Author: M. R. Bennett
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 9819728037
Category : Child psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 198
Book Description
This book is concerned with the extent to which childhood stress and trauma lead in relative maturity to major depression (MDD) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The loss of synapses in the cortex, accompanying childhood maltreatment, is identified as a principal mechanism for developing these disorders. Considerable attention is given to identifying interventions that will restore lost synapses, so ameliorating these mental illnesses. The book describes the emergence of abnormal psychology in youth and adult life following childhood maltreatment. Of considerable immediate concern is the extent to which such maltreatment significantly enhances the tendency to suicide and suicidality. Next, consideration is given as to how personality disorders, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, the very dangerous borderline personality disorder, and the publicly offensive narcissistic personality disorder, arise from childhood maltreatment. The classification or nosology of mental and personality disorders as well as the principal psychoanalytic approaches available for their treatment are sketched together with recent attempts to use novel constructs that bridge between symptoms (based on patients' behavior and self-descriptions). Recently, new techniques have been developed for brain imaging and non-invasive and localized brain stimulation. These show that nodes of the distributed brain network whose malfunction is closely related to major depressive disorders are likely to differ in their importance from patient to patient. Wonderfully, so-called 'closed-loop' stimulation techniques are now available for automatically adjusting the activity of individual nodes in individual patients, relieving them of their major depression. The results of our research, and that of others using magnetic resonance imaging of mature patients that have been maltreated as children, have been to identify the nodes that have lost gray matter. We have shown that this is likely due to the loss of synapses in these nodes. Finally, the central question of how synapses may be restored in these nodes to ameliorate major depressive disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, and suicidality is considered, emphasizing the recent revolutionary discovery that the psychedelic ketamine restores synapses and has a therapeutic effect on mental health.
Childhood Stress, Trauma and Synapse Loss
Author: M. R. Bennett
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 9819728037
Category : Child psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 198
Book Description
This book is concerned with the extent to which childhood stress and trauma lead in relative maturity to major depression (MDD) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The loss of synapses in the cortex, accompanying childhood maltreatment, is identified as a principal mechanism for developing these disorders. Considerable attention is given to identifying interventions that will restore lost synapses, so ameliorating these mental illnesses. The book describes the emergence of abnormal psychology in youth and adult life following childhood maltreatment. Of considerable immediate concern is the extent to which such maltreatment significantly enhances the tendency to suicide and suicidality. Next, consideration is given as to how personality disorders, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, the very dangerous borderline personality disorder, and the publicly offensive narcissistic personality disorder, arise from childhood maltreatment. The classification or nosology of mental and personality disorders as well as the principal psychoanalytic approaches available for their treatment are sketched together with recent attempts to use novel constructs that bridge between symptoms (based on patients' behavior and self-descriptions). Recently, new techniques have been developed for brain imaging and non-invasive and localized brain stimulation. These show that nodes of the distributed brain network whose malfunction is closely related to major depressive disorders are likely to differ in their importance from patient to patient. Wonderfully, so-called 'closed-loop' stimulation techniques are now available for automatically adjusting the activity of individual nodes in individual patients, relieving them of their major depression. The results of our research, and that of others using magnetic resonance imaging of mature patients that have been maltreated as children, have been to identify the nodes that have lost gray matter. We have shown that this is likely due to the loss of synapses in these nodes. Finally, the central question of how synapses may be restored in these nodes to ameliorate major depressive disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, and suicidality is considered, emphasizing the recent revolutionary discovery that the psychedelic ketamine restores synapses and has a therapeutic effect on mental health.
