Customer Reviews

The Mind within the Net: Models of Learning, Thinking, and Acting

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This exceptionally clear and lucid books describes with masterful clarity the recent advances in the area of theoretical modeling of the human brain using artificial neural networks. It not only introduces a subject which normally requires a considerable amount of mathematics very clearly, but also explores the consequences on such modeling on our everyday's life with great clarity. Other books with less mathematics and more "philosophy" are also not so easy to read, but this one stands out for its clarity. Admittedly the level is introductory, as fine details are not covered, but it makes you feel that you must immediately start to go deeper on these subjects, as it is written in a very engaging style. Reading this book is a great intellectual pleasure.

Even though I'm not a neuroscientist or neural computing expert, I found this book to be an excellent discussion of neural networks and how they seem to at least provide models for (and may actually be the primary mechanism of) brain function.

In the book's three sections ("Basics", "Principles", and "Applications"), Spitzer's lucid writing describes neural networks, current concepts in learning, how cortical organization relates to networks, and many specific examples which describe how research is illuminating the challenging topic of how the mind works.

His illustrations complement the text perfectly, he cites references as needed, he provides a glossary of the terms he uses, and his index provides quick access for review.

This book has been a pleasure to read, and I hope the author updates it as research progresses.

Nearly every publication that touches computational neuroscience is saturated with mathematics. Spitzer accurately depicts the defining characteristics of neurons, and presents abstract network models with very little emphasis on the mathematical theory that other authors believe is necessary to describe neural networks.

It's refreshing to experience a book that describes complex, technical issues, but reads more like an entertaining story.

Besides grammatical mistakes and obvious errors in translation, the book doesn't delve deep into the places it promises, and concentrates on analogies that play to the lay-est of laymen rather than focusing on the actual data and theories of neural networks. Chapters on neuroplasticity and feedback are worthwhile, but the book quickly derails onto a scene of neuroscientific generalism, which seems to be the popular fad among most brain books today, which seem to pass around the same cache of information on L-Dopa, homunculi, and Aplysia to take up a good 25% of 75% of the books in print. Good for an introduction to neural nets and semantic networks, but not a valuable reference.

As a psychiatrist who is concerned about reconciling psychoanalytic and neurophysiologic perspectives, this book provides a substantial foundation to this endeavor. I find the book notably helpful in teaching analytic and psychodynamic approaches to new psychiatrists. It begins to suggest a new discourse through which clinical practice may be described. I am thankful that we have this book and look forward to more work by Manfred Spitzer.

I cannot recall a book that succeeds quite as well as this one in accomplishing what the author set out to do. Manfred Spitzer manages to combine a lucid treatment of the workings of neural nets and of the brain. What emerges is a remarkable story that provides an extradorinary perspective on learning and acting. I recommend it highly.

This is one of those precious books I love for their clarity and density of real information. The author is a psychiatrist and a neuromimetic model enthusiast who tries to communicate his enthusiasm to the reader. There is no mistake when it is about things I know well (I am more into statistical learning than biology), even when the author simplifies the topic to make it understandable to the non-specialist. The figures also are neat and clear. A great book.