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The Brain: The Story of You Kindle Edition

by David Eagleman (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

6,002 ratings

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'This is the story of how your life shapes your brain, and how your brain shapes your life.'

Locked in the silence and darkness of your skull, the brain fashions the rich narratives of your reality and your identity.

Join renowned neuroscientist David Eagleman for a journey into the questions at the heart of our existence. What is reality? Who are 'you'? How do you make decisions? Why does your brain need other people? How is technology poised to change what it means to be human?

In the course of his investigations, Eagleman guides us through the world of extreme sports, criminal justice, facial expressions, genocide, brain surgery, gut feelings, robotics, and the search for immortality. Strap in for a whistle-stop tour into the inner cosmos. In the infinitely dense tangle of billions of brain cells and their trillions of connections, something emerges that you might not have expected to see in there: you.

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"An ideal introduction to how biology generates the mind.... structured around crucial and wide-ranging questions, saturated with personal and social relevance. And Eagleman’s answers are consistently clear, engaging and thought-provoking." —Nature

"David Eagleman's wide-ranging roundup of the current state of knowledge about the brain is concise, accessible and often very surprising. It's a strange new world inside your head.” —Brian Eno

"David Eagleman’s The Brain its an astonishing read. On every page there is a revelation so fantastic as to make one gasp. It would be impossible to take in if we didn’t all possess that impossibly extraordinary thing, a brain. Eagleman comes closer than anyone to solving the mystery of how to find the self inside the grey electric mush between our ears.” —Stephen Fry

"David Eagleman makes it easy to comprehend the most complex collection of cells in the Cosmos— our brain. If neuroscience had a rock legend this would be him.” —Ruby Wax

About the Author

David Eagleman is a neuroscientist at Stanford University. His scientific research is published in journals from Science to Nature, and he is also the author of the internationally bestselling books Sum and Incognito. He is the writer and presenter of the companion BBC television series The Brain.

www.eagleman.com

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Introduction

Because brain science is a fast-moving field, it’s rare to step back to view the lay of the land, to work out what our studies mean for our lives, to discuss in a plain and simple way what it means to be a biological creature. This book sets out to do that.

Brain science matters. The strange computational material in our skulls is the perceptual machinery by which we navigate the world, the stuff from which decisions arise, the material from which imagination is forged. Our dreams and our waking lives emerge from its billions of zapping cells. A better understanding of the brain sheds light on what we take to be real in our personal relationships and what we take to be necessary in our social policy: how we fight, why we love, what we accept as true, how we should educate, how we can craft better social policy, and how to design our bodies for the centuries to come. In the brain’s microscopically small circuitry is etched the history and future of our species.

Given the brain’s centrality to our lives, I used to wonder why our society so rarely talks about it, preferring instead to fill our airwaves with celebrity gossip and reality shows. But I now think this lack of attention to the brain can be taken not as a shortcoming, but as a clue: we’re so trapped inside our reality that it is inordinately difficult to realize we’re trapped inside anything. At first blush, it seems that perhaps there’s nothing to talk about. Of course colors exist in the outside world. Of course my memory is like a video camera. Of course I know the real reasons for my beliefs.

The pages of this book will put all our assumptions under the spotlight. In writing it, I wanted to get away from a textbook model in favor of illuminating a deeper level of enquiry: how we decide, how we perceive reality, who we are, how our lives are steered, why we need other people, and where we’re heading as a species that’s just beginning to grab its own reins. This project attempts to bridge the gap between the academic literature and the lives we lead as brain owners. The approach I take here diverges from the academic journal articles I write, and even from my other neuroscience books. This project is meant for a different kind of audience. It doesn’t presuppose any specialized knowledge, only curiosity and an appetite for self-exploration.

So strap in for a whistle-stop tour into the inner cosmos. In the infinitely dense tangle of billions of brain cells and their trillions of connections, I hope you’ll be able to squint and make out something that you might not have expected to see in there. You.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00VKAZENW
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Canongate Books; Main edition (November 5, 2015)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ November 5, 2015
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 28.4 MB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Print length ‏ : ‎ 245 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #548,035 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #117 in Biology (Books)
- #134 in Schizophrenia (Books)
- #166 in Neuroscience (Kindle Store)

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David Eagleman

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David Eagleman is a neuroscientist at Stanford University, an internationally bestselling author, and a Guggenheim Fellow. He is the writer and presenter of The Brain, an Emmy-nominated PBS/BBC television series that asks what it means to be human from a neuroscientist's point of view. Eagleman’s research encompasses time perception, vision, synesthesia, and the intersection of neuroscience with the legal system. He is the author of many books, including Livewired, Sum, Incognito, The Brain, and The Runaway Species. You can find David on the podcast Inner Cosmos, which recently hit the #1 science podcast in America.