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 9819728037
Category : Child psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 198
Book Description
This book is concerned with the extent to which childhood stress and trauma lead in relative maturity to major depression (MDD) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The loss of synapses in the cortex, accompanying childhood maltreatment, is identified as a principal mechanism for developing these disorders. Considerable attention is given to identifying interventions that will restore lost synapses, so ameliorating these mental illnesses. The book describes the emergence of abnormal psychology in youth and adult life following childhood maltreatment. Of considerable immediate concern is the extent to which such maltreatment significantly enhances the tendency to suicide and suicidality. Next, consideration is given as to how personality disorders, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, the very dangerous borderline personality disorder, and the publicly offensive narcissistic personality disorder, arise from childhood maltreatment. The classification or nosology of mental and personality disorders as well as the principal psychoanalytic approaches available for their treatment are sketched together with recent attempts to use novel constructs that bridge between symptoms (based on patients' behavior and self-descriptions). Recently, new techniques have been developed for brain imaging and non-invasive and localized brain stimulation. These show that nodes of the distributed brain network whose malfunction is closely related to major depressive disorders are likely to differ in their importance from patient to patient. Wonderfully, so-called 'closed-loop' stimulation techniques are now available for automatically adjusting the activity of individual nodes in individual patients, relieving them of their major depression. The results of our research, and that of others using magnetic resonance imaging of mature patients that have been maltreated as children, have been to identify the nodes that have lost gray matter. We have shown that this is likely due to the loss of synapses in these nodes. Finally, the central question of how synapses may be restored in these nodes to ameliorate major depressive disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, and suicidality is considered, emphasizing the recent revolutionary discovery that the psychedelic ketamine restores synapses and has a therapeutic effect on mental health.
Translational Research in Traumatic Brain Injury
Author: Daniel Laskowitz
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1498766579
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 388
Book Description
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) remains a significant source of death and permanent disability, contributing to nearly one-third of all injury related deaths in the United States and exacting a profound personal and economic toll. Despite the increased resources that have recently been brought to bear to improve our understanding of TBI, the developme
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1498766579
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 388
Book Description
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) remains a significant source of death and permanent disability, contributing to nearly one-third of all injury related deaths in the United States and exacting a profound personal and economic toll. Despite the increased resources that have recently been brought to bear to improve our understanding of TBI, the developme
From Neurons to Neighborhoods
Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309069882
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 610
Book Description
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.
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309069882
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 610
Book Description
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.
Neural Plasticity and Memory
Author: Federico Bermudez-Rattoni
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1420008412
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 368
Book Description
A comprehensive, multidisciplinary review, Neural Plasticity and Memory: From Genes to Brain Imaging provides an in-depth, up-to-date analysis of the study of the neurobiology of memory. Leading specialists share their scientific experience in the field, covering a wide range of topics where molecular, genetic, behavioral, and brain imaging techniq
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1420008412
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 368
Book Description
A comprehensive, multidisciplinary review, Neural Plasticity and Memory: From Genes to Brain Imaging provides an in-depth, up-to-date analysis of the study of the neurobiology of memory. Leading specialists share their scientific experience in the field, covering a wide range of topics where molecular, genetic, behavioral, and brain imaging techniq
Stress, Trauma and Synaptic Plasticity
Author: Maxwell Bennett
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3319911163
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 259
Book Description
This book presents the latest state of knowledge on grey matter changes in the brain following stress and trauma. Where do these changes take place and what are the underlying molecular mechanisms? These questions are addressed in several sections, providing detailed insights into the cellular and molecular alterations that occur in the brain after stress and trauma. The changes to the grey matter in certain areas of the brain are similar in stressed humans and animals, with the most likely basis for these changes being the degeneration of synaptic connections. In the book’s first sections the reader will learn about the core network of synaptic connections that are affected by stress and trauma disorders. These synaptic connections are modulated by dopamine, serotonin and Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF). In subsequent chapters, the NMDA-receptor mediated plasticity of these synapses is discussed, with particular attention given to how glucocorticoids can interfere with the