<< 1 >>
Rating: 
Summary: Some interesting ideas, but a sloppy presentation
Review: "A User's Guide to the Brain" dwells on two main themes about the brain. The first, 'use it or lose it' is familiar to most people. The second, that virtually everything the brain does can be related to bodily motion, is intriguing, and is supported by example and analogy. Sadly, it is supported in this book by little else. There is no documentation included here, and Ratey frequently makes important statements without supporting them with examples or research. Regardless of the quality of the ideas, this makes much of the book suspect.In the introduction, Ratey writes: "Although metaphor and analogy are unconventional in scietific circles, I am firmly convinced that a more nonlinear kind of thought will eventually supplant much of the logical reasoning we use today...Our troubled world, too, is becoming too complex for logical argumentation, and may have to change its thinking: real trust, when emotions are running high, is based on analogy, not calculation." Ratey is right to recognize the importance of emotions in our lives and in society, but hundreds of years of scientific research have shown us the utility of logical reasoning. Metaphor and analogy are useful, but they need to be used as a complement to logical reasoning, controlled studies and peer-reviewed research, not in their place. Despite the book's obvious flaws, the last chapter, "Care and Feeding" provides advice on nurturing one's brain that is probably valuable. The concepts are not complex: stay active mentally and physically, maintain a healthy diet, and provide new challenges and stimulus for your brain throughout your life.
Rating: 
Summary: A revolution in the making
Review: "Mental problems, from hot temper to laziness, from chronic worry to excessive drinking, all have roots in the biology of the brain." (p. 357) This is a report on a revolution taking place in neuroscience, psychiatry, psychology and kindred disciplines. The old paradigms are crumbling under the onslaught of a new understanding of how the brain really works. Harvard Medical School psychiatrist John J. Ratey's "guide" (it's more than that) is an admirable exercise in bringing us up to date on what is happening in brain science--what we suspect, what we know, and how this knowledge is affecting clinical practice. In a sense Ratey's book is a report on a new paradigm. It is biology-based and relies first and foremost on the physiology of the brain and body as they have developed over time. Gone are the artificial constructs of Freudian psychology and the very limited black-box psychology of behaviorism. The new psychology is based on opening that black box and looking inside. Of course what we find there is enormously complex, and we are, to use Ratey's expression (p. 124), "still on the first step of a very long staircase." Yet, because of the growing power of neuroscience to study and access the living brain in ways that were impossible just a few years ago, we are entering an exciting time, full of hope and wonder. As Dr. Ratey explains in "Acknowledgments," this book began as a cooperative research effort by many people toward writing a "primer on the brain for mental health professionals." Then it was suggested by Pantheon editor Linda Healey that a smaller version "that would try to instruct the public at large" be written. A professional science writer, Mark Fischetti, was hired and schooled. The result is a book written in an engaging and very readable manner. However, its organization--neat and reasonable as it is--actually detracts from the book's effectiveness because the most interesting and helpful chapters are near the end. I realize that Ratey and his editors and writers came to the conclusion that the material in the last three chapters, "The Social Brain," "The Four Theaters," and "Care and Feeding" could be better appreciated after having read the more fundamental material in the first seven chapters. Nonetheless I believe that a lot of people who would benefit from this very fine book will not get to those chapters. Too bad. Ratey's metaphor of the four theaters is a powerful tool for incorporating and understanding the new paradigm, while the final chapter gives us some very excellent advice on how to live fully while keeping the brain and our systems healthy. Consequently I would propose that when Dr. Ratey updates this book (and I hope he will; there is so much happening in neuroscience that some of the information here will be dated in just a few years) that he structure the book so that it begins with Chapter 9, "The Four Theaters," followed by Chapter 8, "The Social Brain," and then the first seven chapters, concluding with the advice in Chapter 10, "Care and Feeding." For the reader, I recommend reading Chapter 9 first so that you can immediately share in the excitement that is at the heart of the book. The "theaters," by the way, should be understood as "theaters of operations" and not theaters where movies might be shown. (Originally Ratey had used "kingdoms of the brain" as his metaphor.) The theaters are (1) perception; (2) attention, consciousness and cognition; (3) brain function (memory, emotion, movement, etc.); and (4) behavior and identity. He sees a flow of consequence (like a river) from perception to attention to function to behavior. He argues persuasively that the brain is a holistically operating entity that is constantly being changed by its interaction with the environment, a dynamic organism that is forever learning, making new perceptions and adjustments. Things can go wrong in any one of the theaters and what happens in any theater affects the other theaters down river (and even up river). What I found particularly interesting is the new approach to diagnostics and therapy this understanding affords. A good example is on pages 347-349 where Ratey tells