Cognitive Science

Every day we speak to ourselves and to each other, about ourselves and about others. Whether ruminating on a past event alone or gossiping with a group of friends, we move through life in a state of near-constant chatter - even during those moments we profess to wanting nothing more than some peace and quiet. So, why do we do it, and what purpose does talking serve? In this paean to conversation, neuroscientist Shane O'Mara encourages us to marvel at our brains distinct mechanisms for communicating.

PLEASE NOTE: This is a summary and analysis of the book and not the original book. Neuroscientist Lisa Mosconi reviews the link between food and brain function and offers specific recommendations for staying mentally younger, sharper, and fitter in her book Brain Food: The Surprising Science of Eating for Cognitive Power.

How did human minds become so different from those of other animals? What accounts for our capacity to understand the way the physical world works, to think ourselves into the minds of others, to gossip, read, tell stories about the past, and imagine the future? These questions are not new: they have been debated by philosophers, psychologists, anthropologists, evolutionists, and neurobiologists over the course of centuries. One explanation widely accepted today is that humans have special cognitive instincts.

Insomnia isn’t just a minor disturbance. Your body needs sleep to recharge its batteries, undo damage, and heal. Chronic under-sleeping will have negative consequences down the line, which is why the time has come to work on improving your sleep patterns. While this may seem like a mission impossible at the moment, starting to enjoy much better sleep is within your reach. The secret to quality sleep is discovering a science-based approach that will address your particular problem.

Why are many readers drawn to stories that texture ethnic experiences and identities other than their own? How do authors such as Salman Rushdie and Maxine Hong Kingston, or filmmakers in Bollywood or Mexico City produce complex fiction that satisfies audiences worldwide? In Analyzing World Fiction, 15 renowned luminaries use tools of narratology and insights from cognitive science and neurobiology to provide answers to these questions and more.

Tasty explains the scientific research taking place on multiple fronts: how genes shape our tastes, how the mind assembles flavors from the five senses and signals from the body's metabolic systems, why something disgusts one person and delights another, and what today's obsessions with extreme tastes tell us about the brain.

Is medication the only way to treat phobias, depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress, or other such concerns? Do you always need outside pharmaceutical assistance to treat your deep inner problems? No. Medication is not the solution always, and some people don’t even like getting treated that way. There is a better way - treatment from inside to outside. And Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is the way to go, as it heals and strengthens you from inside to outside.

What does it mean to "know" something? While the answer to this question has been traditionally defined by the content of an individual's mind, artificial intelligence technology, or AI, has the potential to completely redefine the notion. In no context are discussions of "what it means to know" more relevant than in those surrounding individuals with cognitive disabilities - unique individuals who struggle with knowing daily.

Speaking from an unknown place and to an unknown interlocutor, Andrew is thinking, Andrew is talking, Andrew is telling the story of his life, his loves, and the tragedies that have led him to this place and point in time. And as he confesses, peeling back the layers of his strange story, we are led to question what we know about truth and memory, brain and mind, personality and fate, about one another and ourselves. Written with psychological depth and great lyrical precision, this suspenseful and groundbreaking novel delivers a voice for our times - funny, probing, skeptical, mischievous, profound.

Many of us assume that who we really are is something deep inside us, an inner sanctuary that contains our true selves. In Who You Are, Michael Spivey argues that the opposite is true: that you are more than a brain, more than a brain and body, and more than all your assumptions about who you are.

FEAT DESC

Edited by John Brockman, publisher of Edge.org, Thinking presents original ideas by today's leading psychologists, neuroscientists, and philosophers who are radically expanding our understanding of human thought.

Insight leads to success. The more you can rely on insight rather an analytical process, the better. Using an analytical process can be helpful and has its place at times, but studies have shown that an answer to a problem derived from using insight is 16 percent more likely to be correct than when using a longer, analytical process. So, get this guide and gain insight today!