Human: The Science Behind What Makes Us Unique
One of the world's leading neuroscientists explores how best to understand the human condition by examining the biological, psychological, and the highly social nature of the species.
Publishers Weekly (05/12/2008):
As wide-ranging as it is deep, and as entertaining as it is informative, the latest offering from UCSanta Barbara neuroscientist Gazzaniga ("The Ethical Brain") will please a diverse array of readers. He is adept at aiding even the scientifically unsophisticated to grasp his arguments about what separates humans from other animals. His main premise is that human brains are not only proportionately larger than those of other primates but have a number of distinct structures, which he explores along with evolutionary explanations for their existence. For instance, a direct outgrowth of the size and structure of the human brain, along with their origins in the complexity of human social groups, was the development of language, self-awareness and ethics. (Gazzaniga offers some surprising comments on the evolution of religion and its relation to morals.) Throughout, Gazzaniga addresses the nature of consciousness, and by comparing the intellectual capabilities of a host of animals (chimps, dogs, birds and rats, among others) with those of human babies, children and adults, he shows what we all share as well as what humans alone possess. "(July)" Copyright 2008 Reed Business Information.
Booklist (07/01/2008):
Thinking through human characteristics, and deciding whether they are in fact distinctly human, is the aim of this popular work about neuroscience. Gazzaniga is a prime name in the field, and in jaunty, colloquial language, he mediates the research of neurobiologists as well asevolutionary and cognitive psychologists. Opening with a run through the gross anatomy of the brain andconcluding that, yes, ours really is a bigger, more complex noggin than that of any other species, Gazzaniga asks: Would a chimp make a good date? Meaning: Are we justified in imputing humanlike thought to animals such as chimps or dogs? No, is Gazzanigas general conclusion. They fail tests for theory-of-mind, the ability to act on the knowledge that other creatures have their own thoughts. Humans innately acquire that skillas Gazzaniga demonstrates through descriptions ofcognitive studies of childrenso whats it for, he asks? He finds answers in the universal proclivity to talk, mostly about other people. From gossip to morals to art, Gazzaniga pays scientific compliments to what makes us human.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2008, American Library Association.)
Library Journal (09/01/2008):
Where the brain is concerned, does size matter? Until recently, research into the evolution of hominid species into "Homo sapiens" has focused on physical features, with the study of cognitive evolution limited to speculating how brain size affected psychosocial capacities. Advances in modern neuroscience reveal that the unique capabilities of the human mind are only possible through much more complex and subtle differences than just size. Neuroscientist Gazzaniga ("The Ethical Brain") discusses the brain functions underlying the defining characteristics of what makes us human: arts, ethics, empathy, conceptual thinking, and self-awareness. The first three parts of his book ("The Basics of Human Life," "Navigating the Social World," and "The Glory of Being Human") explore the neural mechanisms that make humans different from other species. The final section, "Beyond Current Constraints," speculates freely on future brain evolution, both natural and technology-enhanced. Although the text can be a bit dense in places, readers attracted to this subject are generally more than willing to invest the neural energy required to follow it and will be rewarded for doing so. Recommended for academic and larger public library science collections.Gregg Sapp, Science Lib., SUNY Albany Copyright 2008 Reed Business Information.
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"One could ask for no better guide... compelling, wide-ranging tour."--Daniel Henninger
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"Gazzaniga is one of the founders of the field of cognitive neuroscience... full of dazzling insights... engaging."----V.S. Ramachandran
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"Gazzaniga, a cognitive neuroscientist at the University of California, Santa Barbara (and one of the inventors of the field), takes us on a lively tour through the latest research on brain evolution."--New York Times Book Review
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"A savvy, witty guide to neuroscience today." -- Kirkus Reviews
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"Sweeping, erudite and humorous. . . If you are looking for one book that gives you a Cook's Tour of the human brain, where it came from and where it is heading, this would be an excellent choice."--Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
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"[Readers] will enjoy the science he unravels." -- Floyd E. Bloom
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"Michael Gazzaniga shares his considerable insight... compelling, and at the same time, clear."--Dr. Steven E. Hyman
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"Brilliantly written and utterly fascinating. Gazzaniga stands as a giant among neuroscientists, for both the quality of his research and his ability to communicate it to a general public with infectious enthusiasm."--Robert Bazell, Chief Science Correspondent, NBC News
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"In this book, Gazzaniga uses science AND some truly engaging, witty writing to explain us to us."--CNBC.com
Review Quotes:
"A savvy, witty guide to neuroscience today."--Kirkus Reviews
Review Quotes:
Michael Gazzaniga shares his considerable insight... compelling, and at the same time, clear. --Dr. Steven E. Hyman
Review Quotes:
