Phantoms in the Brain

Probing the Mysteries of the Human Mind

De: Sandra Blakeslee, V. S. Ramachandran

Narrado por: Neil Shah

Neuroscientist V. S. Ramachandran is internationally renowned for uncovering answers to the deep and quirky questions of human nature that few scientists have dared to address. His bold insights about the brain are matched only by the stunning simplicity of his experiments - using such low-tech tools such as cotton swabs, glasses of water, and dime-store mirrors.

In Phantoms in the Brain, Dr. Ramachandran recounts how his work with patients who have bizarre neurological disorders has shed new light on the deep architecture of the brain, and what these findings tell us about who we are, how we construct our body image, why we laugh or become depressed, why we may believe in God, and how we make decisions, deceive ourselves, and dream.

Some of his most notable cases: A woman paralyzed on the left side of her body who believes she is lifting a tray of drinks with both hands offers a unique opportunity to test Freud's theory of denial. A man who insists he is talking with God challenges us to ask: Could we be "wired" for religious experience? A woman who hallucinates cartoon characters illustrates how, in a sense, we are all hallucinating, all the time.

Dr. Ramachandran's inspired medical detective work pushes the boundaries of medicine's last great frontier-the human mind-yielding new and provocative insights into the "big questions" about consciousness and the self.

©1998 V.S. Ramachandran and Sandra Blakeslee (P)2013 Tantor

Reseñas de la Crítica

"Enthralling . . . eloquent." ( The New York Times Book Review)

Very Interesting but...

This book was very interesting. There were some parts that were difficult to follow but overall it made sense.

Narrator is not the greatest

Story and content are great. The narrator can’t seem to pronounce several words properly and has a strange way of speaking. Very off-putting. He also tries to dramatize conversations and does a bad job at that, too.

My small brain!

Even my very small and little educated brain found this to be a fantastic read (actually hear as I had this on audible). I admit I had to rewind loads of times not to just figure out what was being told but because I was so fascinated with what I was learning I often found myself in bars a beer in hand beaming or LOL at the astonishing mysteries of the brain.

I’ve read Tale Tell and can’t get enough of this field would love recommendations!!!

I loved this!

This book made me decide on becoming a neurologist.

Since my last year of high school I wanted to become a neurologist. However, the way neurology is presented in medical school made me forget what was there that fascinated me so much. I was caught up in indecision, thinking I had created false expectations on it, and it was nothing like what I thought it was. This book solved that. It showed me that for those who want to see it, neurology proposes the most exhilarating questions.

Unique Neuroscience from a Unique Neuroscientist

I studied Dr. Ramachandran's work during my undergraduate degree. In the flood of scientists and peer review, his work stood out enough that even years later I was still talking about some of his theories. When I saw his name attached to this book, I purchased it without hesitation.

Dr. Ramachandran's work in neuroscience is stunning. Once you hear it, you can't believe that we ever thought anything different. He draws beautiful, wide connections across the brain and simultaneously across theories of the brain. And after doing so, he distills it all down to plain language, communicating his ideas effortlessly.

Neil Shah does an excellent job on this one. I have nothing negative to say about his performance.

I finished weeks ago and I'm still talking about pseudocyesis and its link to social norms, among other interesting facts that I learned from this book. If you have any interest in the brain, it is well worth the time.

excelente

es mas que recomendable disfrute su lectura y análisis y correlato clínicos debemos leerlo

Totally awesome!

I enjoyed the little jokes and the amazing studies made on the human brain is fascinating, I loved that there was some conversation about eastern philosophy and western approach

Wonderful To See...

another book by Ramachandran on Audible! If you liked his Tell-Tale Brain, you will love Phantoms In The Brain. The real life "Dr. House" (he actually seems much nicer in his youtube videos!) of neurology, Ramachandran shares with us his discoveries in the realm (mostly) right-brain damage and disorder--and how he often enough finds insight not only into the neurological structure of personality, but also into care and healing of those afflicted. From the perfectly bizarre Cotard's Delusion to the puzzling (and nearly comical) Capgras Syndrome, Ramachandran takes us on an interesting and often entertaining tour of the very strange things that can go wrong with our brains.

Fascinating

Couldn't get enough of it, if only it was longer! The narrator did a great job, although I'd have prefered Dr Ramachandran to narrate, I felt as though some of his humour was lost with this narrator. All in all I'd still recommend this book.

More than the title suggests

A tour de force. VSR deduced from patients with damaged brains how healthy brains function and points the way to the self.