The demand for math and science skills in our technology-driven world is at a premium, and yet U.S. students continue to lag behind many other industrialized countries in these areas. This book, based on studies conducted on 8000 elementary school-aged children, proposes that not only is there a relationship between music and math comprehension, but that music can be utilized to heighten higher brain function and improve math skills. The enclosed CD-Rom includes (1) a recording of Allegro con spirito from Sonata for Two Pianos in D Major (K. 448), by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, performed by Murray Perahia and Radu Lupu, courtesy of Sony ClassicalTM, and (2) a descriptive interactive version of S.T.A.R.TM (Spatial-Temporal Animation Reasoning) software program. While this book's discussion of the breakthroughs in understanding of spatial-temporal reasoning abilities will be of particular interest to neuroscientists and cognitive researchers, the book is also accessible to parents and educators. Presents the theory that music exercises higher brain function and can enhance math comprehension Details how music training coupled with special-temporal reasoning (thinking in pictures) can dramatically impact a child's ability to understand and master math Includes an interactive CD-ROM with math games

MEganize addresses how and why the educational system is not enabling children to become as productive they have the potential to be, and outlines how to get there, giving a child the best education for life. This is a must read for all parents in order to understand motivation, career guidance, and increasing the probability of their child's success academically and emotionally. MEganize is a unique approach to learning and how to boost their IQ and EQ, to facilitate their learning capability for life. This is a challenge to our education system as a whole as well as a guide for the individual, looking at home-schooling a realistic option. MEganize is in part a complement to John Gattos Dumbing US Down.

Constanze, the wife of Wolfgang Amadé Mozart, was not the foolish and self-interested individual of popular opinion, much of which is based on the views of Mozart's father, who believed that his son had chosen an inappropriate partner. This strong-minded woman was, however, to be of critical support to her beloved husband. From a family of accomplished musicians, she was possessed of a fine voice and sang in public performances of a number of Mozart's works, both before and after his death. She bore him six children, of whom two survived childhood. Her business acumen was such that after his death she was largely responsible for keeping his music before the public, organising concerts, securing the accurate publication of many of his works, including the Requiem, and acquiring patronage from the aristocracy. Her second marriage to the Dane, Georg Nikolaus Nissen, continued a life story which is a rich example of self-sufficiency and competence in an era when a woman in business was a rarity. Importantly, this book restores the reputation of a woman much maligned by history. Revised edition

Does listening to Mozart make us more intelligent? Does the size of the brain matter? Can we communicate with the dead? This book presents a survey of common myths about the mind & brain. It exposes the truth behind these beliefs, how they are perpetuated, why people believe them, & why they might even exist in the first place.

In Mozart’s Brain and the Fighter Pilot, eminent neuropsychiatrist and bestselling author Richard Restak, M.D., combines the latest research in neurology and psychology to show us how to get our brain up to speed for managing every aspect of our busy lives. Everything we think and everything we choose to do alters our brain and fundamentally changes who we are, a process that continues until the end of our lives. Few people think of the brain as being susceptible to change in its actual structure, but in fact we can preselect the kind of brain we will have by continually exposing ourselves to rich and varied life experiences. Unlike other organs that eventually wear out with repeated and sustained use, the brain actually improves the more we challenge it. Most of us incorporate some kind of physical exercise into our daily lives. We do this to improve our bodies and health and generally make us feel better. Why not do the same for the brain? The more we exercise it, the better it performs and the better we feel. Think of Restak as a personal trainer for your brain—he will help you assess your mental strengths and weaknesses, and his entertaining book will set you to thinking about the world and the people around you in a new light, providing you with improved and varied skills and capabilities. From interacting with colleagues to recognizing your own psychological makeup, from understanding the way you see something to why you’re looking at it in the first place, from explaining the cause of panic attacks to warding off performance anxiety, this book will tell you the whys and hows of the brain’s workings. Packed with practical advice and fascinating examples drawn from history, literature, and science, Mozart’s Brain and the Fighter Pilot provides twenty-eight informative and realistic steps that we can all take to improve our brainpower.

Dr Shore has produced a well-informed, highly readable book that has potential for substantially influencing a number of critical educational issues.

If you ever want to start a fight in the staffroom then bring up the question of the use of music in the classroom. And if you want to settle that perennial dispute then this is the book to do it with. Nina's groundbreaking research has proven how music can be of direct benefit for learning and motivation in classrooms across the school and this book , simply and effectively, tells you what music to use, when and why. So, put away your whale song CD and your James Last box set and explore how real music can transform your classroom.

“Beautifully written... a riveting account of how melodies and rhythms connect us, and help us deal with alienation and anxiety.”—Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, author of The Body Keeps the Score In this captivating blend of science and memoir, a health journalist and former cellist explores music as a source of health, resilience, connection, and joy. Music isn’t just background noise or a series of torturous exercises we remember from piano lessons. In the right doses, it can double as a mild antidepressant, painkiller, sleeping pill, memory aid—and enhance athletic performance while supporting healthy aging. Though music has been used as a healing strategy since ancient times, neuroscientists have only recently discovered how melody and rhythm stimulate core memory, motor, and emotion centers in the brain. But here’s the catch: We can tune into music every day and still miss out on some of its potent effects. Adriana Barton learned the hard way. Starting at age five, she studied the cello for nearly two decades, a pursuit that left her with physical injuries and emotional scars. In Wired for Music, she sets out to discover what music is really for, combing through medical studies, discoveries by pioneering neuroscientists, and research from biology and anthropology. Traveling from state-of-the-art science labs to a remote village in Zimbabwe, her investigation gets to the heart of music’s profound effects on the human body and brain. Blending science and story, Wired for Music shows how our species’ age-old connection to melody and rhythm is wired inside us.

Explores new avenues in music therapy. The author discusses connections between music therapy and theorizes that every little nuance found in nature is part of a dynamic system in motion.