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Customers find the book easy to read and well-written, providing great information about how the human brain works while being accessible to neuroscience novices. They appreciate its beautiful cover design and engaging storytelling, with one customer noting how it describes memory formation. Customers describe the book as thought-provoking and consider it worth the money for interested readers.

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Readability Insight Visual style Storytelling Thought provoking Material quality Value for money

139 customers mention "Readability"139 positive0 negative

Customers find the book fascinating and easy to read, with one customer noting it serves as a well-done summary of Incognito.

"...This is a wonderful, thought-provoking read, perfectly designed for curious people who may not have a great appetite for erudite, technical detail,..." Read more

"...8. Includes interesting stories. The story of Charles Whitman is quite enlightening with major repercussions on a society that values evidence...." Read more

"...That’s my experience with this book. The book is easily worth a read and a re-read of those sections that you find of interest...." Read more

"Absolutely top notch. Eagleman conveys neuroscience and the potential implications in an entertaining manner...." Read more

96 customers mention "Insight"96 positive0 negative

Customers find the book provides great information about how the human brain works, offering practical explanations and opening doors to new ways of thinking.

"...This is a wonderful, thought-provoking read, perfectly designed for curious people who may not have a great appetite for erudite, technical detail,..." Read more

"...This captivating 224-page book includes the following six chapters: 1. Who am I?, 2. What is reality?, 3. Who’s in control?,4. How do I decide?, 5...." Read more

"...So many topics that I won’t list them but the book includes a reference to the revelation in an autopsy that his Albert Einstein’s brain had an..." Read more

"...This is the true story of how your brain is shaped, how each of the billions of brain cells your mind contains is constructed...." Read more

16 customers mention "Visual style"16 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the visual style of the book, with its beautiful cover and colorful illustrations, and one customer notes its down-to-earth presentation.

"...This is written in a very engaging and personal style that reduces complex, technical issues into readily understood and relatable everyday..." Read more

"...3. Full of colorful illustrations that complement the excellent narrative. 4. Eagleman’s writing style is easy on the “brain”...." Read more

"...David Eagleman has proven through this book that he is one of the most creative and innovative within the field of neuroscience...." Read more

"...His creation is truly awe-inspiring. Sticking to the facts really helps. It made me think of a few scriptures while reading the material:..." Read more

13 customers mention "Storytelling"13 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the storytelling in the book, with one mentioning how it describes memory formation and another noting its relatable everyday experiences.

"...complex, technical issues into readily understood and relatable everyday experience...." Read more

"...9. Describes how memories are formed. “Our past is not a faithful record. Instead it’s a reconstruction, and sometimes it can border on mythology...." Read more

"...His words scream with clarity and he breaks down even the most complex structures, making them easily digested...." Read more

"...even more so due to the understanding of the complex, yet organized brain structure and how we process...." Read more

11 customers mention "Thought provoking"11 positive0 negative

Customers find the book thought-provoking, with several noting it is written by one of the most interesting contemporary writers. One customer particularly appreciates its meaning and implications, while another describes it as poetic.

"...his work intensely accessible, but beautifully-written - with thought-provoking lines like “Because [your neuronal networks] continue to change your..." Read more

"...It's scientific and philosophical at the same time." Read more

"...There is just the perfect mixture of complex thoughts with incredible examples of experiments as well as real-life stories...." Read more

"This book is the TV series in it's physical form, that's why it is so illustrative both in its language so in its illustrations...." Read more

9 customers mention "Material quality"9 positive0 negative

Customers find the material of the book well done, with one customer noting it is very complex, and another mentioning that the DVD arrived in good condition.

"...of reality the brain puts together is a remarkably, accurate, dependable and consistent one – indeed, it cannot be otherwise because were this the..." Read more

"...I enjoyed this book, it was an easy read, well constructed and included interesting sidebars and studies supporting the journey." Read more

"Easy reading with lots of good material, much of it pertaining to everyday life. The book inspired me to watch Eagleman on YouTube." Read more

"...the series very closely This time around though, the material seems more powerful and the meaning and implications have more power." Read more

6 customers mention "Value for money"6 positive0 negative

Customers find the book worth the money, with one describing it as an incredible find.

