Subjects:  1. Child Psychology    2. Child development    3. Developmental - Adolescent    4. Developmental - Child    5. Education / Teaching    6. Physiological Psychology    7. Psychological Testing    8. Psychological tests for children    9. Psychology    10. Special Education - General    11. Testing    12. Testing & Measurement    13. Youth    14. Education / Special Education / General    15. Teaching of those with special educational needs   

Features

• Illustrated

Reviews (2)

Investigation of philo of mind has never been so thrilling
The previous reviewer is exactly right. The book is incredible. The book is, as of this review date, the latest in a quickly changing field of understanding mind naturalistically through the latest research in biology. Sterelny and Peter Godfrey-Smith are leaders in this promising effort. Sterelny attacks his investigation of the attributes of mind from evidence from any field available. Besides the ones mentioned by the previous reviewer, Sterelny works niche construction and developmental theory. The treatment of animal cognition and early hominid evolution is exciting. I hope that the book and this direction of thought are getting the attention merited.

incredible book!
I was just checking out this site and saw that no one had written a review.I don't have time to write a full review, but let me just say: this book is incredible!Sterelny lays out the nature and history of human cognitive faculties in an easy-to-read, thorough, and well-argued way.I found the material on the evolution of cooperation, the way humans epistemically engineer their environment, and plasticity enlightening. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Brain    2. Cognition    3. Cognition and culture    4. Cognitive Psychology    5. Evolution    6. Evolutionary psychology    7. Mind & Body    8. Philosophy    9. Physiological Psychology    10. Psychology    11. Reference    12. BRAIN_EVOLUTION    13. Cognition & cognitive psychology    14. GENETIC PSYCHOLOGY    15. Medical / Neuroscience    16. Philosophy of mind   

Subjects:  1. Behavior    2. General    3. Human behavior    4. Mental Health    5. Physiological Psychology    6. Social Science    7. Social Work    8. Social Work And Society    9. Social ecology    10. Social service    11. Sociology   

Reviews (6)

The most helpful book I've ever read
This book changed my life and my teaching. I've applied its principles every day of the 10 years since reading it. This is a great book!
This is one of the most important books on education that I have ever read. It has permanently changed how i think about education and is influencing where I send my kids to school.

"Great book for educators interested in the brain"
As a high school English teacher, I enjoyed this book and found it enlightening.It also has an excellent bibliography.The chapter on "Orchestrated Immersion" was particularly interesting. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Education    2. Education / Teaching    3. General    4. Physiological Psychology    5. Teaching Methods & Materials - General    6. Teaching skills & techniques   

Reviews (3)

Thoughtful, complex text with significant philosophical implications
This is an thoughtful, erudite and complex book weaving together various strands of research in evolution, neural organisation, cognition and mind together.Every page is littered with references, not carelessly I hasten to add. The author's main thesis, as i understand it, is that the mind essentially 'runs' simulations, and this is an evolution endowmnet arising from ontogenetic requirements to exercise control of behaviour and the environment.Anyone locked into folk psychology, especially Stich's simualtion theory, will find much to ponder here.Geary holds that folk psychology has many 'anchors' that orient the human organism towards fundamental activities to sustain itself, e.g. social cues.These anchors are shaped in development under evolutionary imperatives.Much of the book is devoted to teasing out in detail the framework that allows this to occur. The notion of a fluid intelligence is introduced to debnk the g factor (as too limitinf a construct) and explain adaptive behaviours.Each chapter deserves a review by itself. Overall, the book is tremendously impressive and detailed however, it still faces to problem of splicing folk psychological concepts with neuroscientific data, and it is here that most critics will focus there attention.Geary has assemled a welther of piece sof evidence and argumentation to make this work, but eliminativtists will not be satisfied.Having read this book quickly, I can state baldly that it is the first book in years that I will reread.Lots of food for thought.

