Itemize Books Toward The Other Brain: From Dementia to Schizophrenia, How New Discoveries about the Brain Are Revolutionizing Medicine and Science
| ISBN: | 0743291417 (ISBN13: 9780743291415) |
| Edition Language: | English |
R. Douglas Fields
Hardcover | Pages: 384 pages Rating: 4.1 | 1591 Users | 107 Reviews
Rendition During Books The Other Brain: From Dementia to Schizophrenia, How New Discoveries about the Brain Are Revolutionizing Medicine and Science
Despite everything that has been written about the brain, a very important part of this vital organ has been overlooked in most books -- until now. The Other Brain is the story of glia, which make up approximately 85 percent of the cells in the brain. Long neglected as little more than cerebral packing material ("glia" means glue), glia are sparking a revolution in brain science.Glia are completely different from neurons, the brain cells that we are familiar with. Scientists are discovering that glia have their own communication network, which operates in parallel to the more familiar communication among neurons. Glia provide the insulation for the neurons, and glia even regulate the flow of information between neurons.
But it is the potential breakthroughs for medical science that are the most exciting frontier in glia research today. Diseases such as brain cancer and multiple sclerosis are caused by diseased glia. Glia are now believed to play an important role in such psychiatric illnesses as schizophrenia and depression, and in neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. They are linked to infectious diseases such as HIV and prion disease (mad cow disease, for example) and to chronic pain. Scientists have discovered that glia repair the brain and spinal cord after injury and stroke. The more we learn about these cells that make up the "other" brain, the more important they seem to be.
Written by a neuroscientist who is a leader in the research to reveal the secrets of these brain cells, The Other Brain offers a firsthand account of science in action. It takes us into the laboratories where important discoveries are being made, and it explains how scientists are learning that glial cells come in different types, with different capabilities. It tells the story of glia research from its origins to the most recent discoveries and gives readers a much more complete understanding of how the brain works and where the next breakthroughs in brain science and medicine are likely to come.
Point Regarding Books The Other Brain: From Dementia to Schizophrenia, How New Discoveries about the Brain Are Revolutionizing Medicine and Science
| Title | : | The Other Brain: From Dementia to Schizophrenia, How New Discoveries about the Brain Are Revolutionizing Medicine and Science |
| Author | : | R. Douglas Fields |
| Book Format | : | Hardcover |
| Book Edition | : | Deluxe Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 384 pages |
| Published | : | December 29th 2009 by Simon & Schuster (first published December 29th 2008) |
| Categories | : | Psychology. Nonfiction. Biology. Neuroscience. Science. Brain. Health. Medicine. Medical |
Rating Regarding Books The Other Brain: From Dementia to Schizophrenia, How New Discoveries about the Brain Are Revolutionizing Medicine and Science
Ratings: 4.1 From 1591 Users | 107 ReviewsAssessment Regarding Books The Other Brain: From Dementia to Schizophrenia, How New Discoveries about the Brain Are Revolutionizing Medicine and Science
If you're interested in learning about how your brain is eventually going to destroy your life, look no further than this book. It's jam-packed with startling insights on how glial cells, not neurons, are potentially the true string-pullers behind the brain's fantastic functionality, and also the ways it goes wrong---for example, by the age of 80, 50% of people will develop Alzheimer's, and glia, long overlooked by neuroscientists because they don't communicate electrically like neurons, are toFor a non Neuro scientist, it is extremely difficult to know whether all the research backed statements that the book makes about the role of brain cells known as glia while neurons take most of the credit, are correct. The author makes really far reaching statements intending to overthrow the dominance of neurons as the most important part of the brain. As a result, the book often sounds like a sales pitch or funds grant request for glia. On other aspects, the book fares fairly well like being
This may actually be a five if I understood it. :)Best line:"Vital clues were overlooked o dismissed because, as in every mystery story, they were hidden in the blind spot of preconceived ideas."Substitute "ideas" for "clues" and apply to human nature, especially bureaucratic human nature.This book gave a new word which I must now try to insert into my conversation: "glia".
3.5 stars. This was a very interesting and thought provoking book. Dr. Fields makes a very compelling argument for the importance of glia. (Which after reading the book, I'm convinced the word glia should be thrown out altogether because there are different types of glia that do different things that just got thrown together and called glia (neural glue) because neurologists didn't really understand the functions of glia.) I did find it a bit surprising that this book was just recently
Although this book was well-written, it lacked those fascinating science facts that make popular science books so enjoyable. I put the book down after 150 pages. Although whether something is interesting is a purely subjective determination, I feel like this book crossed into objectively boring territory. I have slogged through many much more poorly written science books (and books that read like a list of research studies) when the science was compelling.
Fantastic book for anyone wanting to learn about the latest science concerning the brain. It is technical, yet the writing is good. For anyone interested in brain biology, it is an excellent read. There is much encouraging hope for possible cures in the next 10-20 years as the biology is becoming more and more identified.
Understandably, this book will never have wide appeal but that does not prevent it from being extremely important. Our understanding of brain and mind is changing at a rapid pace as is our ability to probe and measure. I'm interested in the rapid paths that facilitate thoughts that race between hemispheres and higher order mind functions. Douglas focuses on glial cells, the brain's white matter that has been erroneously thought to speed traffic on neuronal circuits as does insulation on electric
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