Title: Phantoms in the Brain: Probing the Mysteries of the Human Mind Author: Dr. V. S. Ramachandran, Sandra Blakeslee
About the author:
Dr. V. S. Ramachandran is a professor of neurology and psychology at the University of California, San Diego, and Sandra Blakeslee reports on Science for The New York Times.
All about Phantoms
The book describes Dr. Ramachandran's experiences with patients who had clinical problems and provides an insight into how the human brain works. Dr. Ramachandran describes fascinating clinical syndromes in his own peculiar style. In this book, he makes an attempt to understand why brain damage can make someone think his parents are impostors, or a woman with a stroke laugh uncontrollably; how a man with a stroke can be unaware that his left side is paralyzed, or why certain types of epileptic patients have intense religious experiences. This book presents a fascinating look at how the brain works and the unusual beliefs of people who had damage to their brains, or who had their brains remapped due to amputated limbs. He gives clear descriptions …show more content…
Ramachandran knows how to get the facts by asking the right set of questions. He examines questions throughout the book and points out fallacies in the work of past philosophers.
Positives:
• Clear and fluent descriptions of neurological phenomena and their relationship with physiological mechanisms, philosophy of mind keeps the reader enthralled
• Dr. Ramachandran comes across as an enthusiast in search of the secrets of the human mind and keeps the reader involved.
• The illustrations, informative drawings and images of human brain add value by helping the reader understand better
• Illustrations on optical phenomenon engages the reader
Negatives
• It has repeated mentions of same patients and this reappearance could have been done away with
• Dr. Ramachandran focusses too much on his work and does not mention much about research by others in this field
Ravneet Singh,
NMIMS | Roll No
About the author:
Dr. V. S. Ramachandran is a professor of neurology and psychology at the University of California, San Diego, and Sandra Blakeslee reports on Science for The New York Times.
All about Phantoms
The book describes Dr. Ramachandran's experiences with patients who had clinical problems and provides an insight into how the human brain works. Dr. Ramachandran describes fascinating clinical syndromes in his own peculiar style. In this book, he makes an attempt to understand why brain damage can make someone think his parents are impostors, or a woman with a stroke laugh uncontrollably; how a man with a stroke can be unaware that his left side is paralyzed, or why certain types of epileptic patients have intense religious experiences. This book presents a fascinating look at how the brain works and the unusual beliefs of people who had damage to their brains, or who had their brains remapped due to amputated limbs. He gives clear descriptions …show more content…
Ramachandran knows how to get the facts by asking the right set of questions. He examines questions throughout the book and points out fallacies in the work of past philosophers.
Positives:
• Clear and fluent descriptions of neurological phenomena and their relationship with physiological mechanisms, philosophy of mind keeps the reader enthralled
• Dr. Ramachandran comes across as an enthusiast in search of the secrets of the human mind and keeps the reader involved.
• The illustrations, informative drawings and images of human brain add value by helping the reader understand better
• Illustrations on optical phenomenon engages the reader
Negatives
• It has repeated mentions of same patients and this reappearance could have been done away with
• Dr. Ramachandran focusses too much on his work and does not mention much about research by others in this field
Ravneet Singh,
NMIMS | Roll No