May 5, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-250-20928-3
Page Count: 304
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: Feb. 5, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2020
Categories: PSYCHOLOGY | SELF-HELP
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