Gazzaniga, a cognitive neuroscientist at the University of California, Santa Barbara (and one of the inventors of the field), takes us on a lively tour through the latest research on brain evolution. --New York Times Book Review
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...[A] shimmering new book...[Gazzaniga] explains the latest findings from the sciences of mind and brain in a coherent and satisfying narrative. This is the place to look to learn about our best scientific understanding of what it means to be human. --Steven Pinker, author of THE LANGUAGE INSTINCT and HOW THE MIND WORKS
Review Quotes:
A savvy, witty guide to neuroscience today. --Kirkus Reviews
Review Quotes:
Readers of Gazzaniga s intriguing insights into the realm of neuroscience are certain to have their consciousnesses pleasantly piqued in numerous ways. --Saturday Evening Post
Review Quotes:
[Readers] will enjoy the science he unravels. --Floyd E. Bloom
Review Quotes:
One could ask for no better guide... compelling, wide-ranging tour. --Daniel Henninger
Review Quotes:
Brilliantly written and utterly fascinating. Gazzaniga stands as a giant among neuroscientists, for both the quality of his research and his ability to communicate it to a general public with infectious enthusiasm. --Robert Bazell, Chief Science Correspondent, NBC News
Review Quotes:
The book is an intellectual romp through the cognitive neurosciences . . . a rich testimony to the incredible accomplishments of the human brain in coming to understand itself. --New York Sun
Review Quotes:
Sweeping, erudite and humorous. . . If you are looking for one book that gives you a Cook s Tour of the human brain, where it came from and where it is heading, this would be an excellent choice. --Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Review Quotes:
Gazzaniga is one of the founders of the field of cognitive neuroscience... full of dazzling insights... engaging. ----V.S. Ramachandran
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Wonderfully smart and often funny...I recommend [HUMAN] highly. This book combines succinct views of how we became the amazing animals that we are, the biological bases of morality, and some atonishing futurology. --Titlepage.tv
Review Quotes:
As wide-ranging as it is deep, and as entertaining as it is informative, the latest offering from UC Santa Barbara neuroscientist Gazzaniga (The Ethical Brain) will please a diverse array of readers.--Publishers Weekly (starred review)
Review Quotes:
In this book, Gazzaniga uses science AND some truly engaging, witty writing to explain us to us. --CNBC.com
Review Quotes:
"[Readers] will enjoy the science he unravels."--Floyd E. Bloom
Review Quotes:
."..[A] shimmering new book...[Gazzaniga] explains the latest findings from the sciences of mind and brain in a coherent and satisfying narrative. This is the place to look to learn about our best scientific understanding of what it means to be human."--Steven Pinker, author of THE LANGUAGE INSTINCT and HOW THE MIND WORKS
Review Quotes:
"Wonderfully smart and often funny...I recommend [HUMAN] highly. This book combines succinct views of how we became the amazing animals that we are, the biological bases of morality, and some atonishing futurology."--Titlepage.tv
Review Quotes:
"The book is an intellectual romp through the cognitive neurosciences . . . a rich testimony to the incredible accomplishments of the human brain in coming to understand itself."--New York Sun
Review Quotes:
"Readers of Gazzaniga's intriguing insights into the realm of neuroscience are certain to have their consciousnesses pleasantly piqued in numerous ways."--Saturday Evening Post
Review Quotes:
"As wide-ranging as it is deep, and as entertaining as it is informative, the latest offering from University of California at Santa Barbara neuroscientist Gazzaniga (The Ethical Brain) will please a diverse array of readers."--Washington Examiner
Publisher Marketing:
One of the world's leading neuroscientists explores how best to understand the human condition by examining the biological, psychological, and highly social nature of our species within the social context of our lives.
What happened along the evolutionary trail that made humans so unique? In his widely accessible style, Michael Gazzaniga looks to a broad range of studies to pinpoint the change that made us thinking, sentient humans, different from our predecessors.
Neuroscience has been fixated on the life of the psychological self for the past fifty years, focusing on the brain systems underlying language, memory, emotion, and perception. What it has not done is consider the stark reality that most of the time we humans are thinking about social processes, comparing ourselves to and estimating the intentions of others. In Human, Gazzaniga explores a number of related issues, including what makes human brains unique, the importance of language and art in defining the human condition, the nature of human consciousness, and even artificial intelligence.
Review Citations:
Science 01/30/2009 pg. 585 (EAN 9780060892883, Hardcover)
Publishers Weekly 05/12/2008 pg. 45 (EAN 9780060892883, Hardcover) - *Starred Review
Kirkus Reviews 06/01/2008 pg. 583 (EAN 9780060892883, Hardcover)
Booklist 07/01/2008 pg. 24 (EAN 9780060892883, Hardcover)
Discover 08/01/2008 pg. 73 (EAN 9780060892883, Hardcover)
New York Times Book Review 08/24/2008 pg. 9 (EAN 9780060892883, Hardcover)
Library Journal 09/01/2008 pg. 156 (EAN 9780060892883, Hardcover)
Scientific American 10/01/2008 pg. 102 (EAN 9780060892883, Hardcover)
Scitech Book News 12/01/2008 pg. 69 (EAN 9780060892883, Hardcover)
Choice 02/01/2009 (EAN 9780060892883, Hardcover)
Wilson Public Library Catalog 12/31/2008 pg. 460 (EAN 9780060892883, Hardcover)
Wilson Public Library Catalog 01/01/2013 pg. 526 (EAN 9780060892883, Hardcover)
Contributor Bio: Gazzaniga, Michael S
Michael S. Gazzaniga is Professor of Psychology and Director of the SAGE Center for the Study of Mind at the University of California, Santa Barbara, Co-Director of the Summer Institute in Cognitive Neuroscience, and President of the Cognitive Neuroscience Institute.