Pictures of the Mind: What the New Neuroscience Tells Us About Who We Are

Pictures of the Mind: What the New Neuroscience Tells Us About Who We Are by Boleyn-Fitzgerald, Miriam. hardcover edition. ISBN: 0076092044666.

Neuroscientists once believed your brain was essentially "locked down" by adulthood. No new cells. No major changes. If you grew up depressed, angry, sad, aggressive, or nasty, youd be that way for life. And, as you grew older, thered be nowhere to go but down, as disease, age, or injury wiped out precious, irreplaceable brain cells. But over the past five, ten, twenty years, all thats changed. Using fMRI and PET scanning technology, neuroscientists can now look deep inside the human brain and theyve discovered that its amazingly flexible, resilient, and plastic. Pictures of the Mind: What the New Neuroscience Tells Us About Who We Are shows you what theyve discovered and what it means to all of us. Through author Miriam Boleyn-Fitzgerald’s masterfully written narrative and use stunning imagery, youll watch human brains healing, growing, and adapting to challenges. Youll gain powerful new insights into the interplay between environment and genetics, begin understanding how people can influence their own intellectual abilities and emotional makeup, and understand the latest stunning discoveries about coma and "locked-in" syndrome. Youll learn about the tantalizing discoveries that may lead to cures for traumatic brain injury, stroke, emotional disorders, PTSD, drug addiction, chronic pain, maybe even Alzheimers. Boleyn-Fitzgerald shows how these discoveries are transforming our very understanding of the "self", from an essentially static entity to one that can learn and change throughout life and even master the art of happiness.