function of BDNF and thereby affect the synapse’s physical stability. Furthermore, the reader will learn about the importance of the genetics of the glucocorticoid gene and the epigenetic control of BDNF in connection with synaptic plasticity. The authors conclude by integrating the observations summarized in the previous sections so as to present plausible hypotheses regarding the identity of the networks, synapses and molecular pathways that support fear and extinction. Providing an up-to-date overview of the mechanisms of synaptic plasticity and physiological changes in the stressed and traumatized brain, this book will appeal to researchers, clinicians and students in the neurosciences. M. R. Bennett AO is an internationally renowned neuroscientist. He is a professor of Neuroscience & University Chair at the University of Sydney, the founding director of the ‘Brain and Mind Research Institute’ and has been the president and organizer of many societies and symposia. His research has led to groundbreaking revelations in understanding synaptic functioning. He is the author of numerous papers and books, including ‘Philosophical Foundations of Neuroscience’ (2003 with Peter Hacker) and the recent works ‘Virginia Woolf and Neuropsychiatry’ (2013), ‘History of Cognitive Neuroscience (2008 with Peter Hacker) and ‘Neuroscience and Philosophy: Brain, Mind and Language (2006 with Daniel Dennett, John Searle and Peter Hacker). Prof. Bennett has received the leading award in biology and medicine in Australia (the Macfarlane Burnet Medal) as well as being made an ‘Office of the Order of Australia’ for his outstanding ‘service to the biological sciences, particularly in the field of neurosciences’. Professor J. Lagopoulos is the inaugural director of the Sunshine Coast Mind and Neuroscience – Thompson Institute, which focuses on mental health and neurological research, clinical services and teaching. He is an expert in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and has been involved in neuroimaging for over 20 years. His work focuses on youth mental health, post-traumatic stress disorders, traumatic brain injury and healthy brain ageing and dementia. Prof. Lagopoulos is a leading academic and medical specialist who has published more than 170 peer-reviewed papers and contributed to several books. He is member of numerous international societies, including the ‘International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine’ and the ‘Organization of Human Brain Mapping’. He has received several awards, including the ‘Westmead Foundation Prize’.
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3319911163
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 259
Book Description
This book presents the latest state of knowledge on grey matter changes in the brain following stress and trauma. Where do these changes take place and what are the underlying molecular mechanisms? These questions are addressed in several sections, providing detailed insights into the cellular and molecular alterations that occur in the brain after stress and trauma. The changes to the grey matter in certain areas of the brain are similar in stressed humans and animals, with the most likely basis for these changes being the degeneration of synaptic connections. In the book’s first sections the reader will learn about the core network of synaptic connections that are affected by stress and trauma disorders. These synaptic connections are modulated by dopamine, serotonin and Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF). In subsequent chapters, the NMDA-receptor mediated plasticity of these synapses is discussed, with particular attention given to how glucocorticoids can interfere with the function of BDNF and thereby affect the synapse’s physical stability. Furthermore, the reader will learn about the importance of the genetics of the glucocorticoid gene and the epigenetic control of BDNF in connection with synaptic plasticity. The authors conclude by integrating the observations summarized in the previous sections so as to present plausible hypotheses regarding the identity of the networks, synapses and molecular pathways that support fear and extinction. Providing an up-to-date overview of the mechanisms of synaptic plasticity and physiological changes in the stressed and traumatized brain, this book will appeal to researchers, clinicians and students in the neurosciences. M. R. Bennett AO is an internationally renowned neuroscientist. He is a professor of Neuroscience & University Chair at the University of Sydney, the founding director of the ‘Brain and Mind Research Institute’ and has been the president and organizer of many societies and symposia. His research has led to groundbreaking revelations in understanding synaptic functioning. He is the author of numerous papers and books, including ‘Philosophical Foundations of Neuroscience’ (2003 with Peter Hacker) and the recent works ‘Virginia Woolf and Neuropsychiatry’ (2013), ‘History of Cognitive Neuroscience (2008 with Peter Hacker) and ‘Neuroscience and Philosophy: Brain, Mind and Language (2006 with Daniel Dennett, John Searle and Peter Hacker). Prof. Bennett has received the leading award in biology and medicine in Australia (the Macfarlane Burnet Medal) as well as being made an ‘Office of the Order of Australia’ for his outstanding ‘service to the biological sciences, particularly in the field of neurosciences’. Professor J. Lagopoulos is the inaugural director of the Sunshine Coast Mind and Neuroscience – Thompson Institute, which focuses on mental health and neurological research, clinical services and teaching. He is an expert in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and has been involved in neuroimaging for over 20 years. His work focuses on youth mental health, post-traumatic stress disorders, traumatic brain injury and healthy brain ageing and dementia. Prof. Lagopoulos is a leading academic and medical specialist who has published more than 170 peer-reviewed papers and contributed to several books. He is member of numerous international societies, including the ‘International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine’ and the ‘Organization of Human Brain Mapping’. He has received several awards, including the ‘Westmead Foundation Prize’.
