Astonishing Hypothesis: The Scientific Search for the SoulTraditionally, the human soul is regarded as a nonphysical concept that can only be examined by psychiatrists and theologists. In his new book, The Astonishing Hypothesis, Nobel Laureate Francis Crick boldly straddles the line between science and spirituality by examining the soul from the standpoint of a modern scientist, basing the soul's existence and function on an in-depth examination of how the human brain "sees." |
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THE ASTONISHING HYPOTHESIS: The Scientific Search for the Soul
User Review - KirkusIt's exactly 40 years since Watson and Crick published their landmark double-helix papers in Nature, setting biology on a revolutionary course. In the meantime, Watson has continued to reign supreme ... Read full review
LibraryThing Review
User Review - SkepChris - LibraryThingThe bulk of the book is spent on describing how the brain, step by step, processes the information that the retina provides into the 3-dimensional 'motion picture' we observe, and which parts of the ... Read full review
Contents
Introduction | 3 |
The General Nature of Consciousness | 13 |
Seeing | 23 |
The Psychology of Vision | 35 |
Attention and Memory | 59 |
Theories of Vision | 71 |
Part II | 78 |
The Human Brain in Outline | 81 |
Brain Damage | 161 |
Neural Networks | 177 |
Part III | 201 |
Visual Awareness | 203 |
Some Experiments | 215 |
Mainly Speculation | 231 |
Oscillations and Processing Units | 243 |
Dr Cricks Sunday Morning Service | 255 |
The Neuron | 91 |
Types of Experiment | 107 |
The Primate Visual SystemInitial Stages | 121 |
The Visual Cortex of Primates | 139 |
A Postscript on Free Will | 265 |
Further Reading | 281 |
Acknowledgments | 301 |
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Common terms and phrases
activity animals appear aspects attention awareness axon behavior believe body brain called Chapter color complex connections consciousness corresponding cortex cortical areas damage described detailed difficult direction distinct effects especially exactly example experiments explain face fairly Figure firing function head human ideas important input interact interested involved known layer letters light look mainly means mechanism memory monkey movement moving nature nerve cells neural neurons object operations output particular patient pattern percept picture possible Press probably problem produce properties psychologists reason region respond retina scientific seen short shown side signals simple single structure suggest synapses thalamus tion true understand units usually various vision visual awareness visual field visual system
Bibliographic information
| Title | Astonishing Hypothesis: The Scientific Search for the Soul A Touchstone Book |
| Author | Francis Crick |
| Edition | illustrated, reprint |
| Publisher | Simon and Schuster, 1995 |
| ISBN | 0684801582, 9780684801582 |
| Length | 317 pages |
| Subjects | › › Medical / Neurology Psychology / Cognitive Psychology & Cognition Religion / General Science / General Science / Life Sciences / General Science / Philosophy & Social Aspects |
| Export Citation | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |