This Week’s Book: Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain (D. Eagleman)
Ok, let’s do this! I’m actually super pumped to write about books again…and what a shocker, I chose a book on neuroscience to kick it all off. For those of you who have read my blog in the past, you’ll know all about my affinity for discussions of neuroscience and for those of you who are new to my blog…well, now you know. I love me some neuroscience. The brain is so fascinating to me and, as this book reminded me, we still have sooooo much to learn about it!
Incognito takes the reader on a journey through the brain. No, it’s not an anatomy lesson…it’s a detailed discussion on the meagre facts that we know about the brain and a look at all of the contradictions that are present in the mind. Eagleman does a masterful job of weaving together the conscious and subconscious story of the brain, showing the readers how our brain is often one step ahead of us and how it is always on the go. Our brain is made up of an abundance of overlapping subsystems and, at times, our conscious mind has a hard time keeping up.
I am in love with this book. It included a combination of my three favourite things in a psychology-related book: it was easy to read, it discussed cool science stuff, and it told me about a shitload of cool experiments. Seriously – I love reading about experiments and studies that have interesting and/or unexpected results. Like, how cool is it that our brain has already decided to make movements before our conscious mind decides? This book describes the study where they found that out.  The more I read this book, the more I realized that our brain really does have a mind of its own…a simultaneously cool and horrifying thought. In a way, the brain really does operate like a giant switchboard à la the movie Inside Out.
I’ll admit though, despite my love for this book, there was a portion of it that somewhat lost me. In a seemingly random turn, the author included a large section on social policy, law, and the brain. I didn’t realize that the information being conveyed was building to that topic, but then it was happening and I was admittedly confused. But that section aside, I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is even remotely interested in the inner workings of the brain. This type of book makes me existed to see where science will take us next!
Interested in buying the book? Click here!
