Publishers Weekly
11/08/2021
Neuroscientists Ogas and Gaddam follow up A Billion Wicked Thoughts with a mind-bending survey that traces “the journey of the mind from the aimless cycling of mud on a dark and barren Earth until the morning a mind woke up.” They examine consciousness and thought as manifested in 17 species, and kick things off with a study of archea, the “tiniest organism on Earth,” to examine how a mind “emerg from mindlessness” and to distinguish the “Big Three” forms of thinking: consciousness, language, and the self. They dig into the minds of bacteria (which have early blueprints for decision-making), flies (who have complex sensory networks), tortoises (who have a knack for identifying objects), and birds (whose calls shed light on the development of culture), before getting to humans, capable of language and writing. They conclude that consciousness is not an emergent property but rather “a specific mental innovation that arose to solve specific mental challenges.” The authors are at their strongest in breaking down early life-form growths and adaptations, but their conclusions that humans have developed a society-wide supermind, and that mathematics has “opened a gateway to another universe” are less convincing. Still, it’s an original take on the nature of consciousness that gives readers plenty to think about. (Feb.)
David Epstein
"Every page of Journey of the Mind is packed with fascinating insight. This is a brilliant book that will change the way you think about thinking."
Karl Friston
"This enthralling book charts a quantum leap from the prebiotic universe to sentience and selfhood. This is an accessible, eclectic and enlightening book that—once read—is difficult to stop thinking about."
Barbara Oakley
"Journey of the Mind is a page-turner that helps us understand the incomparable work of one of the most brilliant of all neuroscientists. This is the book I would take with me if stranded on a desert island."
Washington Independent Review of Books - William Rice
"A jarring accomplishment. It’s a heroic attempt to explicate the essential nature of thinking that overturns assumptions, pricks human pride, and maybe even puts a scare into the reader. It’s also an energetic exposition that begins as a biology lesson and winds up offering an evolutionary argument for kindness. It will almost surely change your mind about the mind."
Jeffrey Lieberman
"In an intellectual tour de force they offer an imaginative tale of who we are and how we came to be that will keep you reading into the wee hours until the last page."
Douglas Rushkoff
"This deceptively simple and scientifically grounded account ventures up the ladder of chaos to the rich possibilities for our collective supermind. An encouragingly optimistic reminder of how our shared experience and common understanding of reality far surpass our superficial differences."
Peter Sterling
"Journey of the Mind explains a lot about the brain and its evolution in plain, accessible language without the technical abbreviations that make most neuroscience reading so unpleasant.…A daring book and an absorbing read."
Annie Duke
"What Sapiens did for our understanding of the evolution of the human race, Journey of The Mind has done for the evolution of complex thought and consciousness itself."
Stephen Kosslyn
"[S]tunning in its range and reach….Whether or not you agree with their views, you will be led to think about the material in interesting ways and...appreciate the marvelous power, complexity, and beauty of the mind."
Philip Zimbardo
"[A] mind-bending voyage of discovery that will transport its many readers into realms of wondrous revelation."
Kirkus Reviews
★ 2022-01-12
Two computational neuroscientists make a fascinating argument for a “hidden connectedness of all minds,” from primitive bacteria to AI–enhanced human intelligence.
What is “the mind,” and how does it enable consciousness, language, and self-awareness? In carefully constructed chapters that build toward a unified theory of mind—a concept that scientists only recently developed the mathematical tools to explore—Ogas and Gaddam introduce 17 increasingly intelligent entities to demonstrate the incremental and awe-inspiring emergence of awareness and consciousness. For each of these “minds,” the authors devise mental challenges and explain how the mind overcame them, a clever setup that draws readers into the surprisingly relatable drama of each scenario and enhances the authors’ conversational (and equation-free) writing style. Their descriptive language is sharp and engaging, and the easy-to-understand illustrations demonstrate the concepts underpinning evolving conscious experience, such as a bacteria’s interaction with the environment, the amoeba mind becoming aware of itself, and birdsong demonstrating culture. “Birdsong can…fuse the dynamics of two minds,” write the authors, “empowering a couple to focus on joint purposes and enabling them to share similar perceptions of important situations.” In later chapters, the authors explore “superminds,” which gave rise to language, civilization, and the concept of the “self,” and which continue to evolve as technology increases in sophistication and scope. Each of these examples bolsters their argument that “consciousness is a specific mental innovation that arose to solve specific mental challenges.” Though the authors don’t skimp on their analysis, that demystification may leave some readers wanting. Nonetheless, Ogas and Gaddam imbue every detail with awe and enthusiasm, a reminder to readers that the very science underpinning their theories is only possible because of the wondrous machinations of the human mind itself, a mind that likely has not reached its apotheosis.
Packed with insight and astonishing in scope, this book offers an original perspective on thinking and consciousness.
