What is the principle purpose of a brain? A simple question, but the
answer has taken millennia for us to begin to understand. So critical
for our everyday existence, the brain still remains somewhat of a
mystery. Gary L. Wenk takes us on a tour of what we do know about this
enigmatic organ, showing us how the workings of the human brain produce
our thoughts, feelings, and fears, and answering questions such as: How
did humans evolve such a big brain? What is an emotion and why do we
have them? What is a memory and why do we forget so easily? How does
your diet affect how you think and feel? What happens when your brain
gets old?
Throughout human history, ignorance about the brain has caused numerous
non-scientific, sometimes harmful interventions to be devised based on
interpretations of scientific facts that were misguided. Wenk discusses
why these neuroscientific myths are so popular, and why some of the
interventions based on them are a waste of time and money. With
illuminating insights, gentle humor, and welcome simplicity*, The Brain:
What Everyone Needs to Know(R)* makes the complex biology of our brains
accessible to the general reader.