A User's Guide to the Brain: Perception, Attention, and the Four Theaters of the Brain

I found reading this book to go fairly slowly, yet every time I thought it would get boring so that I could skip a section, it became fascinating instead! This is a very dense book, yet it is not boring. The author, a Harvard psychiatry professor, states at the beginning that he is writing this book for everyone and that everyone will be able to understand it. He does a good job of explaining all of the complex concepts, of which there are many in connection with the study of the brain.The book is an up-to-date explanation of the current knowledge and research about the brain. The new knowledge deepens our understanding and adds insights into brain function and its affect on our lives. The more we know about how the brain works, the better we can understand the problems caused by malfunctions in the brain. Numerous case studies are presented to show how new knowledge has helped us better understand specific brain problems that might have been previously categorized or "lumped" into some almost unrelated illness. In some cases, new knowledge helped the patient to solve debilitating problems and lead a much improved life. Ratey goes into a lot of detail. In the chapter on perception, he explains that the nostrils are placed above and close to the mouth to help us avoid eating poisonous things, even if we don't realize the danger until the very last possible moment before putting the item into our mouth. He includes lots of similar little tidbits of information that seem like standard knowledge but are new; I know I never learned them! We should all know everything in this book! A new finding about learning can help everyone. Researchers at Johns Hopkins recently found that learning a new motor skill is solidified best if the skill is learned and then practiced again after 5 or 6 hours, with no further new skill learning in between. I sent this bit of news to my college daughter who is learning to play the piano! Ratey seems to cover all the newest studies on a wide range of aspects of the brain. He goes into detail about the parts of the brain responsible for various functions. The major sections of the book are development, perception, attention and consciousness, movement, memory, emotion, language, and the social brain. There is a lot of discussion about the amygdala in the sections on emotions. I feel that I would need to reread some of this to understand it thoroughly, as parts of the brain are mentioned which I previously knew nothing about, ie, the anterior cingulate gyrus, which plays key roles in emotions. The neurotransmitters are given their due, too, though medications are not discussed in detail.Ratey stops short of chemical terms with subscripts (those gamma chemicals), which is where I usually become overwhelmed. I can absorb the information in this book with effort. I think that a psychiatrist would find this book a useful way to glean a summary of the current status of the research on the brain. I think a psychiatrist should want t

"Mental problems, from hot temper to laziness, from chronic worry to excessive drinking, all have roots in the biology of the brain." (p. 357)This is a report on a revolution taking place in neuroscience, psychiatry, psychology and kindred disciplines. The old paradigms are crumbling under the onslaught of a new understanding of how the brain really works. Harvard Medical School psychiatrist John J. Ratey's "guide" (it's more than that) is an admirable exercise in bringing us up to date on what is happening in brain science--what we suspect, what we know, and how this knowledge is affecting clinical practice.In a sense Ratey's book is a report on a new paradigm. It is biology-based and relies first and foremost on the physiology of the brain and body as they have developed over time. Gone are the artificial constructs of Freudian psychology and the very limited black-box psychology of behaviorism. The new psychology is based on opening that black box and looking inside. Of course what we find there is enormously complex, and we are, to use Ratey's expression (p. 124), "still on the first step of a very long staircase." Yet, because of the growing power of neuroscience to study and access the living brain in ways that were impossible just a few years ago, we are entering an exciting time, full of hope and wonder.As Dr. Ratey explains in "Acknowledgments," this book began as a cooperative research effort by many people toward writing a "primer on the brain for mental health professionals." Then it was suggested by Pantheon editor Linda Healey that a smaller version "that would try to instruct the public at large" be written. A professional science writer, Mark Fischetti, was hired and schooled. The result is a book written in an engaging and very readable manner. However, its organization--neat and reasonable as it is--actually detracts from the book's effectiveness because the most interesting and helpful chapters are near the end. I realize that Ratey and his editors and writers came to the conclusion that the material in the last three chapters, "The Social Brain," "The Four Theaters," and "Care and Feeding" could be better appreciated after having read the more fundamental material in the first seven chapters. Nonetheless I believe that a lot of people who would benefit from this very fine book will not get to those chapters. Too bad. Ratey's metaphor of the four theaters is a powerful tool for incorporating and understanding the new paradigm, while the final chapter gives us some very excellent advice on how to live fully while keeping the brain and our systems healthy.Consequently I would propose that when Dr. Ratey updates this book (and I hope he will; there is so much happening in neuroscience that some of the information here will be dated in just a few years) that he structure the book so that it begins with Chapter 9, "The Four Theaters," followed by Chapter 8, "The Social Brain," and then the first seven chapters, concl

I really enjoyed User's Guide. The book is insightful for readers of (almost) all levels of education. Ratley takes the reader artfully through the processes of perception, attention and behavior. I rarely read a book written for a popular audience that is readable and accurate. While fulfilling the message of the book you also are treated to a clear understanding of how important perception is to each individual's life. You will begin to understand many problems people suffer from who do not have "normal" perception and what is being done to help those people. I really liked this book. Kevin Hogan...