Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain
David Eagleman
Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain
If the conscious mind — the part you consider you — is just the tip of the iceberg, what is the rest doing? In this book, neuroscientist and author of SUM, David Eagleman navigates the depths of the subconscious brain to illuminate surprising mysteries: Why can your foot move halfway to the brake pedal before you become consciously aware of danger ahead? Why do you notice when your name is mentioned in a conversation that you didn't think you were listening to? Why are people whose name begins with J more likely to marry other people whose name begins with J? Taking in brain damage, plane spotting, dating, drugs, beauty, infidelity, synaesthesia, criminal law, artificial intelligence and visual illusions, Incognito is a a subsurface exploration of the mind and all its contradictions.
3.1 out of 5 based on 4 reviews
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Omniscore:
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| Classification |
Non-fiction |
| Genre |
Science & Nature, Psychology & Psychiatry |
| Format |
Hardback |
| Pages |
272 |
| RRP |
£20.00 |
| Date of Publication |
April 2011 |
| ISBN |
978-1847679383 |
| Publisher |
Canongate |
| |
If the conscious mind — the part you consider you — is just the tip of the iceberg, what is the rest doing? In this book, neuroscientist and author of SUM, David Eagleman navigates the depths of the subconscious brain to illuminate surprising mysteries: Why can your foot move halfway to the brake pedal before you become consciously aware of danger ahead? Why do you notice when your name is mentioned in a conversation that you didn't think you were listening to? Why are people whose name begins with J more likely to marry other people whose name begins with J? Taking in brain damage, plane spotting, dating, drugs, beauty, infidelity, synaesthesia, criminal law, artificial intelligence and visual illusions, Incognito is a a subsurface exploration of the mind and all its contradictions.
SUM: FORTY TALES FROM THE AFTERLIVES by David Eagleman
Read an interview with David Eagleman | The Scotsman
Reviews
The Independent on Sunday
Laurence Phelan
“… a shining example of lucid and easy-to-grasp science writing. Which isn't to say that it is reductionist ("By itself, the biology only gives partial insight"), nor that there's no space for poetic phrasing (information is carried by "flotilla of drifting molecules"). Nor does Eagleman feel bound by his field. Neuroscience is at a stage, he argues, where it can weigh in on age-old philosophical debates.”
17/04/2011
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The Guardian
Peter Forbes
“You will learn a great deal that is fascinating from Incognito, but if you've read SUM, what you will miss is the searing moral insight, the dramatic denouements. Despite Eagleman's passionate advocacy, neuroscience cannot deliver that kind of certainty.”
30/04/2011
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The Observer
Alexander Linklater
“This book belongs to a popular trend of neuro-hubris — wildly overstating the ramifications of a science that is still in its infancy … The contrast with SUM could not be more vivid. Eagleman is the rarest kind of science writer: better at translating his knowledge into fiction than explaining it as fact.”
24/04/2011
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