the story of Theresa who was slow to learn, unsocial and awkward in sports. Instead of some disorder out of DSM-IV being plastered on her forehead, Ratey found that she had a perception problem, and he demonstrated how her social and functional problems stemmed from that "first theater" problem. Ratey emphasizes freeing the patient from self-doubt and personal blame for whatever the problem may be, and always looks for a biological cause first. Some bits of wisdom from the best chapter in the book, from pages 353-355: "Modern medical practice tends to regard patients' self-evaluations as too tainted by subjectivity, but this is a grave error." "It is quite beyond the average patient's ability, within the framework of...insight-oriented therapies, to pinpoint the true source of unhappiness and frustration." "Prozac is hardly a remedy for the self-blame, lost opportunities, and intellectual insecurity of a lifetime compromised by unrecognized perceptual and cognitive deficits." "We have to begin to think of the brain as a self-organizing ecosystem, one of such staggering complexity and delicate balance that almost any aspect of a patient's life may be relevant to a diagnosis or essential to treatment." "[T]he clinician's duty...includes devoting more time to looking for what is good in patients' lives, for the strengths and talents that are not yet being fully realized, and for the secret pleasures and sources of happiness that they have never allowed themselves." "We in psychiatry continually risk mistaking our labels for the disorders themselves." "The brain's processes can be utterly transformed by self-discovery and the right pursuits in life."
Rating:
Summary: Its YOUR brain! Use it or lose it!!
Review: Do yourself a favor and read this book. Even better, do your doctor a favor and give a copy of this book to her or him. It's your brain, and you want to know how to care for it, tune it, nurture it and protect it. This sophisticated book -- up to date in the year 2001 -- and in remarkably clear and plain English -- and in amazing detail -- will tell you much that you need to know. And provide you a framework within which you can integrate future knowledge. When the next edition comes out, within a few years, you will want to read that one too. January 1, 2001 marked the end of 'The Decade of the Brain' -- ten years of brain-based research focusing upon neuroscience, neuroanatomy, neurophenomenology, psychopharmacology, psychiatry and neural functioning. While this massive undertaking has been somewhat overshadowed by even more massive investigations of the human genome, it is likely that advances from brain research will have a greater impact on your life and your health. Dr. John Ratey, a Harvard Medical School professor and author or co-author of other well received previous books on neuropsychiatric conditions (eg, 'Driven to Distraction'), explains why and how, and in language that you can read even if you didn't study biology in college. Yet he never speaks down to the reader -- I am a professional medical educator myself, and I am sufficiently impressed by the breadth and depth of this book that I will recommend it to my students and colleagues. Growing knowledge about the brain is transforming our understanding of ourselves and our world, and Dr. Ratey is able to convey this information to the reader through lively descriptions and stories and through enlightening clinical vignettes. The book is organized in a manner that is straightforward and incremental. Starting with 'perception', chapters go on to encompass 'attention and consciousness', 'movement', 'memory', 'emotion', 'language' and 'the social brain'. These are well written and informative and never boring or abstruse, with plenty of case examples taken from Dr. Ratey's practice or from autobiographical and biographical stories in the literature. For example, Temple Grandin is a middle-aged woman with an active professional and social life who overcame many limits of her well-diagnosed autism by self-observation, tenacity, and a disciplined, original, self-determined approach to her disorder. Another example, Rickie, is the daughter of an eminent psychiatrist who was frequently hospitalized for schizophrenia until it was discovered that this diagnosis was simply incorrect. Instead, Rickie suffered from an unusual perceptual problem which could be sufficiently remedied with special glasses so that she could begin a career as a rehabilitation counselor and also marry and raise children. Stories such as these are not only wonderful and humane, they are well told and instructive and the insights gleaned from them are used by Dr. Ratey to teach us about the brain, how it works, what can go wrong, what can be done about it, and most importantly, what we can do about it. The brain, the reader learns, is certainly not a digital computer. It is an organ that provides us with access to a world and to other people as well as with the capacity to move through this world and to interact with it. The systems of the brain shape our emotions, our actions and reactions, and our identity. Furthermore, it is now very clear that our brain can be molded and cared for by us, its 'user', in a manner that can enrich our lives and expand our possibilities and potentialities. Or, with poor care, constrict these possibilities. The book ends with a section on the four 'theaters' of the brain, a framework for understanding that encompasses traditional medical as well as more holistic approaches to healing. Finally, there is a section on the 'care and feeding' of the brain that is as practical as it is profound. You will benefit from this book. Your brain will benefit as you --the user -- come to understand better how this miraculous organ works and what you can do to keep it going and to enhance its performance. Besides, you will enjoy a book that is a masterful and humane read.
