Brain Has a Mind of its Own - Hardcover

If you're feeling disconnected from the world, it might not be because of your mood; you could be a temporal lobe epileptic. In this collection of fascinating, accessible essays, Richard Restak--bestselling author of Brainscapes--explores the relationship between mind and brain. " ... I still find it difficult to believe," he states in the introduction, "that this three-pound mass of protoplasm with the consistency of an overripe avocado is the seat of who I am, of who we all are." If you've ever wondered how much our humanity is shaped by the gray, wrinkled organ between our ears, or even what's going on in our brains when we daydream or ride a bicycle, this book of spirited anecdotes will provide some interesting answers and raise even more questions.

Restak (The Mind, 1988; The Brain, 1984, etc.) rests on his laurels a bit with these brief, breezy essays on technological innovations, ethical issues, and as-yet-unsolved mysteries in the fast-developing field of neurology. Is it possible for any individual to become a genius? Do we possess our brains, or are our brains all we are? Do our intentions precede our actions, or the other way around? These are some of the questions Restak addresses on breaks from his practice as a neuropsychiatrist, and thanks to new knowledge gained through modern technology, surprising answers are currently emerging. Brain activity in those of normal intelligence appears profoundly different on a PET scan from that of geniuses, for example-- implying that an enriched environment may heighten intelligence but is unlikely to spawn a race of geniuses. On-scalp electrodes detect brain activity briefly preceding the conscious decision to act, suggesting that our brains are slightly ahead of our minds in dealing with the external world. Such recent discoveries in neurology have sparked fascinating philosophical debates elsewhere, but Restak abandons each topic just as it begins to get interesting, switching abruptly to the more personal issues he confronts in his consulting room. Ethical dilemmas such as whether to allow a patient in coma to die, whether to inform a patient that he has a degenerative disease that will eventually destroy his mind and kill him, and whether to spend time on fruitless therapy sessions with a chronically schizophrenic woman are all potentially rich topics, but in failing to explore any one fully, these essays fail to satisfy. Cocktail party conversation--light and lively, but ultimately disappointing. -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.