Jacket Cover Blubs
People often complain that modern psychology is a ragbag of phenomena without a theory to make sense of it all. The Origin of Mind makes that complaint obsolete, because in it David Geary has given us a coherent and satisfying framework for the sciences of mind. It combines an impressive coverage of the latest literature with hard thinking about how to synthesize topics like evolutionary psychology, neural plasticity, human development, and intelligence testing. The Origin of Mind is invaluable both as a reference work and as a road map for the sprawling territory covered by modern psychology and neighboring sciences.
The Definitive Work on the Brain As WeKnow It
The brain has long been the most mysterious of the organs. Part of the problem has been that the brain can be viewed in so many different ways. The same organ can think of Einstein's Theory of Relativity in one instant and be smiling and talking baby talk to an infant the next.
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Subjects:  1. Brain    2. Cognitive Psychology    3. Cognitive neuroscience    4. Evolution    5. Evolutionary psychology    6. Medical    7. Neuropsychology    8. Neuroscience    9. Physiological Psychology    10. Psychology    11. Child & developmental psychology    12. Cognition & cognitive psychology    13. Neurology & clinical neurophysiology    14. Physiological & neuro-psychology   

Editorial Review

In the follow-up to his bestseller, Read more

Reviews (28)

Maddenly Engaging
Another Ridley home run! He's batting a thousand. Not bad for a popularizer of science.
Genes taking their cues from the environment
This is a great overview of the current understanding of the role that genes play in the development of our personalities and behavior.The book is written with the general public in mind and Ridley does a nice job of condensing complex information in a clear and concise way.
Very articulate.Great explanation of "The 4th dimension"
The fourth dimension being time.Genes are turned on and off, sometimes multiple times, over the course of one's lifetime.A given gene may do different things at different developmental times, as well as different things to different parts of a developing body.This, explains Ridley, explains why a parsimonious 30,000 genes can manage the creation of an organism as complex as a human being.
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Subjects:  1. Anthropology - Physical    2. Genetics    3. Human Genetics    4. Life Sciences - Genetics & Genomics    5. Nature and nurture    6. Physiological Psychology    7. Science    8. Science/Mathematics    9. Science / General    10. Reading Group Guide   

Reviews (8)

Outstanding
If you read only one book about human behavior, this should be it.If you read many books about human behavior, this should be one of them.Prof. Konner is wise, he is erudite, he is literate, and he is humane.Rather than take one-sided positions or air only politically correct view, Konner synthesizes a huge amount of information and comes to sensible conclusions.I cannot recommend this book highly enough

Substance delievered...
I also reccomend, even more highly, Darwinian Happiness by Bjorn Grinde to gain critical knowledge of understanding your genes and improving overall quality of ife.

my favorite science book ever
Dr. Konner is just an awesome professor, with a great hilarious sense of humor and an intriguing way of wording things. Just like he told my NBB 201 class, you're going to learn very important things from him...wink wink. Not only does it cover a highly scientific array of information, it's also presented in a fun-to-read fashion. It won't put you to sleep. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Life Sciences - Biology - General    2. Life Sciences - Human Anatomy & Physiology    3. Physiological Psychology    4. Psychology    5. Science    6. Science/Mathematics   

Subjects:  1. Bible - Topical Studies    2. Christian Life    3. Christian women    4. Christianity    5. Christianity - Christian Life - General    6. Christianity - Christian Life - Women's Issues    7. Devotional    8. English    9. Fear    10. Physiological Psychology    11. Prayer-books and devotions    12. Religion    13. Religion - Biblical Studies    14. Religious aspects    15. Women And Religion (General)    16. Women's Studies - General    17. Christian Interest    18. Christian spirituality    19. Religion / General   

Reviews (1)

