Enchanted Looms: Conscious Networks in Brains and Computers

by Rodney Cotterill

Overview

The title of this book was inspired by a passage in Charles Sherrington's Man on his Nature. When that famous physiologist died in 1952, the prospects for a scientific explanation of consciousness seemed remote. Enchanted Looms shows how the situation has changed dramatically over the past forty years, and provides what is probably the most wide-ranging account of the phenomenon ever written. Rodney Cotterill bridges the gap between the bottom-up approach to understanding consciousness, anchored in the brain's biochemistry, anatomy and physiology, and the top-down strategy, which concerns itself with behavior and the nervous system's interaction with the environment. He argues that an explanation of consciousness is now at hand, and extends the discussion to include intelligence and creativity, unlike other books on the subject. This beautifully written and illustrated book will be valued for its provocative approach to one of science's last great challenges. Enchanted Looms will change forever our view of consciousness and our concept of the human being.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521624350
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	11/12/1998
Pages:	524
Product dimensions:	6.69(w) x 9.61(h) x 1.14(d)

Table of Contents

1. Introduction; 2. The ultimate black box; 3. Under the lid; 4. Games neurons play; 5. Lasting impressions; 6. From percept to concept; 7. The grand design; 8. The first half second; 9. Midwives of reflection; 10. The depth of reason; 11. The message and the medium.

Editorial Reviews

"The book is well structured, moving easily between anatomical detail, functional theories, methodologies and the analyses of others, making it mandatory reading for those considering doing research on this topic." Times Higher Education Supplement

"The book is well structured, moving easily between anatomical detail, functional theories, methodologies and the analyses of others, making it mandatory reading for those considering doing research on this topic." Times Higher Education Supplement

"In both its details and in overall execution this is a very exciting book. The author substantiates his claim that consciousness and mind are best explained as motor-system functions." The Quarterly Review of Biology

"What is so wonderful about Cotterill's thesis is that he provides a simple yet powerful definition ... worthwile." Journal of the History of the Neurosciences

From the Publisher