Human: The Science Behind What Makes Us Unique [Hardcover]

Michael S. Gazzaniga (Author)

Book Description

Release date: June 24, 2008 | ISBN-10: 0060892889 | ISBN-13: 978-0060892883 | Edition: 1

One of the world's leading neuroscientists explores how best to understand the human condition by examining the biological, psychological, and highly social nature of our species within the social context of our lives.

What happened along the evolutionary trail that made humans so unique? In his widely accessible style, Michael Gazzaniga looks to a broad range of studies to pinpoint the change that made us thinking, sentient humans, different from our predecessors.

Neuroscience has been fixated on the life of the psychological self for the past fifty years, focusing on the brain systems underlying language, memory, emotion, and perception. What it has not done is consider the stark reality that most of the time we humans are thinking about social processes, comparing ourselves to and estimating the intentions of others. In Human, Gazzaniga explores a number of related issues, including what makes human brains unique, the importance of language and art in defining the human condition, the nature of human consciousness, and even artificial intelligence.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. As wide-ranging as it is deep, and as entertaining as it is informative, the latest offering from UC–Santa Barbara neuroscientist Gazzaniga (The Ethical Brain) will please a diverse array of readers. He is adept at aiding even the scientifically unsophisticated to grasp his arguments about what separates humans from other animals. His main premise is that human brains are not only proportionately larger than those of other primates but have a number of distinct structures, which he explores along with evolutionary explanations for their existence. For instance, a direct outgrowth of the size and structure of the human brain, along with their origins in the complexity of human social groups, was the development of language, self-awareness and ethics. (Gazzaniga offers some surprising comments on the evolution of religion and its relation to morals.) Throughout, Gazzaniga addresses the nature of consciousness, and by comparing the intellectual capabilities of a host of animals (chimps, dogs, birds and rats, among others) with those of human babies, children and adults, he shows what we all share as well as what humans alone possess. (July)
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From Booklist

Thinking through human characteristics, and deciding whether they are in fact distinctly human, is the aim of this popular work about neuroscience. Gazzaniga is a prime name in the field, and in jaunty, colloquial language, he mediates the research of neurobiologists as well as evolutionary and cognitive psychologists. Opening with a run through the gross anatomy of the brain and concluding that, yes, ours really is a bigger, more complex noggin than that of any other species, Gazzaniga asks: “Would a chimp make a good date?” Meaning: Are we justified in imputing humanlike thought to animals such as chimps or dogs? No, is Gazzaniga’s general conclusion. They fail tests for theory-of-mind, the ability to act on the knowledge that other creatures have their own thoughts. Humans innately acquire that skill—as Gazzaniga demonstrates through descriptions of cognitive studies of children—so what’s it for, he asks? He finds answers in the universal proclivity to talk, mostly about other people. From gossip to morals to art, Gazzaniga pays scientific compliments to what makes us human. --Gilbert Taylor

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 464 pages
• Publisher: Ecco; 1 edition (June 24, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060892889
• ISBN-13: 978-0060892883
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 1.6 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #455,203 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

70 of 77 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential to Understanding Human Behavior July 8, 2008

By Adam C. Leonard

Format:Hardcover

To understand human social behavior it is necessary to be familiar with most (if not all) of the material Michael Gazzaniga covers in this seminal summary of how humans are alike and different from other animals. Since Dr. Gazzaniga is not only a pioneering neuroscientist, but also an accomplished writer noted for his ability to render scientific material understandable and entertaining, there is likely no better way to become familiar with leading edge thinking on human behavior than by reading "Human: The Science Behind What Makes Us Unique."

Dr. Gazzaniga's stance (as proclaimed in the Prologue) is that although most human activity can be related to antecedents in other animals, somewhere in the evolution of our brain the equivalent of a "phase shift" occurred and we became unique: His rallying cry is "... let us start the journey of understanding why humans are special, and let's have some fun doing it." "Human" succeeds in doing that throughout its nine chapters.

All of the recent discoveries and salient theories from the fields of neuroscience, molecular biology, genetics, evolutionary and cognitive psychology, and artificial intelligence (among others) are presented in a cogent and evenhanded way; whenever Dr. Gazzaniga favors one theory over another, he carefully explains why, and the result is that readers can weigh the data and various viewpoints themselves to improve their comprehension of human behavior.

The final chapter looks into the near future and considers likely advances in the emerging neuroprosthetic fields, where brain signals are tapped to control prosthetic devices; in robotics and artificial intelligence, where manmade devices take over Man's "dull, dangerous, or dirty" chores; and in gene therapy and "genetic engineering," where the Pandora's Box of manipulating our very nature may be creaking open. Dr. Gazzaniga's extensive work with the Council on Bioethics (which led to a previous book, "The Ethical Brain") makes him almost uniquely qualified to address the promises and dangers of gene manipulation.

And, yes, a summary can indeed be "seminal" if it brings together findings from many disciplines, lays them out in parallel, and shows how they have a common thread and converge toward a common conclusion.

Adam Leonard (Author of "Man by Nature: The Hidden Programming Controlling Human Behavior.")

44 of 48 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Read! July 7, 2008

By Leo M. Chalupa

Format:Hardcover

Michael Gazzaniga, a preeminent brain scientist who has made the study of the human mind scientifically viable, has hit a grand slam with his new book. In it he tackles a fundamental question of our existence, one that has been largely avoided by modern science: what makes humans beings unique? In a breezy and easy to understand style, he weaves a story that combines cutting-edge information from diverse disciplines, ranging from molecular biology to social psychology. The result is a book that is as entertaining as it is informative. HUMAN is a must read for every thinking person.

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars From neuroatomy to dating a chimp July 7, 2008

By M. Marmarelis

Format:Hardcover

Dr. Gazzaniga elegantly explores what makes humans unique by drawing from a large body of research and presenting it with seemingly effortless wit. Whether he is talking about the anatomy of specific parts of the brain or deciding whether a human would have a good time on a date with a chimp, he keeps the reader engaged and entertained. All in all, this book was a wonderful way to learn about some of the fascinating research that has been done on the brain.