I Tasted a Hint of Soap Box...
I eagerly snatched this book off the shelf when I learned of it -- synesthesia is a fascinating subject with too few works devoted to it -- but Dr. Cytowic's tendency to climb onto his soap box took much of the potential pleasure out of "The Man Who Tasted Shapes". We are given details about only two people with the condition, and one of those only glancingly. The rest of the book is either written in coy dialogue form (taking scores of pages to relate an incident easily expressed in a paragraph -- padding, anyone?) or else denouncing other scientists' viewpoints. This is no "Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat" [by Oliver Sacks], as the title seems to imply. I was left hungering to know more about the actual subject: synesthesia. I did not necessarily disagree with Dr. Cytowic's views, but they seemed to have pre-empted another book already in progress.Read more

Subjects:  1. Cognitive Psychology    2. Emotions and cognition    3. General    4. Health/Fitness    5. Knowledge, Theory of    6. Physiological Psychology    7. Science    8. Senses And Sensation    9. Synesthesia   

Subjects:  1. General    2. Handbooks, manuals, etc    3. Mental health    4. Physiological Psychology    5. Post-traumatic stress disorder    6. Post-traumatic stress disorder in children    7. Psychology    8. Psychotherapy - Child & Adolescent    9. Research & Methodology    10. Teenagers    11. Neurology & clinical neurophysiology    12. Paediatric medicine    13. Trauma & shock   

Reviews (3)

excellent resource
This book is a really great resource for learning behavioral analysis!It's really one of a kind and focuses on the underlying prinicples of behavioral analysis so that it will probably take a while to get outdated.

Assessment In-Depth
This comprehensive set of books is essential for the practicing psychologist as well as the clinical researcher. As a recent graduate and practicing psychologist, I refer to these books more than to the DSM! The volume on behavioral assessment was the most helpful, comprehensive, informative and best written of the set. Both theoretical as well as practical issues are dealt with in the majority of chapters. Overall it is a must read for all in the field. I highly recommend the behavioral assessment volume in this series.

Good overall, but won't help with interpretation
This is a good overall look at the psychometric properties of many of the leading assessment instruments.It does not, however, help much with regard to interpretation, so if you are going to need help interpreting tests, you will need to get the test manuals or interpretative guides.Also, having the leading proponents of the specific instruments present material for their tests leads to a biased description of the psychometrics.In the end, the clinician or researcher will still have to be able to look at the psychometric information and decide for themselves if a particular instrument is worth using. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Assessment, Testing & Measurement    2. Behavior    3. Behavior Therapy    4. Physiological Psychology    5. Psychological Testing    6. Psychological tests    7. Psychology    8. Behavioural theory (Behaviourism)    9. Psychological testing & measurement    10. Psychology & Psychiatry / Testing & Measurement   

Reviews (6)

Solid, scientific and eminently readable
Shelley Taylor has pulled off a coup, integrating scientific research with anecdotes from her own life and translating academic jargon into readable prose. Mrs. Mankind
If you have ever wondered about how the other half of the sky copes with stress! If you have ever given any thought to the science of anthropology & how it has neglected the study of how women look at life. If you have had this needling question that "What if society is a lie?" & couldn't find any answers...then this book's for you, because Shelley E. Taylor asked a seemingly innocuous question which unearthed a fascinating idea! Redressing the balance
When Darwin wrote that man attains "a higher eminence, in whatever he takes up, than can woman - whether requiring deep thought, reason, or imagination, or merely the use of the senses and hands," he was echoing what had been known to be true since the time of Aristotle. Taylor explains clearly and with compelling authority why this traditional viewpoint is so wide of the mark. Read more

Subjects:  1. Gender Studies    2. Interpersonal Relations    3. Life Sciences - Biology - General    4. Nurturing behavior    5. Physiological Psychology    6. Psychology    7. Sex differences    8. Sex differences (Psychology)    9. Social Psychology    10. Sociobiology    11. Stress (Psychology)    12. Science / General   

Reviews (9)

