Memory: From Mind to Molecules by Larry R. Squire, Eric R. Kandel (2008) Hardcover

Scientific American Library Series #69

by Larry R. Squire

Combining insights from both cognitive neuroscience and molecular biology, two of the world's leading experts address memory from molecules and cells to brain systems and cognition. Memory shows how the recent convergence of psychology and biology has resulted in an exciting new synthesis of knowledge about learning and remembering. Among the many new discoveries recounted by Larry R. Squire and Eric R. Kandel are the existence of multiple memory systems that divide up the workload of remembering (one handles facts and past experiences, another handles motor and perceptual strategies, etc.) and the steps by which memories are created through changes in the specific connections between the nerve cells of the brain. Memory is ideal for general audiences who are interested in discovering what is currently known about one of the basic aspects of human existence.

Genres: Science, Neuroscience, Nonfiction, Psychology, Biology, Textbooks, Brain

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Larry Squire is a Professor of Psychiatry, Neurosciences, and Psychology at the University of California, San Diego.

Reviews

[Eric Herod · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great overview of how memory is processed at the molecular level in the brain. I definitely learned a lot and plan on going back to this book again periodically as a reference. I would not recommend this to anyone who has not had exposure to introductory readings in neuroscience as it tends to get technical in places, presupposing the reader has a foundation for the concepts. An understanding of transcription and translation as well as some familiarity with cell signalling will make for a much smoother read. The strong points of the book are found in its in-depth focus of cellular signalling mechanisms involved in both pre- and post-synaptic transmission as well as the attention given to the hipoccampus and surrounding areas. I walked away with a much better understanding of the anatomical structures of the medial temporal lobes and their functions.

[Somayah M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

ليس التذكر هو مجرد عملية استثارة المسارات المفككة وغير الحية والتي لاتعد ولاتحصى وإنما عملية إعادة بناء تخيلية أو بناء أقيم على العلاقة بين الموقف تجاه التجمع الفعال الموحد لردود الأفعال أو الخبرة الماضية المنتظمة وتجاه قليل من التفاصيل الهامة والتي تبدو على شكل تصور أو بناء لغوي ، فريدريك سي. بارليت

[MD · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would give this book 5 stars were it not so old now. Even so, it felt worth reading. The authors were very careful in making statements about then-current knowledge, and both seem to have been on the cutting edge of research at the time. Even lacking a molecular biology or cognitive neuroscience background, clear writing and plentiful diagrams and illustrations usually got me through at least the gist of things. I believe it has probably given me a good understanding to build upon and to understand other information related to cognitive processes and issues. Excellent summary and look forward in the final chapter.

[Jeffrey Romine · Rating 5 out of 5]

If not for memory, learning would be impossible. Thus, understanding how memory occurs is a valid endeavor. Squire does a great job of differentiating short time from long term memory, and introducing the experiments and findings leading to our present understanding. Admittedly, this is not a book for the casual reader, nor is it about the best memory techniques. Rather, its focus on how the brain stores information at the level of neuronal synapses.

[A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review: Memory: from Mind to Molecules by Squire, Latry R. and Kandel. Eric R

Behold, another great book about neuroscience. This, however, is probably a textbook for students of brain science and requires much more effort than two others I have recently read, Consciousness and the Brain by Stanislas Dehaene, and The Rough Guide to the Brain by Barry J. Gibb. Inasmuch as I am semi-literate in biology, much less, neuroscience, my ability to understand the basic points of this excellent, very well written and very well illustrated book was made possible by these previous readings. Even so, I did not attempt to learn the names of many areas of the brain and the names of chemicals and cells, but concentrated on abstracting the processes by which humans learn through memory. The knowledge of these processes forever changes my view of humanity.
The concepts and conclusions are so profound that I cannot offer an interesting summary, but I will give a two paragraph quotation from page 192 which comes closest to giving a snapshot of the work.
“Chapters 8 and 9 have illustrated the broad range of nondeclarative forms of learning and memory, and shown how different forms depend on different brain systems. Priming and perceptual learning are intrinsic to the perceptual machinery of the cortex. Emotional memory requires the amygdala. Skill and habit learning depend crucially on the neostriatum. Classical conditioning of motor responses requires the cerebellum. As we saw in Chapters 2 And 3, many forms of nondeclarative memory are also well developed in invertebrate animals. These forms of learning, such as habituation, sensitization, and classical conditioning, have been preserved through evolutionary history, and they are present in all animals with a sufficiently developed nervous system, from invertebrates such as Aplysia and Drosophila to vertebrates, including humans. Vertebrates, of course, have evolved more complex forms of skill learning and habit learning than invertebrates, corresponding to their more complex perceptual and motor perceptions.
“These various forms of nondeclarative memory do not require the participation of the medial temporal lobe memory system. They are ancient in evolutionary terms, they are reliable and consistent, and they provide for myriad unconscious ways of responding to the world. In no small part, by virtue of the unconscious status of these forms of memory, they create much of the mystery of human experience. Here arise the dispositions, habits and preferences that are inaccessible to conscious recollection but that nevertheless are shaped by past events, influence our behavior and mental life, and are an important part of who we are.”
Some take-aways:
• There are many memory systems –the quotation above excludes declarative memory systems—which are not unified, but use different brain systems.
• Your memory of your mother’s birthday does not exist as such, a unified memory, but is rather a composite created at that instant of recollection by your brain using many memory systems, such as color memory, emotional memory, spatial memory, and on and on.
• Your personality is a reflection of your memory systems. As you lose your memory systems, whether by disease, trauma, or age, your personality decomposes.

Mr. Graziano is the author of From the Cross to the Church. The Emergence of the Church from the Chaos of the Crucifixion.

[Mina B]

Il est typiquement scientifique, facile à lire, avec un langage fluide et nécessitant pas des pré-requis très solide, je le recommande vivement aux gens soucieux de leurs mémoires et des techniques d'apprentissage.

[DJ]

modern thinking on memory from Kandel & friend

[Dianne Lange · Rating 4 out of 5]

A textbook really, but written so well that some smart publisher should reissue it--with some editing--for anyone interested in how the brain stores memories and how we learn.

[Cameron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb book providing the physiology at the molecular level of how our brains store memories. Fascinating read, but highly technical.

[Lindsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Also by Eric Kandel. In-depth look at how memory works by two neuroscientists who pioneered the field of memory.

[Nirvanafish · Rating 4 out of 5]

very clear defined memory processes