Livewired: The Inside Story of the Ever-Changing Brain

Description

How can a blind person learn to see with her tongue or a deaf person learn to hear with his skin? What does a baby born without a nose tell us about our sensory machinery? Might we someday control a robot with our thoughts? And what does any of this have to do with why we dream? The answers to these questions are not right in front of our eyes; they're right behind our eyes. This book is not simply about what the brain is, but what it does. Covering decades of research to the present day, Livewired also presents new findings from Eagleman's own research, including new discoveries in synaesthesia, dreaming and wearable neurotech devices that revolutionise how we think about the senses.

Dr David Eagleman is a neuroscientist and internationally bestselling author. He teaches Brain Plasticity at Stanford University, is creator and host of the Emmy-nominated BBC television series The Brain, and is the Chief Executive Officer of NeoSensory, a company that builds the next generation of neuroscience hardware. The author of seven other books, he lives in Palo Alto, California. @davideagleman | eagleman.com

David Eagleman, the Jolly Sherlock Holmes of neuroscience, makes me believe that the universe of possibility required to create utopia is already housed in each of our brains. His knowledge and enthusiasm are intoxicating. His book demonstrates the principle about which he is writing; my mind has been changed by his words -- RUSSELL BRAND An altogether fascinating tour of the astonishing plasticity and interconnectedness inside the cranial cradle of all of our experience of reality, animated by Eagleman's erudite enthusiasm for his subject, aglow with the ecstasy of sense-making that comes when the seemingly unconnected snaps into a consummate totality of understanding -- MARIA POPOVA * * Brain Pickings * * Vivid . . . Since the passing of Isaac Asimov, we haven't had a working scientist like Mr Eagleman, who engages his ideas in such a variety of modes. Livewired reads wonderfully like what a book would be if it were written by Oliver Sacks and William Gibson, sitting on Carl Sagan's front lawn * * Wall Street Journal * * An intellectually exhilarating look at neuroplasticity . . . Eagleman's skill as teacher, bold vision, and command of current research will make this superb work a curious reader's delight * * Publishers Weekly (starred review) * * Livewired is terrific. If you have a mind, David Eagleman will boggle it for you -- HUGH LAURIE Chockfull of mind-bending ideas and dazzling insights. Eagleman's infectious enthusiasm, his use of fascinating anecdotes and his clear, effortless prose render the secrets of the brain's adaptability into a truly compelling page-turner. Livewired is a fun and whirlwind exploration of the most complex thing in the universe -- KHALED HOSSEINI David's a brilliant writer and thinker, and he knows more about how we tick and why we tick than anyone I know -- NEIL GAIMAN Masterful . . . Outstanding popular science * * Kirkus Reviews (starred review) * * Praise for David Eagleman: The unaccountable, jaw-dropping quality of genius * * Observer * * Mind-blowing revelations abound * * Financial Times * *