Distributed Neural Systems: Beyond the New Phrenology

by William R. Uttal

Intended as a sequel to the author's provocative The New Phrenology (MIT Press, 2001), Distributed Neural Beyond the New Phrenology acknowledges the important and exciting progress that has been made in approaching the mind-brain problem through the comparative studies of cognition and brain images produced by PET and fMRI systems. However, as the author demonstrates, much of this research has been oversold both to the lay public, subjected to a barrage of wild-eyed news reporters, and to the scientific research establishment, confronted with a plethora of often unreplicated research articles. The colorful photos that grace our journals have led to some unjustified extrapolations, confused interpretations, and, most of all, an overestimation of just how much progress has been made in this exploding new subfield of cognitive neuroscience. In Distributed Neural Beyond the New Phrenology, William R. Uttal examines recent empirical and conceptual developments in cognitive brain imaging research and examines where the promise has been fulfilled, where it has not yet, and where it is unlikely to be.

167 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009