"...the brain, set to my level of understanding, and yours is an incredible find...." Read more

"...But worth the money for interested folks with little knowledge of the subject." Read more

"Incredible book! Well worth the price" Read more

"A useful book..." Read more

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Renney Senn
Absorbing, Clear, and Multifaceted
Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2025
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Dr. Eagleman led me on a fascinating tour of this most enigmatic organ, constantly and authoritatively updating the experiments and hypotheses I recalled from my graduate work in counseling psychology. This is written in a very engaging and personal style that reduces complex, technical issues into readily understood and relatable everyday experience.

One question arose for me in the final chapter of the book dealing with the confounding issue of self-awareness and whether this can be achieved with non-biological platforms, i.e. silicon, water, etc. It prompted me to wonder if our ability to be self-aware, presently absent in the most sophisticated robots, is not basically due to having physical bodies that are continuously registering some degree of pleasure and pain, many times at seemingly subconscious levels. Constant approach-avoidance experiences, due to our physical sensitivity to what we experience as pleasure and pain, and the prewired need to survive, could be an indispensable foundation for motivation, emotional existence, and, consequently, self-awareness. Since a non-flesh and blood entity could be taught our reactions to these experiences but would be unable to physically feel them, I wonder if, unlike a robot, our physical selves constantly buffeted by seeking pleasure and avoiding pain even in micro amounts, is not the essential ingredient separating is from the robot, our self-awareness.

This is a wonderful, thought-provoking read, perfectly designed for curious people who may not have a great appetite for erudite, technical detail, but who are fascinated by the bottom line describing what we presently believe makes us think and do, for better or worse, what we see virtually every day.

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Book Shark
Excellent Companion Piece
Reviewed in the United States on March 1, 2016
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The Brain: The Story of You by David Eagleman

“The Brain" is an excellent companion piece to the six-part PBS series of the same title. Neuroscientist and best-selling author David Eagleman, educates and fascinates the general public with a wonderful popular-science examination of our brains. This captivating 224-page book includes the following six chapters: 1. Who am I?, 2. What is reality?, 3. Who’s in control?,4. How do I decide?, 5. Do I need you?, and 6. Who will we be?.

Positives:
1. Popular science at its best. Accessible, enlightening and fun to read.
2. The fascinating topic of neuroscience in the masterful hands of David Eagleman.
3. Full of colorful illustrations that complement the excellent narrative.
4. Eagleman’s writing style is easy on the “brain”. His goal is to educate the general public and he succeeds.
5. Full of interesting facts spruced throughout the book. “As many as two million new connections, or synapses, are formed every second in an infant’s brain. By age two, a child has over one hundred trillion synapses, double the number an adult has.”
6. A good description of the teen’s brain. “Beyond social awkwardness and emotional hypersensitivity, the teen brain is set up to take risks.”
7. Goes over some of the keys components of the brain. “The scientists were particularly interested in a small area of the brain called the hippocampus – vital for memory, and, in particular, spatial memory.”
8. Includes interesting stories. The story of Charles Whitman is quite enlightening with major repercussions on a society that values evidence.
9. Describes how memories are formed. “Our past is not a faithful record. Instead it’s a reconstruction, and sometimes it can border on mythology. When we review our life memories, we should do so with the awareness that not all the details are accurate.”
10. Describes some of the tools of a neuroscientist. “One way to measure that is with electroencephalography (EEG), which captures a summary of billions of neurons firing by picking up weak electrical signals on the outside of the skull.”
11. Considers important philosophical questions. Does the idea of an immaterial soul reconcile with neuroscientific evidence? Find out.
12. Describes reality. “One way to measure that is with electroencephalography (EEG), which captures a summary of billions of neurons firing by picking up weak electrical signals on the outside of the skull.” “Everything you experience – every sight, sound, smell – rather than being a direct experience, is an electrochemical rendition in a dark theater.” “The slice of reality that we can see is limited by our biology.”
13. Describes consciousness. “…the conscious you is only the smallest part of the activity of your brain. Your actions, your beliefs and your biases are all driven by networks in your brain to which you have no conscious access.” “I think of consciousness as the CEO of a large sprawling corporation, with many thousands of subdivisions and departments all collaborating and interacting and competing in different ways.”
14. Describes how the brain decides. “It’s easy to think about the brain commanding the body from on high – but in fact the brain is in constant feedback with the body.”
15. An interesting look at willpower. “…willpower isn’t something that we just exercise – it’s something we deplete.”
16. A look at social neuroscience. “Our social skills are deeply rooted in our neural circuitry – and understanding this circuitry is the basis of a young field of study called social neuroscience.”
17. A fascinating look at Syndrome E and its repercussions. “Syndrome E is characterized by a diminished emotional reactivity, which allows repetitive acts of violence.” “Genocide is only possible when dehumanization happens on a massive scale, and the perfect tool for this job is propaganda.”
18. A look at the future of neuroscience. “The secret to understanding our success – and our future opportunity – is the brain’s tremendous ability to adjust, known as brain plasticity.”
19. Can consciousness be uploaded? Find out.
20. A helpful glossary of terms.

