Out of Our Heads

family member: Bradley
book: Out of Our Heads: Why You Are Not Your Brain, and Other Lessons from the Biology of Consciousness by Alva Noe

Warning! This book will require a lot of complex thought and probably a second reading. Out of Our Heads is a great book to read if you are into re-thinking the way we interact with the world and the way we consider consciousness. As the title suggests, Noe believes that, contrary to the current assumed view most people have, if a scientist pokes a brain in all the right ways, no matter how you poke it, a world will never show up for that brain. He says that we are not just brains held in very sophisticated jars (aka our bodies). He says that instead, while our brains are obviously crucial and necessary, our consciousness (and therefore, US) resides within our entire body's interaction with the world around us*. He explores all aspects of life and interaction including everything from reading street signs on your daily commute to dreams and beyond. A must read for anyone willing to push their understanding of the world and our interactions within it to the limit.

*That's the part that may require the second reading.**
**Or third.