Rating:
Summary: Who'd expect a scientist to be such a great writer?
Review: Honestly, I expected a dry, but informative book. John J. Ratey takes on neuropsychology with stories and examples that anyone can understand. Diversity, folks, includes more than just race, gender, and age. It's also about creating dynamic, effective groups by bringing together people that perceive and process information differently. Don't skip over this one if you're in HR, management, or lead teams.
Rating:
Summary: For medical professionals...or anyone interested!
Review: I found reading this book to go fairly slowly, yet every time I thought it would get boring so that I could skip a section, it became fascinating instead! This is a very dense book, yet it is not boring. The author, a Harvard psychiatry professor, states at the beginning that he is writing this book for everyone and that everyone will be able to understand it. He does a good job of explaining all of the complex concepts, of which there are many in connection with the study of the brain. The book is an up-to-date explanation of the current knowledge and research about the brain. The new knowledge deepens our understanding and adds insights into brain function and its affect on our lives. The more we know about how the brain works, the better we can understand the problems caused by malfunctions in the brain. Numerous case studies are presented to show how new knowledge has helped us better understand specific brain problems that might have been previously categorized or "lumped" into some almost unrelated illness. In some cases, new knowledge helped the patient to solve debilitating problems and lead a much improved life. Ratey goes into a lot of detail. In the chapter on perception, he explains that the nostrils are placed above and close to the mouth to help us avoid eating poisonous things, even if we don't realize the danger until the very last possible moment before putting the item into our mouth. He includes lots of similar little tidbits of information that seem like standard knowledge but are new; I know I never learned them! We should all know everything in this book! A new finding about learning can help everyone. Researchers at Johns Hopkins recently found that learning a new motor skill is solidified best if the skill is learned and then practiced again after 5 or 6 hours, with no further new skill learning in between. I sent this bit of news to my college daughter who is learning to play the piano! Ratey seems to cover all the newest studies on a wide range of aspects of the brain. He goes into detail about the parts of the brain responsible for various functions. The major sections of the book are development, perception, attention and consciousness, movement, memory, emotion, language, and the social brain. There is a lot of discussion about the amygdala in the sections on emotions. I feel that I would need to reread some of this to understand it thoroughly, as parts of the brain are mentioned which I previously knew nothing about, ie, the anterior cingulate gyrus, which plays key roles in emotions. The neurotransmitters are given their due, too, though medications are not discussed in detail. Ratey stops short of chemical terms with subscripts (those gamma chemicals), which is where I usually become overwhelmed. I can absorb the information in this book with effort. I think that a psychiatrist would find this book a useful way to glean a summary of the current status of the research on the brain. I think a psychiatrist should want to know everything in this book! Some sections and even some short passages might be of particular interest to some patients, too. For someone with a strong medical/psychiatric background and interest in the subject, this well-written book might be a worthwhile page-turner, with important new information and clarification of emerging concepts.
Rating:
Summary: Accessible and plausible
Review: In the endless debate over nature versus nurture, John Ratey brings some logic and reason to the table. His accessible writing style is bolstered by the humanising anecdotes he chooses to illustrate his main premise of the brain as an amazingly plastic organ, powerful and yet tameable with a respectful knowledge of its make-up and functioning.
Rating:
Summary: Superb guide to brain function
Review: It was sitting on the bookshelf with an interesting cover. But following the famous proverb about how things are often more than the cover, i opened the book and read the first couple pages. A woman, making her way through store automatic doors repeatedly. It seemed interesting, my dad was footing the bill, i bought it. The next few pages caused me to realize that it was actually a book with plenty of scientific facts. And they were freaking interesting. Did you know, that the reason why americans advertise ICE COLD beer is because they wanted to numb your taste buds so that the beer would taste good? Warm beer sucks, doesn't it? Did you know, that things with motion need brains? That's why there's this squid, that has a brain and vertebrae when it is younger and in a tadpole state. Once it matures and attaches itself to something, it quits moving and self digests it's own brain. This book is filled to the brim with facts. It shows, through plenty of real life examples, plenty about specific parts about the brain. And as the title states, it really is a users guide to the brain. Through this book I have learned so much about how the brain works, and along with it, plenty of trivia to entertain the brainless at those boring parties.