Negatives:
1. As expected, a book this succinct will leave some interesting neuroscientific topics on the table. The topic of free will gets shortchanged.
2. A book intended for the general public and a companion piece no less, will lack depth.
3. The eBook edition has some glitches, as an example, extra blank pages inserted.
4. Endnotes included but no formal bibliography.

In summary, this book exemplifies my love for science. Eagleman is a master of his craft and a skilled writer. He covers complex topics on the neuroscience with ease and provides the general public with an appetizer of knowledge. Neuroscience is a fascinating field in it is infancy and Eagleman successfully whets the public’s interest. I highly recommend it!

Further recommendations: “Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain” by the same author, “How to Create a Mind” and “The Singularity is Near” by Ray Kurzwell, “Who’s in Charge?” by Michael S. Gazzaniga, “The Human Brain Book” by Rita Carter, “The Tell-Tale Brain” by V.S. Ramachandran, “Hallucinations” and “The Man Who Mistook His Wife For a Hat” by Oliver Sacks, “A Whole New Mind” by Daniel H. Pink, “In Search of Memory” by Eric R. Kandel, “Self Comes to Mind” by Antonio Damasio, and “The Mind” edited by John Brockman.

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Curious Earthling
EXCELLENT! I give it a rating 8.9 out of 10
Reviewed in the United States on February 20, 2016
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Have you ever read a book so interesting that you constantly take notes or highlight “I want to remember this, I want to remember that . . .”?

That’s my experience with this book.

The book is easily worth a read and a re-read of those sections that you find of interest. So many topics that I won’t list them but the book includes a reference to the revelation in an autopsy that his Albert Einstein’s brain had an enlarged area related to his playing the violin. I mentioned that in conversation with a person learning to play the violin which we both found interesting, BUT if I painstakingly listed the fifty most interesting details in the book I’m not certain that would even make the list of the top fifty.

EXCELLENT! I give it a rating 8.9 out of ten and the only reason I don’t rate it higher is so that if I ever rate something that I think is better I’ll have room to give a higher rating.

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Hala
Highly recommend
Reviewed in the United Arab Emirates on February 20, 2022
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Wonderful book that talked about the Miracls of the brain in a very simple interesting way.

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Miguel Ramirez
Excelente libro!!!
Reviewed in Mexico on October 3, 2022
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Excelente libro me encantó como el autor explica el desarrollo de nuestras neuronas, gracias a eso eh podido entender más nuestro proceso de aprendizaje.

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Serghiou Const
Simple but profound: illuminating the functions of the complex and plastic circuitry of our brain
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 2, 2016
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The book is simply and elegantly written and eminently readable. But apart from the author's charisma in writing there is wisdom in the layout and structure of the book which results in such an unimpeded flow of the text; apart from several simple illustrations there is nothing in the text to distract your attention. But unbeknownst to the reader, at the end of the book there are End notes which provide additional information and references; also a glossary. In the body of the text there are boxes which elaborate on points raised in the text. Finally at the beginning of the six chapters comprising the book, each featuring a trait of the human brain, there is a text highlighting the essence of the ensuing chapter.

Our brain weighing roughly 1400 g - apparently the most complex structure in the known universe - a dense tangle of billions of cells and trillions of connections is what makes us human.

One of the remarkable traits of the human brain is its plasticity. Humans are born with their brains unfinished with the result that we are helpless and totally dependent on those around us for many years. By contrast baby animals develop quickly because their brains are wiring up according to a largely p reprogrammed routine. But that preparedness trades off with flexibility which enables humans to thrive in many different environments. Instead of arriving with everything wired up - hardwired - a human brain allows itself to be shaped by the details of life experience. All the experiences of our life shape the microscopic details of our brain. Our brain constantly re writes its own circuitry and since our experiences are unique, so are the vast, detailed patterns in our neural networks. Because they continue to change during our whole life, our identity is a moving target.

