Brain: The Complete Mind: How It Develops, How It Works, and How to Keep It Sharp Hardcover – Illustrated, November 17, 2009

The book Brain: The Complete Mind, written by Michael S. Sweeney, is an elegant and informative book I would recommend to any beginning and/or intermediate neuroscientist. I would give this book 5 out of 5 stars since although it is a typical scholarly book, it captivates and intrigues the reader by relating everyday situations to the healthiness of the brain. Not only that, but Sweeney offers tools and tips to train and support your brain so that it maintains healthy neuronal connections no matter your age. This book looks at the history of neuroscience and how research and information have accumulated over the years to uncover the complex properties of the brain. It offers in-depth information that ranges from basic anatomical principals, cellular aspects and pathways, to general information on how to keep the brain sharp and healthy. The book is written in an easily understood contextual language so that even the inexperienced neuroscientist can pick it up.Brain: The Complete Mind is extremely informative and covers all elements of the brain including learning and memory, the nervous system, motion, and our state of mind. The chapters I personally found most interesting dealt with neuroscience history, brain development, perception, awareness, and age. Sweeney begins by covering the history and anatomy of the brain and the neuroscientists behind the discoveries. Sweeney describes the important structures (neurons, cerebrum, cerebellum, etc.) and early pioneers such as Ramon y Cajal who documented the existence of synapses.In another chapter, Sweeney discusses the evolution and development of the brain. He notes Charles Darwin while explaining that just as the gazelle was made faster by natural selection, humans benefited from brain development both in complexity and dominance of the cerebral cortex. Sweeny expounds about the development of the brain from it’s beginnings as a neural plate and the migration/plasticity of neurons that form a complex network. He stresses the importance of keeping the mothers body healthy during pregnancy and the critical stages in a baby’s first years of brain development. He provides an example stating that when the budding brain is exposed to environmental toxins like smoking and alcohol; it can cause mental retardation by affecting neuronal migration, connection, and development.The chapter I found most interesting addresses the senses and how the world is perceived differently and individually by each of us. Drugs, food, and POV all distort how we look at the world and are what make it unique to each of us. This chapter emphasizes how no one perceives experiences the same and how sometimes it is easy to rewire or trick the mind. In a case study, a girl named Rickie perceived the world in an unusual way. She would become scared when she focused on trees and perceived them as coming towards her. She had a neurological problem in which her visual processing center erased depth perception.Another intriguing chapter in Sweeny’s book addresses the unconscious minds power over the body and cognition. Sweeney describes the idea of neuromarketing, and relates the effect a series of images in a movie or TV program have on the unconscious brain when the actors wear a brand of clothing or a certain wristwatch. He surmises that when there is limited exposure to a product, the unconscious mind sees it as a scarce item and thus high value, making people want it. He also discusses the complexities of being in a coma and how ketamine comas can be used as therapy for nervous system malfunctions.Sweeney goes on to explain how the neuronal channels in the brain begin to change and diminish with aging due to lack of mental exercise. However, using cognitive tasks like strategy-based games or playing video games that encourage physical exercise and eye-hand coordination can avoid the degeneration of the mind.Every chapter has tips, fun facts, “breakthroughs” and “what could go wrongs” on every other page, which integrate real-world problems into the topic discussed. Sports, personal stories, and animal relationships among other side notes offer an interesting and refreshing break from the text and remind the reader why neuroscience is such a broad and enthralling topic. My favorite side notes were “Staying sharp” since Sweeney explicitly tells the reader what to do and what to eat to ‘stay sharp’. One note Sweeny provides is to drink small amounts of alcohol a day to increase blood flow and lower the risk of stroke. Furthermore, Sweeney covers different diseases in each chapter, like multiple sclerosis, that can affect the neural systems and the treatments used in the past as well as today to tackle them. In a “What can go wrong” section, Sweeny informs the reader that to treat multiple sclerosis, new drugs like interferon and glatiramer are being used.I thought this book was intriguing and Sweeney did an excellent job of simplifying the pathways in the brain and CNS (eg. the prefrontal cortex acts like a brakeman on a train when dealing with emotions). His simple and entertaining language made the book an easy read, and the organization of each chapter made the topics flow together well. Each chapter was kept light with pictures to catch the eye, and side stories about the unique neural processes of athletes and musicians to keep it interesting. The text on each page is written into short segments so that the reader isn’t overwhelmed with information. While reading the book, it was a pleasure to refresh my memory of the specific brain regions and their functions along with the hormones and neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine that can easily affect someone’s life. This book revitalized my passion for neuroscience as it reminded me of all the wonderful ways I could improve peoples’ lives with research and medicine. It doesn’t go into the specific transmittors, transporters, or receptors of each neural passage, but the generalized information in it refreshes my appreciation for the big picture.

If you want a very informative but short (compared to actual brain neuroscience books) introduction to the brain in an easy way to comprehend, get this book! I love how it gives explanation and history examples. For example, it explains the theory of using the "chunking method" to manipulate short memory into long memory and it gives an example of how Mozart used this technique to write one of his musical master piece after only having it heard twice in a live perfomance.

Very well written - so much information is being discovered every day about how miraculous & elegant the brain functionsThey also provide enough history to allow for a clear progression & understanding of such a complex processTHIS BOOK IS A MUST HAVE FOR ANTONE WANTING TO HAVE A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE BRAIN & THE MULTIFACETED FUNCTIONS IT PROVIDES

We bought this book after watching a few episodes of Brain Games on National Geographic. It's amazing how little we know about the brain and how much we've learned over time. I love suggestion they give, for improving certain skills and the graphics keep it interesting.

My new coffee table book! This is such an excellent resource that's loaded with a variety of research on the brain. It's more of an encyclopedia, so it's not a book that you'll necessarily read from cover-to-cover, but it's one to glean helpful insights from over the years.

Saw it at the book store and bought it at a cheaper price here on Amazon. Love this book.

I order this book as an addition to my psychology classes. The material is up to date, and easy to read and "digest", complimented with great photos and illustrations. Perfect for students, guests, and rainny days. Highly recommend.

I was very disappointed after receiving the used book when I paid for and requested a new book. In past purchases of books or any other products I have been very pleased. I plan on shopping locally for my book orders.