Awards

• Nominated for Phi Beta Kappa Award in Science 2008

Overview

Full Product Details

Author:   David Bainbridge
Publisher:   Harvard University Press
Imprint:   Harvard University Press
Dimensions:   Width: 15.60cm , Height: 2.20cm , Length: 23.50cm
Weight:   0.472kg
ISBN:  

9780674034587

ISBN 10:   0674034589
Pages:   352
Publication Date:   01 November 2009
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  College/higher education ,  Professional & Vocational ,  Tertiary & Higher Education
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Out of stock  
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Table of Contents

* Prologue I. A Grand Tour of Terra Incognita The spinal cord * Skull Marrow First thoughts about the mind * Servants and Guards of the Great King The classical brain * The Brain as Geography Maps of the mind * A River Runs Through It The development of a brain * Leonardo's Butterfly The spinal cord * Interlude The worm that turned (over) II. An Assault on the Senses The brain stem * A Forest So Dense The new anatomy of Santiago Ramon y Cajal * The Little Fish Who Never Grew Up The origins of the ear * The Brain as Archaeology The hindbrain * Beauty Is in the Eye of the, er, Squid The origins of the eye * Hillocks, Buttocks, Blindsight, and Black Stuff The midbrain * Stinkin' and Thinkin' The origins of the nose * Into the Marriage Chamber for Some Sexy Synesthesia Entering the forebrain * Why Is ""D"" Brown? When the senses mix * Interlude Shrapnel and magnets III. Where All the Mind May Be Found? The cortex * The Brain as Engineering Wilder Penfield and the cortex * The Apparent Disorder of the Cerebral Jungle What is in those hemispheres? * The Seahorse and the Almond Memory, learning, and fear * The Hard Question Brain size and consciousness * Epilogue: No Turning Back * Further Reading * Index

Reviews

In this geographical tour of the nervous system, readers will find an entertaining and enlightening history of neuroscience and a look at the anatomy of the brain...The book's relaxed pace, interesting tangents and broad coverage make this book eminently suitable for anyone curious about the brain. Publishers Weekly 20071022 [A] wonderful exploration of the brain and central nervous system...Writing in prose that is precise, descriptive, and engaging, [Bainbridge] offers vibrant depictions of neuroscientists' discoveries and the brain's evolution. Moving from structure and evolution to the senses, engineering, and wiring of the brain, the author eloquently describes the functioning of the central nervous system and then briefly examines the connections between the brain and the mind, along with more esoteric functions such as memory and consciousness. -- Candice Kai Library Journal (starred review) 20080101 Absorbing...[Bainbridge's] witty journey from spinal cord through brain stem to cerebral cortex, ending with a cautious chapter on the deceitful spectre of consciousness, is unashamedly personal...Despite the complexity of the human brain, Bainbridge seeks to convince the non-specialist that it is, in fact, simpler than you might have thought. ...Highly informative and historically minded. -- Andrew Robinson The Lancet 20080405 This book does an excellent job of introducing the layout of the brain in an easily digestible form through describing the history of its discovery while celebrating quirkiness in its nomenclature and the eccentricities of early anatomists...This book is enjoyable to read and provides an excellent contribution to making some of the apparently bizarre structure and functioning of the brain accessible to the lay reader. All neuroscientists should also welcome it: as a teacher of neuroanatomy for many years I certainly read it with pleasure. -- M. W. Brown Times Higher Education Supplement 20080417 David Bainbridge is establishing a reputation for clear, popular science writing, laced with imaginative flair and good humor, plus the essential skill of good storytelling. It is a reputation this book is likely to enhance...Presented as a journey through the geography of brain and nervous system, the book introduces its lay readers to a phantasmagoria of exotically named parts, from the Tolkienesque tract of Goll to the canal of Schlemm, Varolio's bridge and a host more. -- Rob Parkinson Human Givens Journal 20080701 With great good humor, anatomist Bainbridge conducts a tour up the spinal cord to the cerebral cortex, en route covering, in succession, embryonic brain development, the structuring of the senses, and the workings of the mind. A tour de force of popular science writing. Booklist 20090101

In this geographical tour of the nervous system, readers will find an entertaining and enlightening history of neuroscience and a look at the anatomy of the brain...The book's relaxed pace, interesting tangents and broad coverage make this book eminently suitable for anyone curious about the brain. * Publishers Weekly * [A] wonderful exploration of the brain and central nervous system...Writing in prose that is precise, descriptive, and engaging, [Bainbridge] offers vibrant depictions of neuroscientists' discoveries and the brain's evolution. Moving from structure and evolution to the senses, engineering, and wiring of the brain, the author eloquently describes the functioning of the central nervous system and then briefly examines the connections between the brain and the mind, along with more esoteric functions such as memory and consciousness. -- Candice Kai * Library Journal (starred review) * Absorbing...[Bainbridge's] witty journey from spinal cord through brain stem to cerebral cortex, ending with a cautious chapter on the deceitful spectre of consciousness, is unashamedly personal...Despite the complexity of the human brain, Bainbridge seeks to convince the non-specialist that it is, in fact, simpler than you might have thought. ...Highly informative and historically minded. -- Andrew Robinson * The Lancet * This book does an excellent job of introducing the layout of the brain in an easily digestible form through describing the history of its discovery while celebrating quirkiness in its nomenclature and the eccentricities of early anatomists...This book is enjoyable to read and provides an excellent contribution to making some of the apparently bizarre structure and functioning of the brain accessible to the lay reader. All neuroscientists should also welcome it: as a teacher of neuroanatomy for many years I certainly read it with pleasure. -- M. W. Brown * Times Higher Education Supplement * David Bainbridge is establishing a reputation for clear, popular science writing, laced with imaginative flair and good humor, plus the essential skill of good storytelling. It is a reputation this book is likely to enhance...Presented as a journey through the geography of brain and nervous system, the book introduces its lay readers to a phantasmagoria of exotically named parts, from the Tolkienesque tract of Goll to the canal of Schlemm, Varolio's bridge and a host more. -- Rob Parkinson * Human Givens Journal * With great good humor, anatomist Bainbridge conducts a tour up the spinal cord to the cerebral cortex, en route covering, in succession, embryonic brain development, the structuring of the senses, and the workings of the mind. A tour de force of popular science writing. * Booklist *

Author Information

David Bainbridge is University Clinical Veterinary Anatomist at the University of Cambridge and a Fellow of St Catharine’s College, Cambridge.

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