I imagine that many of us have pondered as to whether we perceive physical reality or reality is something reconstructed in our brain. Well, it is very much the latter.

Outside our brain is just energy and matter. Over millions of years of evolution the human brain has become adept at turning this energy and matter into a rich sensory experience of being in the world.

Our brain has no access to the world outside. There is only one way that information from out there gets into the brain. Our sensory organs - eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and skin - act as interpreters. They detect a spectrum of information sources (photons, air compression waves, molecular concentrations, pressure, texture, temperature) and translate them into the common currency of the brain namely signals.

I shall conclude this part with Synesthesia for which the author has written a whole book. Synesthesia is a condition in which senses are blended e.g they perceive sounds as colors.

I imagine that most of us do not realize the enormous power of the unconscious brain. The universe inside our heads extends far beyond the reach of our conscious experience. At every moment in our life, networks in our brain are buzzing with activity. Our life is shaped and colored by what is happening in the subconscious part of our brain: how we act, what matters to us, what we believe is true and false. Our experience is the final output of these hidden processes. It is the power of the unconscious brain that flawlessly orchestrates our movements ( walking, riding, bicycling etc).

Between sleep and being awake, the biological material in the brain is the same but the activity patterns slightly change.

Being awake (and conscious) we are aware of an identity, a life, needs, desires, plans. Consciousness reacts to surprises but also plays a vital role in settling conflicts within the brain. Consciousness makes plans and sets goals for the system as a whole.

Humans do not simply have social needs, they are hardwired to be social creatures. Normal brain function depends on the social web around us. Our neurons require other people's neurons to thrive and survive. From our families, co-workers, and business partners, our societies are built on layers of social interaction.

The world around us is a large part of who we are, the self does not exist in a vacuum.

Finally, we are at a moment in human history when the marriage of our biology and our technology will transcend the brain's limitations . This is poised to fundamentally change what it will mean to be human.

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Roberto S.
ottimo libro per chi conosce abbastanza bene l'inglese
Reviewed in Italy on April 21, 2016
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Ho comprato questo libro dopo aver visto il documentario composto da 6 episodi dello stesso autore del libro ovvero David Eagleman. Cosi come mi ha piacevolmente stupito il documentario cosi mi ha stupito anche il libro . Presenta in maniera molto chiara con esempi molto interessanti il funzionamento del nostro cervello e devo dire che le informazioni scritte in questo libro non sono assolutamente banali e già note a tutti . Il libro presenta in maniera sintetica i frutti degli ultimi 10-13 anni di ricerca di D. Eagleman. Nel libro vengono considerati argomenti come la plasticità del nostro cervello, come fa il cervello ad adattarsi all'ambiente circostante, come fa a percepire la realtà che ci circonda , cosa noi siamo in relazione al nostro modo di pensare e infine come la tecnologia cambierà in futuro noi stessi in relazione ai cambiamenti ai quali il cervello va incontro.
Lo consiglio a tutte le persone affascinate del nostro cervello , del nostro modo di pensare.Inoltre a chi è interessato consiglio anche di comprare i cd del documentario collegato in quanto tale documentario permette di avere una visione migliore delle cose spiegate nel libro grazie alle animazioni molto belle e alla chiarezza espositiva.

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ATR-ZK
Une mine d'infos pour les curieux
Reviewed in France on December 3, 2016
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Ce livre est plein d'informations sur le cerveau, écrit simplement et très facile à retenir.
Le livre a été réalisé à partir de la série TV en 6 épisodes du même nom "The Brain".
A lire et à relire... et à relire encore et encore. Il est génial! Bravo!

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5.0 out of 5 stars Absorbing, Clear, and Multifaceted

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Companion Piece

4.0 out of 5 stars EXCELLENT! I give it a rating 8.9 out of 10

Top reviews from other countries

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly recommend

5.0 out of 5 stars Excelente libro!!!

5.0 out of 5 stars Simple but profound: illuminating the functions of the complex and plastic circuitry of our brain

5.0 out of 5 stars ottimo libro per chi conosce abbastanza bene l'inglese

5.0 out of 5 stars Une mine d'infos pour les curieux

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Absorbing, Clear, and Multifaceted

Excellent Companion Piece

EXCELLENT! I give it a rating 8.9 out of 10

Highly recommend

Excelente libro!!!

Simple but profound: illuminating the functions of the complex and plastic circuitry of our brain

ottimo libro per chi conosce abbastanza bene l'inglese

Une mine d'infos pour les curieux