Rating:
Summary: It is an excellent book I read and re-read
Review: Just shy of 400 pages this is a book I want the smart women to read. Yes, men should read it to, but I simply feel that as a woman some people, often other women are put off by women with great brains. Ten Chapters that cover Development, Perception, Attention and Consciousness, Movement, Memory, Emotion, Language, The Social Brain, The Four Theatres, Care and Feeding. And his notation beginning on page 114 about the Triage mind as medical professionals often say we (we who are in the circle of friends and colleagues) have, is about Arouse, Orient, Detect, Execute is utterly engrossing. And on page 251 where he speaks of the popular fad of Emotional intelligence as an attract concept because it can provide a convenient scapegoat for today's epidemics of violent crime, marital strife and teen age drug abuse as a start, is wise and telling. On page 274 he gives a simple lateralization concept test that the reader can take to see how the right and left brain react differently to action combined with verbal work. Was happy to see that the suggestion of a trusted friend that I was equally righ-left brained was true (laughing) and that yes, I am linguistically ambidextrous as well. In discussing the Four Theatres he also reminds the reader that it is regaining popularity amongst medical professionals. The First being Perception, the Second is Attention and Consciousness and issues involving Cognitive issues like survival skills. The Third is Brain Function and the Fourth is Identity and Behavior. In Care and Feeding he speaks about the real importance of reading to children at an early age and continuing to read books etc that challenge the brain and not simply fill it with mush. And exercise! On page 359 he gives some excellent insight into how important exercise is to a healthy min. And as he notes "Obviously, exercise improves the body, but some of the most exciting new findings point to the positive effect exercise can have on mental health. First of all, it increases the amount of blood that gets to the brain. And it has been shown that it can augment the number and density of the blood vessels in the areas that need them the most: the motor cortex and cerebellum. Thus, in addition to its well-known effect of increasing blood vessels and improving circulation in the heart, it seems that exercise or activity has a similar effect on the brain." Better self-esteem he notes is also a known effect of exercise and that females of all ages who regularly take part in sports and exercise have a more positive self image and less depression as well. He then notes there have been more than 1,000 studies on the effect on mental health. That short sessions of vigorous aerobic exercise, usually lasting for several weeks seem to have the most helpful effect on moderate to mild forms of depression. He notes a 1994 Harvard study that found men who burn 2500 calories a day in aerobic activity which can be running walking fast, etc., were 28% less likely to develop clinical depression than less active men. He also notes that vigorous exercise also involves learning complex movements that also challenge the brain. And then on page 316 he speaks of the importance of movement in general, and how it effects motor skills. And that inactivity and stagnation can hasten the decline of mental abilities. And lastly he speaks of mental work outs and how important it is to think outside the box and read things that are different and that will cause the neurons to work. That people who are doing new things and trying new things, constantly reading and not watching TV or staying in ones comfort zone are the ones who live the fullest and mentally healthiest lives.
Rating: 
Summary: Good in parts but flawed
Review: Summary: 1. Tedious writing style - too verbose. 2. Hard to distinguish opinions of the author from what has been established scientifically. 3. Repeats - obviously without checking - the feminist lie that there was a "Rule of Thumb" which permitted men to beat their wives with a stick no thicker than their thumb. This casts doubt on his credibility. 4. I stuck it out to the end because there was enough useful information to keep me going. Next time I would advise the author to get a ghost writer and have someone check the facts for him.
Rating:
Summary: Enticing Tidbits
Review: The 'tidbits' were well worth the read. Perception as a reward and the nature of that process is covered in detail. Though there is no 'alcohol' gene, there has been research that implicates an area in the brain called the nucleus accumbens. Scientists label the low dopamine condition in alcoholics, ADHD, Tourettes and OCD as 'reward deficiency syndrome.' As such we come closer to understanding and treating compulsive drinking, speeding and other drug addictions. AA's have always said that certain people are born "a pint short," and the current theories substantiate that metaphor. The taste sense, we are told, is highly dependent on smell and the taste buds are within the realm of evolutionary biology. They enabled survival because they inform the condition of the food. Bitter, for example, tells whether the food is rotten and if, therefore, it could sicken and kill the eater. Sound and vision are more interrelated than is commonly considered- try playing ping pong without hearing the sounds that name the game. The other areas of the book, the theaters of the mind, etc. were less striking for me, but also important to anyone attempting to integrate all of these findings into their own conceptual meaning. The last part on nourishment and exercise as integral to maintaining the physique of the mind is also repetitive but validating to all the admonishments to exercise and eat well. Ratey's book is clear, informed and worthwhile. It lacks what I found impressive in LeDoux's The Emotional Brain, and that is a theme that runs almost like an uncovering, a plot, that was true but spellbinding. Still, the 'tidbits' were new to this reader at least and as such, I will reread this volume, perhaps several times.
<< 1 >>
|
