Review by Booklist Review
Neuroscientist LeDoux's second popular work, following The Emotional Brain (1996), is a forceful argument that our brains, particularly the synapses, create our personalities. Modestly admitting that this theory is far from completion, LeDoux still believes he's on the right track. Reaching back five decades to the research of psychologist Donald Hebb, who investigated "plasticity" of the brain--the way its neurons form interconnections--LeDoux delves deeply into the exact biochemicals and neurotransmitters central to plasticity. Aided by dozens of diagrams, the author explains how a neuron's axon basically "fires"; how the molecules then drift across the synapse to the receiving neuron's dendrite; and what will promote or inhibit that neuron's firing. LeDoux's work, covering an avalanche of neuroscientific research, is surely the most accessible contemporary work for those interested in the brain's effect on personality. --Gilbert Taylor
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Despite ongoing debate about the root cause of psychological disorders, most agree that the development of the self is central to the distinction between normality and psychopathology. Yet neuroscientists have been slow to probe the biological basis for our sense of self, focusing instead on states of consciousness. LeDoux (The Emotional Brain), professor at New York University's Center for Neural Sciences, has come up with a theory: it's the neural pathways the synaptic relationships in our brains that make us who we are. Starting with a description of basic neural anatomy (including how neurons communicate, the brain's embryological development and some of the key neural pathways), LeDoux reviews experiments and research, arguing that the brain's synaptic connections provide the biological base for memory, which makes possible the sense of continuity and permanence fundamental to a "normal" conception of self. Writing for a general audience, he succeeds in making his subject accessible to the dedicated nonspecialist. He offers absorbing descriptions of some of the most fascinating case studies in his field, provides insight into the shortcomings of psychopharmacology and suggests new directions for research on the biology of mental illness. While some may disagree with LeDoux's conclusion that "the brain makes the self" through its synapses, he makes an important contribution to the literature on the relationship between these two entities. Agents, Katinka Matson and John Brockman. (On-sale: Jan. 14) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
Brain/mind theorists tread upon sensitive territory when they address the issue of personality. Many will readily concede that the activities of the mind result from physical process in the brain, but they find a purely material explanation of selfhood troubling. LeDoux (Ctr. for Neural Sciences, New York Univ.; The Emotional Brain) puts forth a new, unified theory in which neurology shapes experience and vice versa. The critical locus is the synapses, which convey information and stimulate functions within the brain. The interconnections of the synapses are plastic, shaped by a person's experiences, and thus give rise to unique thoughts and feelings. Memory arises from these, creating a sense of self and personality. LeDoux is not the first to discuss the role of memory in selfhood (see, for instance, Daniel Schacter's Searching for Memory); nor is he the first to stress the importance of synaptic firing in brain/mind interactions (see Gerald Edelman's Bright Air, Brilliant Fire). He does, however, bring together these pieces to render a convincingly integrated theory. It will be of vital interest to those in the field and to informed lay readers who have followed the debates. Gregg Sapp, Science Lib., SUNY at Albany (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
The author of The Emotional Brain (1996) elaborates on the theory that the particular patterns of synaptic connections in our brain provide the keys to who we are. LeDoux (Science/NYU) begins with a short course on what neurons are, how synapses connect them, and why these connections are key to the brain's many functions. He follows that with a discussion of brain development, explaining how nature and nurture together shape the synaptic organization of the brain. Genes make the proteins that determine how the neurons are wired together, and experiences create changes in these arrangements. Synapses, the junctions between neurons, encode and store information, which is accessible to us through memory. Without learning and memory, LeDoux points out, the self would be an empty expression of our genetic constitution. He sets himself the technical task of explaining just how neuronal circuits are modified by what we learn and remember; he considers how the brain systems that underlie thinking, emotion, and motivation develop, interact with, and influence each other to make us who we are. Arguing that synaptic changes underlie mental illness, LeDoux looks at the implications of his synaptic theory to the understanding and treatment of schizophrenia, depression, and anxiety disorders. In addition to describing research in his own lab, he discusses the work of his predecessors and his colleagues in the brain sciences. To keep the sometimes dauntingly technical presentation as clear as possible for those without a background in neuroscience, the author has supplied pared-down line drawings accompanied by straightforward captions; additional helpful background information, complete with suggested readings, is included from time to time in boxed inserts. While the general reader may find portions of the text challenging, LeDoux offers a fascinating view into that "most unaccountable of machinery," the human brain.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
