Author: Bruce Hood Publisher: Oxford University Press ISBN: 0199969892 Category : Psychology Languages : en Pages : 368
Book Description
Most of us believe that we are unique and coherent individuals, but are we? The idea of a "self" has existed ever since humans began to live in groups and become sociable. Those who embrace the self as an individual in the West, or a member of the group in the East, feel fulfilled and purposeful. This experience seems incredibly real but a wealth of recent scientific evidence reveals that this notion of the independent, coherent self is an illusion - it is not what it seems. Reality as we perceive it is not something that objectively exists, but something that our brains construct from moment to moment, interpreting, summarizing, and substituting information along the way. Like a science fiction movie, we are living in a matrix that is our mind. In The Self Illusion, Dr. Bruce Hood reveals how the self emerges during childhood and how the architecture of the developing brain enables us to become social animals dependent on each other. He explains that self is the product of our relationships and interactions with others, and it exists only in our brains. The author argues, however, that though the self is an illusion, it is one that humans cannot live without. But things are changing as our technology develops and shapes society. The social bonds and relationships that used to take time and effort to form are now undergoing a revolution as we start to put our self online. Social networking activities such as blogging, Facebook, Linkedin and Twitter threaten to change the way we behave. Social networking is fast becoming socialization on steroids. The speed and ease at which we can form alliances and relationships is outstripping the same selection processes that shaped our self prior to the internet era. This book ventures into unchartered territory to explain how the idea of the self will never be the same again in the online social world.
Author: Susana Martinez-Conde Publisher: Scientific American / Farrar, Straus and Giroux ISBN: 0374120404 Category : Art Languages : en Pages : 178
Book Description
A collection of visual illusions with explanations of the science behind them, gathered from the Best Illusions of the Year contest. --
Author: Gabriel Vacariu Publisher: Springer ISBN: 3658104449 Category : Philosophy Languages : en Pages : 192
Book Description
The book illustrates that the traditional philosophical concept of the "Universe”, the "World” has led to anomalies and paradoxes in the realm of knowledge. The author replaces this notion by the EDWs perspective, i.e. a new axiomatic hyperontological framework of Epistemologically Different Worlds” (EDWs). Thus it becomes possible to find a more appropriate approach to different branches of science, such as cognitive neuroscience, physics, biology and the philosophy of mind. The consequences are a better understanding of the mind-body problem, quantum physics non-locality or entanglement, the measurement problem, Einstein’s theory of relativity and the binding problem in cognitive neuroscience.
Author: Roger N. Shepard Publisher: W H Freeman & Company ISBN: 9780716721338 Category : Illusions d'optique Languages : en Pages : 228
Book Description
In Mind Sights, Roger N. Shepard introduces us to his drawings of visual tricks, discusses the origins of his scientific and artistic work, and shares his reflections on the nature of art, perception, and the mind.
Author: Gianni Sarcone Publisher: Arcturus ISBN: 9781848378308 Category : Games & Activities Languages : en Pages : 0
Book Description
Throughout the book, each image is accompanied by an explanation of how it works, the story behind it – when it was discovered or who invented it first – and the details of exactly why it fools the human brain. The book includes many new and previously unpublished illusions, as well as new adaptations of lesser-known illusions. It also includes works by well-known illusion artists such as Bridget Riley, Salvador Dalí, Giuseppe Arcimboldo, Oscar Reutersvärd, René Magritte, István Orosz and Rob Gonsalves. There are chapters on the following subjects: optical illusions from the real world (mirage, refraction, afterimage), ambiguous figures, impossible figures, color adaptation, moving illusions and paradoxical illusions.
Author: Brad Honeycutt Publisher: Imagine Publishing ISBN: 9781936140718 Category : Art Languages : en Pages : 0
Book Description
While even the simplest of illusions please, this stunning volume showcases over 200 of the finest images from around the world. Artists include Rafael Olbinski, Rob Gonsalves, Octavio Ocampo, David MacDonald, Gene Levine and M.C Escher. From the most classic optical illusions to complex graphic and painterly designs.
Author: Susana Martinez-Conde Publisher: Profile Books ISBN: 1847652956 Category : Psychology Languages : en Pages : 402
Book Description
What can magic tell us about ourselves and our daily lives? If you subtly change the subject during an uncomfortable conversation, did you know you're using attentional 'misdirection', a core technique of magic? And if you've ever bought an expensive item you'd sworn never to buy, you were probably unaware that the salesperson was, like an accomplished magician, a master at creating the 'illusion of choice'. Leading neuroscientists Stephen Macknik and Susana Martinez-Conde meet with magicians from all over the world to explain how the magician's art sheds light on consciousness, memory, attention, and belief. As the founders of the new discipline of NeuroMagic, they combine cutting-edge scientific research with startling insights into the tricks of the magic trade. By understanding how magic manipulates the processes in our brains, we can better understand how we work - in fields from law and education to marketing, health and psychology - for good and for ill.
Author: Daniel M. Wegner Publisher: MIT Press ISBN: 0262290553 Category : Philosophy Languages : en Pages : 725
Book Description
A novel contribution to the age-old debate about free will versus determinism. Do we consciously cause our actions, or do they happen to us? Philosophers, psychologists, neuroscientists, theologians, and lawyers have long debated the existence of free will versus determinism. In this book Daniel Wegner offers a novel understanding of the issue. Like actions, he argues, the feeling of conscious will is created by the mind and brain. Yet if psychological and neural mechanisms are responsible for all human behavior, how could we have conscious will? The feeling of conscious will, Wegner shows, helps us to appreciate and remember our authorship of the things our minds and bodies do. Yes, we feel that we consciously will our actions, Wegner says, but at the same time, our actions happen to us. Although conscious will is an illusion, it serves as a guide to understanding ourselves and to developing a sense of responsibility and morality. Approaching conscious will as a topic of psychological study, Wegner examines the issue from a variety of angles. He looks at illusions of the will—those cases where people feel that they are willing an act that they are not doing or, conversely, are not willing an act that they in fact are doing. He explores conscious will in hypnosis, Ouija board spelling, automatic writing, and facilitated communication, as well as in such phenomena as spirit possession, dissociative identity disorder, and trance channeling. The result is a book that sidesteps endless debates to focus, more fruitfully, on the impact on our lives of the illusion of conscious will.
Author: National Geographic Publisher: National Geographic Books ISBN: 1426310110 Category : Family & Relationships Languages : en Pages : 48
Book Description
Presents a collection of vivid optical illusions, encompassing a wide range of visual tricks and deceptive eye puzzles, from images that appear to move to perplexing distortions and hidden objects.
Author: Laura Baker Publisher: Arcturus Editions ISBN: 9781838576417 Category : Juvenile Fiction Languages : en Pages : 0
Book Description
Optical illusions are endlessly fascinating, and this book takes them to the next level This ingenious full-color activity book doesn't just present these illusions - it shows how to create them, explore them, and transform them. Create impossible objects, mind-bending patterns and uncanny perspectives in these activities, including: - Mazes - Odd-one-out - Spot-the-difference - Color-by-numbers - Any many more Ideal for readers aged 6+, this fascinating activity book will improve problem-solving skills and reveal incredible facts about the human brain
Author: Bruce Hood
Author: Susana Martinez-Conde
Author: Gabriel Vacariu
Author: Roger N. Shepard
Author: Gianni Sarcone
Author: Brad Honeycutt
Author: Susana Martinez-Conde
Author: Daniel M. Wegner
Author: National Geographic
Author: Laura Baker