The Human Amygdala
Author: Paul J. Whalen
Publisher: Guilford Press
ISBN: 1606230336
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 465
Book Description
Building on pioneering animal studies, and making use of new, noninvasive techniques for studying the human brain, research on the human amygdala has blossomed in recent years. This comprehensive volume brings together leading authorities to synthesize current knowledge on the amygdala and its role in psychological function and dysfunction. Initial chapters discuss how animal models have paved the way for work with human subjects. Next, the book examines the amygdala's involvement in emotional processing, learning, memory, and social interaction. The final section presents key advances in understanding specific clinical disorders: anxiety disorders, depression, schizophrenia, autism, and Alzheimer's disease. Illustrations include more than 25 color plates.
Publisher: Guilford Press
ISBN: 1606230336
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 465
Book Description
Building on pioneering animal studies, and making use of new, noninvasive techniques for studying the human brain, research on the human amygdala has blossomed in recent years. This comprehensive volume brings together leading authorities to synthesize current knowledge on the amygdala and its role in psychological function and dysfunction. Initial chapters discuss how animal models have paved the way for work with human subjects. Next, the book examines the amygdala's involvement in emotional processing, learning, memory, and social interaction. The final section presents key advances in understanding specific clinical disorders: anxiety disorders, depression, schizophrenia, autism, and Alzheimer's disease. Illustrations include more than 25 color plates.
Childhood Trauma in Mental Disorders
Author: Gianfranco Spalletta
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3030494144
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 456
Book Description
This volume presents a comprehensive overview of childhood trauma, considering the psychopathological definition and its neurobiological implications as well as its impact on different psychiatric disorders. The focus on childhood trauma rather than that occurring in adulthood is important due to its general “neuro-psyco-socio” and its specific biological implications, since trauma during childhood impacts directly on neurodevelopment. It has been suggested that early life stress increases vulnerability to psychiatric disorders; however, the exact mechanisms of this association are not yet completely understood. Although childhood trauma could be considered too unspecific to be an important risk factor for individual psychiatric disorders since it seems to occur across the board, it impacts differently on different psychiatric disorders, and it can modulate their clinical expression. Therefore, the assessment of early trauma needs to be included in the clinical evaluation of patients with psychiatric disorders. The volume will be an invaluable tool for psychiatrists, helping them to select suitable pharmacological, psychotherapeutic and rehabilitative treatments.
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3030494144
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 456
Book Description
This volume presents a comprehensive overview of childhood trauma, considering the psychopathological definition and its neurobiological implications as well as its impact on different psychiatric disorders. The focus on childhood trauma rather than that occurring in adulthood is important due to its general “neuro-psyco-socio” and its specific biological implications, since trauma during childhood impacts directly on neurodevelopment. It has been suggested that early life stress increases vulnerability to psychiatric disorders; however, the exact mechanisms of this association are not yet completely understood. Although childhood trauma could be considered too unspecific to be an important risk factor for individual psychiatric disorders since it seems to occur across the board, it impacts differently on different psychiatric disorders, and it can modulate their clinical expression. Therefore, the assessment of early trauma needs to be included in the clinical evaluation of patients with psychiatric disorders. The volume will be an invaluable tool for psychiatrists, helping them to select suitable pharmacological, psychotherapeutic and rehabilitative treatments.
