Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain

Not that any of you couldn't get just as good of an idea about the book by picking it up and reading the back cover, here's a brief description of what tales of the mysterious and fascinating human brain Oliver Sacks has included in this book.

I imagine that several of you have already read this book, and if you are not one of those people you should be soon. This book contains all the usual elements to a great Oliver Sacks book. Amazing brain studies and curious brain "disorders" or variations. When you are reading his books, for that moment, you always just want to be able to experience for a few hours what people of various diseases or disorders are experiencing. However, with this book, the things aren't color blindness or autism (well they are actually in a couple of stories), but more like absolute tone deafness and 'amusia.' I want to know what it's like to have musical hallucinations because he describes them so well that it is hard for me to imagine that other people in the world are experiencing something so vastly different than I am simply because the hear music in a different way. He talks about different variations of synesthesia and people with Williams' syndrome. He talks about musician's dystonia and brain worms and rhythm. He talks about music in ways that I have never though about before and I have definitely grown a little through reading this book.

People on the subway who saw me reading this book, more so than any other book I have read, commeneted on how they "love that book" and "Isn't that book amazing!" So take it for what you will, I think that this book, a book on music - which is such a big part of all of our lives - is a book that really affects people on a deeper level than most books I have been reading on the subway. And even if you aren't transformed, you will at least enjoy the stories which Oliver Sacks is so skilled at putting onto paper.

A Short History of Nearly Everything

Book: A Short History of Nearly Everything

Family Member: Bradley!

Bill Bryson, in this book, makes the science and history of Earth fun and funny. He covers topics spanning from atoms and the creation of universe to apocalyptic meteors to the history and lives of the scientists and major players in scientific history.

There are indeed, some slow parts like when Bryson chooses to talk about the entire history and intricacies of those special scientists who collect the thousands of varieties of mosses around the world. However, the part I found most interesting were the mico-biographies of the people that history 'forgot' when writing the books on who discovered what and who deserves credit.

It's a fun read and you will definitely learn at least a baker's dozen new things.

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.