Practical, thought-provoking, inspiring
This book has been essential for me in developing a concept of the healing force in myself and in everybody -- Life Energy, as the title succinctly puts it -- and how this force can be activated. The specific details about our emotions -- and how they relate to the acupuncture system -- are fascinating. I particularly find helpful and thought-provoking Dr. Diamond's use of etymology (the origins of words) in pinpointing and evoking emotional states. The many photographs and humorous or touching anecdotes -- all these contribute to this highly readable, very therapeutic volume. I find Dr. Diamond's affirmations and the acupuncture points, which are clearly illustrated, wonderfully helpful in creating a daily routine for health and happiness. I have gone on to read many other books by Dr. Diamond, but this one remains basic and essential. I highly reccomend this book.

Acupuncture meridians and the Emotions
In this ground-breaking book, Dr. Diamond presents his research findings concerning the links between specific acupuncture meridians and various precisely delineated emotional states.The connection between the acupuncture meridians and the organs of the body has been known about for centuries, and underlies much Chinese, Japanese and Korean traditional healing, and with Dr. Diamond's work connecting the meridians and the emotions we now have a link between the emotions and the physical body.Although it has been accepted that our emotional state can affect our physical well-being, and vice versa, Dr. Diamond's pioneering research is the first to examine this mechanism in detail. Just dopey.
I'm ashamed at myself for even reading this garbage. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Acupuncture    2. Emotions    3. General    4. Health    5. Mind and body    6. New Age (Self Help)    7. New Age / Body, Mind & Spirit    8. Physiological Psychology    9. Psychology    10. Mind, body, spirit: mysticism & self-awareness    11. Specific disorders & therapies   

Editorial Review

As you read this, at some level you're aware that you're reading, thanks to a standard human feature commonly referred to as consciousness. What is it--a spiritual phenomenon, an evolutionary tool, a neurological side effect?The best scientists love to tackle big, meaningful questions like this, and neuroscientist Antonio Damasio jumps right in with Read more

Reviews (44)

Neurobiology of consciousness
According to Damasio any convincing account of consciousness must address two, inter-related problems: (1) the problem of how the brain is able to generate images of objects - how the `movie-in-the-brain' is concocted and (2) how the brain simultaneously represents a sense of self in the act of knowing those images. The latter problem has to do with the inherently subjective quality of consciousness, one of its essential attributes. It is unfortunate that this second problem is often overlooked - the old `Cartesian theatre' concept is woefully out-dated.
Thought provoking, but controversial....
I liked this book very much and found it to be quite thought provoking.While it can be criticized on various grounds including being difficult to follow, having redundancies and containing a lot of speculation, it still provides good theoretical concepts that are plausible and worth considering.
Almost Entirely Speculation of the Worst Kind
I cannot recall when I have ever encountered so many "hypotheses," "supposes," "suggests," "probably" "calls to mind," etc. in such a short amount of space. More suppositions exist than theories, and those suppositions are based on highly dubious inferences. Damasio has obviously thought long and hard about his dysfunctional patients, and the fact that he wants to ground consciousness and emotions in neurobiology (as opposed to computers) gave me optimism and a tinge of excitement. Unfortunately, obfuscation prevailed.
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Subjects:  1. Cognitive Psychology    2. Consciousness    3. Emotions    4. General    5. Medical    6. Mental Health    7. Neurology - General    8. Neuropsychology    9. Physiological Psychology    10. Physiological aspects    11. Psychology    12. Science/Mathematics    13. Philosophy / Mind & Body   

Reviews (3)

Be carfull!!!!!!!!!
If you are looking for a paper back version of the text book, don't bother.This isn't it.There was no indication on this site that this was not the actual textbook.I'm very disapointed in Amazon for not putting that in the decription of this product.It's a "cliff's notes" version of the text book.

The Best in its Field!
This is one of the most clearly written and well organized textbooks in the field of psychology.In an intelligently concise manner, Prof. Schiffman captures his readers with his insightful invitations to explorethe human senses.Full of well presented color diagrams, fascinatingillusions and interesting pictures, this text enahnces your senses whileexplaining how they work.This text is a must read for any psychologist,biologist, physician or individual who is interested in learning how humanssense and perceive the environment.