Magnesium in the Central Nervous System
Author: Robert Vink
Publisher: University of Adelaide Press
ISBN: 0987073052
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 354
Book Description
The brain is the most complex organ in our body. Indeed, it is perhaps the most complex structure we have ever encountered in nature. Both structurally and functionally, there are many peculiarities that differentiate the brain from all other organs. The brain is our connection to the world around us and by governing nervous system and higher function, any disturbance induces severe neurological and psychiatric disorders that can have a devastating effect on quality of life. Our understanding of the physiology and biochemistry of the brain has improved dramatically in the last two decades. In particular, the critical role of cations, including magnesium, has become evident, even if incompletely understood at a mechanistic level. The exact role and regulation of magnesium, in particular, remains elusive, largely because intracellular levels are so difficult to routinely quantify. Nonetheless, the importance of magnesium to normal central nervous system activity is self-evident given the complicated homeostatic mechanisms that maintain the concentration of this cation within strict limits essential for normal physiology and metabolism. There is also considerable accumulating evidence to suggest alterations to some brain functions in both normal and pathological conditions may be linked to alterations in local magnesium concentration. This book, containing chapters written by some of the foremost experts in the field of magnesium research, brings together the latest in experimental and clinical magnesium research as it relates to the central nervous system. It offers a complete and updated view of magnesiums involvement in central nervous system function and in so doing, brings together two main pillars of contemporary neuroscience research, namely providing an explanation for the molecular mechanisms involved in brain function, and emphasizing the connections between the molecular changes and behavior. It is the untiring efforts of those magnesium researchers who have dedicated their lives to unraveling the mysteries of magnesiums role in biological systems that has inspired the collation of this volume of work.
Publisher: University of Adelaide Press
ISBN: 0987073052
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 354
Book Description
The brain is the most complex organ in our body. Indeed, it is perhaps the most complex structure we have ever encountered in nature. Both structurally and functionally, there are many peculiarities that differentiate the brain from all other organs. The brain is our connection to the world around us and by governing nervous system and higher function, any disturbance induces severe neurological and psychiatric disorders that can have a devastating effect on quality of life. Our understanding of the physiology and biochemistry of the brain has improved dramatically in the last two decades. In particular, the critical role of cations, including magnesium, has become evident, even if incompletely understood at a mechanistic level. The exact role and regulation of magnesium, in particular, remains elusive, largely because intracellular levels are so difficult to routinely quantify. Nonetheless, the importance of magnesium to normal central nervous system activity is self-evident given the complicated homeostatic mechanisms that maintain the concentration of this cation within strict limits essential for normal physiology and metabolism. There is also considerable accumulating evidence to suggest alterations to some brain functions in both normal and pathological conditions may be linked to alterations in local magnesium concentration. This book, containing chapters written by some of the foremost experts in the field of magnesium research, brings together the latest in experimental and clinical magnesium research as it relates to the central nervous system. It offers a complete and updated view of magnesiums involvement in central nervous system function and in so doing, brings together two main pillars of contemporary neuroscience research, namely providing an explanation for the molecular mechanisms involved in brain function, and emphasizing the connections between the molecular changes and behavior. It is the untiring efforts of those magnesium researchers who have dedicated their lives to unraveling the mysteries of magnesiums role in biological systems that has inspired the collation of this volume of work.
Brain Neurotrauma
Author: Firas H. Kobeissy
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1466565993
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 718
Book Description
With the contribution from more than one hundred CNS neurotrauma experts, this book provides a comprehensive and up-to-date account on the latest developments in the area of neurotrauma including biomarker studies, experimental models, diagnostic methods, and neurotherapeutic intervention strategies in brain injury research. It discusses neurotrauma mechanisms, biomarker discovery, and neurocognitive and neurobehavioral deficits. Also included are medical interventions and recent neurotherapeutics used in the area of brain injury that have been translated to the area of rehabilitation research. In addition, a section is devoted to models of milder CNS injury, including sports injuries.
