CS300A – Book Review

The Tell-Tale BrainV.S. Ramachandran

Reviewed by Sharbatanu Chatterjee

Special Thanks to Ashish Batler

Introduction

This book, by the 'Marco Polo of neuroscience' (courtesy Richard Dawkings) takes us on a fascinating journey to understand what has been called the 'organ of destiny' and, by Woody Allen, man's 'second favourite organ'.

It describes several studies of patients with bizarre symptoms and, using them, studies of normal brain functions.

En route, contemplating on big questions of aesthetics, language, art, neural mechanisms and their evolution.

Major Takeaways

We are no mere ape!

The nature of the brain's evolution is 'happenstantial'!

“We are no mere ape”

Anatomically every part of our brain has a direct mapping onto brains of great apes.However certain regions are so radically elaborated that at the functional (or cognitive) level, they can be considered unique – Wernicke's Area in left temporal lobe, the prefrontal cortex and the IPL (inferior parietal lobe)

Mirror neuron circuitry is present in great apes, but only in humans have they evolved to model other's minds rather than just actionsIt is thus this imitation, this culture and imitative learning that culminated in “the ape that looked into its own mind and saw the cosmos reflected inside”

Shift in Views : The plastic brain

The phantom limb phenomenon

The exploitation of platicisity by a prolonged neoteny

The learning of humour

The sinister origins of a smile

We're unique – Homo plasticus

Vision – Evolution is 'Happenstential'

Vision – Evolution is 'Happenstential'

Synaesthesia

A surreal blending of sensation, perception and emotion.

Syneasthetes taste colour, hear shapes, see sounds and touch emotions!

Neural cross wiring

Ingenious experiment to deny any form of learning involved from childhood.

Mirror Neurons

Are fired at not merely the experience of a phenomenon, but also the view or sight of others experiencing it.

“Free” us from Darwinian shackles and allow us to learn and empathise and develop a culture

Are truly called the neurons that shaped civilization

Language

The great scion of human uniqueness!Enormous lexicon at young ages.Humans can use functional words in context of language.'Off line' referringMetaphors and analogyFlexible, recursive syntaxDoes thinking require language – does language precede propositional logic? - The failure of apes

Art & Aesthetics

The nine laws of aesthetics :Grouping, Peak Shift, Contrast, Isolation, Peekaboo, Abhorrence of coincidence, Orderliness, Symmetry, MetaphorReasons – evolution showing off Nature's virtual reality meaning not coded as language

Introspection

The patient named Jason – with akinetic mutism.Aspects of self – Unity, Continuity, Embodiment, Privacy, Social embedding, Free will, Self-awarenessVarious patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (I am dead) and other disorders (this is not my arm, I am one with God)

Epilogue

The real drive to understand the self, though, comes not from the need to develop treatments, but from the deep seated urge we all have – to understand ourselves.Yet as human beings, we have to accept with humility that the question of ultimate origins will always remain with us, no matter how deeply we understand the brain and the cosmos that it creates

Thank You!