Master the ideas central to understanding the human brain.In a series of 50 accessible essays, Mo Costandi introduces and explains all we know about the brain and how it works, outlining both long-standing theories and cutting-edge ideas.From the function of neurons and synaptic transmission, to the nervous system and personality, 50 Human Brain Ideas You Really Need to Know is a complete introduction to the most powerful and mysterious organ in th...

The real story of how our brains and nervous systems change throughout our lifetimes—with or without “brain training.”Fifty years ago, neuroscientists thought that a mature brain was fixed like a fly in amber, unable to change. Today, we know that our brains and nervous systems change throughout our lifetimes. This concept of neuroplasticity has captured the imagination of a public eager for self-improvement—and has inspired countless Internet ent...

Cognition Switch: An Artefact for the Transmission of New IdeasIssue #6: June 2019Featuring Ideas by:Alex O’Brien, Hayley Birch, Catherine de Lange, Carl Zimmer, Moheb Costandi, Virginia Gewin, Emma Young, Samira Shackle, and Kendall Powell

How the way we perceive our bodies plays a critical role in the way we perceive ourselves: stories of phantom limbs, rubber hands, anorexia, and other phenomena.The body is central to our sense of identity. It can be a canvas for self-expression, decorated with clothing, jewelry, cosmetics, tattoos, and piercings. But the body is more than that. Bodily awareness, says scientist-writer Moheb Costandi, is key to self-consciousness. In Body Am I, Costandi exa...

Neuroscience is one of the most fascinating and complex areas of scientific research, with new advances being made every day. In 50 Human Brain Ideas You Really Need to Know, Mo Costandi condenses all we know about the brain and how it works into series of introductions to the most important concepts.Outlining both long-standing theories - such as the function of neurons and synaptic transmission - and cutting-edge ideas - including neuroethics and brain-computer interfacing - with...

The body is central to our sense of identity. Bodily awareness, says scientist-writer Moheb Costandi, is key to self-consciousness. In Body Am I, Costandi examines how the brain perceives the body, how that perception translates into our conscious experience of the body, and how that experience contributes to our sense of self. Along the way, he explores what can happen when the mechanisms of bodily awareness are disturbed, leading to such phenomena as phantom limbs, alien hands, ...

Fifty years ago, neuroscientists thought that a mature brain was fixed like a fly in amber, unable to change. Today, we know that our brains and nervous systems change throughout our lifetimes. This concept of neuroplasticity has captured the imagination of a public eager for self-improvement -- and has inspired countless Internet entrepreneurs who peddle dubious "brain training" games and apps. In this book, Moheb Costandi offers a concise and engaging overview of neuroplasticity for the ...

A dynamic insight into how science will shape human destiny over the coming century.What will the world look like in 2020, 2030 or even 2100? How will progress in scientific research affect human life in the areas of health and lifestyle, energy and the environment, politics and conflict, space exploration and even the ultimate questions of existence? This book offers an electrifying trip through the wonders - and terrors - awaiting us over the next hundred years.

At a time of widespread popular cynicism and profound international unease, the need for clarity over the basic concepts of politics has never been greater.The forces of Fundamentalism endanger our Liberty and Security, while government responses to it may pose a basic threat to Justice, Democracy and Human rights. Corruption, War and Tyranny arouse public indignation which is often inflamed by Propaganda, the blandishments of Political parties and the far-from-disinterested attent...

We are in the throes of a revolution, yet most of us are so disorientated by the rapid pace of technological and cultural change that we find it difficult to understand what's going on. 50 Digital Ideas you Really Need to Know provides a clear path through the confusion and misinformation surrounding those technologies that, for better or for worse, are transforming the world we live in and even the sort of people we are.Leading technology writer Tom Chatfield is a sure-footed guid...

For millennia humanity has gazed in wonder at the night sky, tracked the motions of the planets and attempted to explain our place in the Universe. But only in our own time has the true scale, the astonishing variety and the remarkable strangeness of the cosmos come clearly into focus.The pace and sophistication of recent scientific discovery has been breathtaking, but breakthroughs are often difficult to understand and their impact is hard to fully appreciate. In 50 Ideas You Real...

A guide to everything you need and want to know about quantum physics, how our universe works and our existence in it.Quantum physics is the most cutting-edge, important and fascinating area of modern science. We have all heard of Einstein's theory of relativity and Schrodinger's Cat - but do we really understand the mind-bending theories of our universe?In 50 concise chapters, Joanne Baker covers the foundation concepts o...