A collection of strange and unexplained mysteries describes incidents wherein psychic powers played pivotal roles, from dreams throughout England that foretold imminent disaster to Susan B. Anthony's escape from a deadly fire.

Whether you believe in psychic premonitions or not, Mysteries of the Mind and the Senses, replete with factual details of times, dates, and places, will stir the interest of even the most devout skeptic. Follow along as details are recounted, from dreams and feelings recorded throughout England, foretelling a disaster that occurred in a small rural village in the south of Wales. Learn of the premonition that none other than Susan B. Anthony, founder of America's Women's Suffrage movement, had that saved her from a deadly hotel fire. Read about the startling possibilities of psychometry--the ability to hold and object and read its history. These phenomena and others will compel you to turn the pages of The Mysteries of the Mind and The Senses.

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Zookeeper's Wife, an ambitious and enlightening work that combines an artist's eye with a scientist's erudition to illuminate, as never before, the magic and mysteries of the human mind. Long treasured by literary readers for her uncommon ability to bridge the gap between art and science, celebrated scholar-artist Diane Ackerman returns with the book she was born to write. Her dazzling new work, An Alchemy of Mind, offers an unprecedented exploration and celebration of the mental fantasia in which we spend our days—and does for the human mind what the bestselling A Natural History of the Senses did for the physical senses. Bringing a valuable female perspective to the topic, Diane Ackerman discusses the science of the brain as only she can: with gorgeous, immediate language and imagery that paint an unusually lucid and vibrant picture for the reader. And in addition to explaining memory, thought, emotion, dreams, and language acquisition, she reports on the latest discoveries in neuroscience and addresses controversial subjects like the effects of trauma and male versus female brains. In prose that is not simply accessible but also beautiful and electric, Ackerman distills the hard, objective truths of science in order to yield vivid, heavily anecdotal explanations about a range of existential questions regarding consciousness, human thought, memory, and the nature of identity.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER "If you’ve ever wondered how you have the capacity to wonder, some fascinating insights await you in these pages.” --Adam Grant, New York Times bestselling author of Originals As concise and enlightening as Seven Brief Lessons on Physics and Astrophysics for People in a Hurry, this mind-expanding dive into the mystery of consciousness is an illuminating meditation on the self, free will, and felt experience. What is consciousness? How does it arise? And why does it exist? We take our experience of being in the world for granted. But the very existence of consciousness raises profound questions: Why would any collection of matter in the universe be conscious? How are we able to think about this? And why should we? In this wonderfully accessible book, Annaka Harris guides us through the evolving definitions, philosophies, and scientific findings that probe our limited understanding of consciousness. Where does it reside, and what gives rise to it? Could it be an illusion, or a universal property of all matter? As we try to understand consciousness, we must grapple with how to define it and, in the age of artificial intelligence, who or what might possess it. Conscious offers lively and challenging arguments that alter our ideas about consciousness—allowing us to think freely about it for ourselves, if indeed we can.

A collection of strange and unexplained mysteries describes incidents wherein psychic powers played pivotal roles, from dreams throughout England that foretold imminent disaster to Susan B. Anthony's escape from a deadly fire.

In the long history of the study of anatomy, neuroscience is a relatively new field, and there are plenty of mysteries yet to be uncovered. The Secret Life of the Brain explores the fascinating advances that have been made in the field so far, from the intricacies of memory and intelligence, to the enigmatic workings behind our sense of humour and our dreams. Full of illuminating illustrations and diagrams, this book lifts the lid on how drugs affect the brain; the science behind addiction; how the brain deals with trauma and pain; and the effects on the brain of love, age, and sex. Finally, you'll get a tantalising insight into the cutting-edge theories that are attempting to get behind the elements of neuroscience which we still can't quite explain.

Mind constitutes an important part of our body. Its proper functioning is important for survival. The mind is also referred to as the set of various cognitive functions, such as perception, thinking, consciousness, language, memory, and judgment. The state of the mind can be very well explained through the concept of mental health. It is defined as the state of well-being in which the person realizes his/her own potential, is able to deal properly with the stresses of life, is able to work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make effective contributions to his/her community. It is accountable for the emotional, psychological, and social well-being of an individual and greatly influences an individual's process of thinking, feeling, and the way he/she acts in its surrounding. The study of the relation of mind to that with the brain has always been a complicated one. Many theories and studies have been idealized for the same. The older studies have contemplated the concept of dualism and idealism according to which the mind was considered to be non-physical. The modern studies, on the other hand, lay importance over the concept of physicalism and functionalism according to which the mind is considered to be roughly identical with the brain. The conscious, subconscious, and the unconscious mind forms the three levels of the mind on which several studies have been conducted by the famous Austrian psychologist, Sigmund Freud. These studies just have a theoretical basis, as it is very difficult to prove these scientifically.

In a radical reinterpretation of how the mind works, an eminent behavioral scientist reveals the illusion of mental depth Psychologists and neuroscientists struggle with how best to interpret human motivation and decision making. The assumption is that below a mental “surface” of conscious awareness lies a deep and complex set of inner beliefs, values, and desires that govern our thoughts, ideas, and actions, and that to know this depth is to know ourselves. In this profoundly original book, behavioral scientist Nick Chater contends just the opposite: rather than being the plaything of unconscious currents, the brain generates behaviors in the moment based entirely on our past experiences. Engaging the reader with eye-opening experiments and visual examples, the author first demolishes our intuitive sense of how our mind works, then argues for a positive interpretation of the brain as a ceaseless and creative improviser.