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1466565993
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 718
Book Description
With the contribution from more than one hundred CNS neurotrauma experts, this book provides a comprehensive and up-to-date account on the latest developments in the area of neurotrauma including biomarker studies, experimental models, diagnostic methods, and neurotherapeutic intervention strategies in brain injury research. It discusses neurotrauma mechanisms, biomarker discovery, and neurocognitive and neurobehavioral deficits. Also included are medical interventions and recent neurotherapeutics used in the area of brain injury that have been translated to the area of rehabilitation research. In addition, a section is devoted to models of milder CNS injury, including sports injuries.
Determined
Author: Robert M. Sapolsky
Publisher: Penguin Group
ISBN: 0525560998
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 529
Book Description
The instant New York Times bestseller “Excellent…Outstanding for its breadth of research, the liveliness of the writing, and the depth of humanity it conveys.” – Wall Street Journal One of our great behavioral scientists, the bestselling author of Behave, plumbs the depths of the science and philosophy of decision-making to mount a devastating case against free will, an argument with profound consequences Robert Sapolsky’s Behave, his now classic account of why humans do good and why they do bad, pointed toward an unsettling conclusion: We may not grasp the precise marriage of nature and nurture that creates the physics and chemistry at the base of human behavior, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Now, in Determined, Sapolsky takes his argument all the way, mounting a brilliant (and in his inimitable way, delightful) full-frontal assault on the pleasant fantasy that there is some separate self telling our biology what to do. Determined offers a marvelous synthesis of what we know about how consciousness works—the tight weave between reason and emotion and between stimulus and response in the moment and over a life. One by one, Sapolsky tackles all the major arguments for free will and takes them out, cutting a path through the thickets of chaos and complexity science and quantum physics, as well as touching ground on some of the wilder shores of philosophy. He shows us that the history of medicine is in no small part the history of learning that fewer and fewer things are somebody’s “fault”; for example, for centuries we thought seizures were a sign of demonic possession. Yet, as he acknowledges, it’s very hard, and at times impossible, to uncouple from our zeal to judge others and to judge ourselves. Sapolsky applies the new understanding of life beyond free will to some of our most essential questions around punishment, morality, and living well together. By the end, Sapolsky argues that while living our daily lives recognizing that we have no free will is going to be monumentally difficult, doing so is not going to result in anarchy, pointlessness, and existential malaise. Instead, it will make for a much more humane world.
Publisher: Penguin Group
ISBN: 0525560998
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 529
Book Description
The instant New York Times bestseller “Excellent…Outstanding for its breadth of research, the liveliness of the writing, and the depth of humanity it conveys.” – Wall Street Journal One of our great behavioral scientists, the bestselling author of Behave, plumbs the depths of the science and philosophy of decision-making to mount a devastating case against free will, an argument with profound consequences Robert Sapolsky’s Behave, his now classic account of why humans do good and why they do bad, pointed toward an unsettling conclusion: We may not grasp the precise marriage of nature and nurture that creates the physics and chemistry at the base of human behavior, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Now, in Determined, Sapolsky takes his argument all the way, mounting a brilliant (and in his inimitable way, delightful) full-frontal assault on the pleasant fantasy that there is some separate self telling our biology what to do. Determined offers a marvelous synthesis of what we know about how consciousness works—the tight weave between reason and emotion and between stimulus and response in the moment and over a life. One by one, Sapolsky tackles all the major arguments for free will and takes them out, cutting a path through the thickets of chaos and complexity science and quantum physics, as well as touching ground on some of the wilder shores of philosophy. He shows us that the history of medicine is in no small part the history of learning that fewer and fewer things are somebody’s “fault”; for example, for centuries we thought seizures were a sign of demonic possession. Yet, as he acknowledges, it’s very hard, and at times impossible, to uncouple from our zeal to judge others and to judge ourselves. Sapolsky applies the new understanding of life beyond free will to some of our most essential questions around punishment, morality, and living well together. By the end, Sapolsky argues that while living our daily lives recognizing that we have no free will is going to be monumentally difficult, doing so is not going to result in anarchy, pointlessness, and existential malaise. Instead, it will make for a much more humane world.