The Best in its Field!
This is one of the most clearly written and well organized textbooks in the field of psychology.In an intelligently concise manner, Prof. Schiffman captures his readers with his insightful invitations to explorethe human senses.Full of well presented color diagrams, fascinatingillusions and interesting pictures, this text enahnces your senses whileexplaining how they work.This text is a must read for any psychologist,biologist, physician or individual who is interested in learning how humanssense and perceive the environment. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cognitive Psychology    2. General    3. Mental Health    4. Perception    5. Physiological Psychology    6. Psychology    7. Senses And Sensation    8. Neurology & clinical neurophysiology    9. Physiological & neuro-psychology    10. Psychology & Psychiatry / Cognitive Psychology   

Reviews (3)

Poorly writen and lacking in real content
I've had an interest in confabulation for a bit, particularly confabulation in normally functioning brains. So I thought I'd give this book a read...and I was deeply disappointed.
A difficult read
I was attracted to the book by a review I read in (I think it was) Science, and the topic of self-deception and confabulation.As an attorney the ability to understand the factors that influence the articulated perceptions of witnesses is critical to me.As a scientist reading outside his field (physics) I was attracted by the idea of relating behavior to brain structure.
A fascinating and important study
To anyone interested in modern research in neuroscience, this book will be of great interest. Confabulation, the topic discussed in the book is one that was completely new to this reviewer, but the preface and jacket summary motivated the subject in a way that definitely convinces the reader that it is relevant to both neuroscience and neurophilosophy. It is important to emphasize that both of these fields are used to discuss confabulation in the book. The author is a professional philosopher, but he makes heavy use of the latest research in neuroscience, and this is refreshing, for it makes his conclusions more credible, not being ones that are arrived at solely (and therefore incorrectly), through sophisticated rhetoric and from the safety of the academic armchair.
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Subjects:  1. Cognitive Psychology    2. Mind & Body    3. Neuropsychology    4. Personality    5. Physiological Psychology    6. Psychology    7. Psychotherapy - General    8. Philosophy / General    9. Philosophy of mind   

Features

• Illustrated

Reviews (2)

A Brilliant Book by a Brilliant Individual
I was once in the cafeteria having lunch with some friends, when Sir Michael Rutter came in for a moment to get a sandwich. One of our group leaned over and said, "That man's written more books than I've read. See, he doesn't even have time to sit down for lunch!"
Good Layman's Explanation of How Genes Work
This is a broad introduction to the current scientific thoughts on the impact of genes and human behavior. The book is written in laymen's terms explaining what genes do and don't do in humans.
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Subjects:  1. Behavior genetics    2. Genetics, Behavioral    3. Life Sciences - Genetics & Genomics    4. Physiological Psychology    5. Psychology    6. Science    7. Science/Mathematics    8. methods    9. Behavioural theory (Behaviourism)    10. GENETICS    11. Science / Genetics   

Subjects:  1. Medical / Nursing    2. Mental Health    3. Physiological Psychology    4. Psychology    5. Psychotherapy - General    6. Psychology & Psychiatry / Psychotherapy    7. Psychotherapy   

Subjects:  1. Animal behavior    2. Behavior    3. Endocrine aspects    4. Hormones    5. Human behavior    6. Life Sciences - Anatomy & Physiology    7. Medical    8. Mental Health    9. Neuroendocrinology    10. Neuroscience    11. Physiological Psychology    12. Psychology    13. Psychoneuroendocrinology    14. Psychophysiology    15. Science    16. drug effects    17. metabolism    18. Animal behaviour    19. Behavioural theory (Behaviourism)    20. Medical / Neuroscience    21. Neurology & clinical neurophysiology    22. Physiological & neuro-psychology