An Anatomy of Thought: The Origin and Machinery of the Mind

by Ian Glynn

Drawing on a dazzlingly wide array of disciplines--physiology, neurology, psychology, anthropology, linguistics, and philosophy--Ian Glynn explains virtually every aspect of the workings of the brain, unlocking the mysteries of the mind.
Here are the mechanics of nerve messages; the functioning of sensory receptors; the processes by which the brain sees, tastes, and smells; the seats of language, memory, and emotions. Glynn writes with exceptional clarity and offers telling to help explain vision, for instance, he
discusses optical illusions as well as cases of patients who suffer disordered seeing through healthy eyes (such as the loss of the ability to recognize familiar faces). The breadth of Glynn's erudition is astonishing, as he ranges from parallel processing in computers to the specialization of
different regions of the brain (illustrated with fascinating instances of the bizarre effects of localized brain damage). He explains the different types of memory (episodic and semantic, as well as short-term and implicit memory), traces the path through the brain of information leading to
emotional responses, and engages in a discussion of language that takes in Noam Chomsky and Hawaiian pidgin. Moreover, for every subject Glynn addresses, he offers a thorough-going scientific history. For example, before discussing the evolution of the brain, he provides an account of the theory of
evolution itself, from the writing and success of The Origin of Species to recent work on the fossil record, DNA, and RNA.
No other single volume has captured the full expanse of our knowledge of consciousness and the brain. A work of unequaled authority and eloquence, An Anatomy of Thought promises to be a new landmark of scientific writing.

Genres: Psychology, Neuroscience, Nonfiction, Science, Biology, Philosophy

464 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1999

Reviews

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

"An Anatomy of Thought" is a fascinating overview of how our minds evolved to the way they are now, and how we reached our current understanding of it. It's written well, though still the topic is by nature quite dense so this is no beach read. Also, I picked up this book thinking that it would be more like a reference guide to the parts and processes of the brain, which it isn't, at least not primarily. I'm not disappointed at all, but readers should know that this is more a guide on the evolutionary process that formed our minds and the scientific process that has illuminated what we know to date. The biggest impression I take from this book is how very little we know about our minds, but how ingenious the methods used to discover what we do know have been.

[Greg Stoll · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very detailed book about many aspects of the brain. It was pretty interesting but also long and dense and I ran out of steam about 70% of the way through. (although I did finish it!)

[Jeffrey Rubard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although the story that psychology has historically neglected the brain's role in cognition is somewhat fanciful—experimental psychology in English began with William James discussing the brain physiology of his era—there certainly has been a profusion of results in scientific research concerning the brain in recent decades. "Neuroscience" thusly attracts many, but for those of us with no special scientific gifts working our way into the cohesion of those findings is difficult. I have read a number of "elementary" books on neural science, but there are only two I can recommend without trepidation as important and sufficiently general introductions to the discipline: Joseph LeDoux's Synaptic Self, which explains "Hebbian plasticity"—the foundational concept of modern neuroscience, charmingly phrased as "cells that fire together wire together"—and Ian Glynn's An Anatomy of Thought.

Glynn's book is much wider in effective scope than LeDoux's: he includes simple introductions to all the scientific concepts that make neuroscience cohere, with well-wrought histories of the concepts' development. Evolution, biochemistry, brain localization, cognitive psychology, the study of perception, and more than a bit of philosophy appear in his pages. Much that is "assumed" to make sense without explanation in a neuroscience textbook is delved into here with gentle but probing depth, such that those who have attempted to master the topic unsuccessfully in the past might make another start here. (The book, published in 1999, may be showing some age but with competitors that are usually little more than "adverts" for scientific reductionism I think it is still worth reading.)

[George Baca · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ll keep this succinct. 2 stars for the sheer knowledge of the author. He is clearly a very erudite individual considering the topic at hand. 1 star is for the first half of the book.

The book is poorly written, truly belonging to the 20th century. Sentences are occasionally occupying 1/4-1/2 of the page, and often include information that is unnecessary for the explanation. Incredibly inefficient. While the book tries to do this with the presumable intent of establishing fluent prose, it does precisely the opposite. In places, it feels more as an ego trip rather than an introductory outline for what we know about the mind. This book left me frustrated more often than it has made me informed. When the need for clarification was necessary - it lacked, when there was a need to drive the book forward - it initiated breaks. This professor albeit incredibly knowledgable, is not a writer.

[Ashley]

Too long and way to academic for me

[Broodingferret · Rating 3 out of 5]

I probably would’ve liked this book a bit more had I read it closer to it’s publication date. As it is, it was in a pile of books I got from a used bookstore so I read it more recently and, while it’s quite informative and well-written, the information in it is a bit dated and the writing style, while replete with British humor, is a little dry (though I suppose that last bit is a touch redundant). That said, most of the book deals with generalities and has therefore aged rather well, I just can’t think of much to recommend this book over any number of others that have been published more recently, such as A User's Guide to the Brain: Perception, Attention, and the Four Theaters of the Brain.

[Noel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not sure I'm bright enough to get this!