Softcover

ISBN 10: 0061906115 ISBN 13: 9780061906114

Publisher: Ecco, 2012

“Big questions are Gazzaniga’s stock in trade.”
—New York Times

“Gazzaniga is one of the most brilliant experimental neuroscientists in the world.”
—Tom Wolfe

“Gazzaniga stands as a giant among neuroscientists, for both the quality of his research and his ability to communicate it to a general public with infectious enthusiasm.”
—Robert Bazell, Chief Science Correspondent, NBC News

The author of Human, Michael S. Gazzaniga has been called the “father of cognitive neuroscience.” In his remarkable book, Who’s in Charge?, he makes a powerful and provocative argument that counters the common wisdom that our lives are wholly determined by physical processes we cannot control. His well-reasoned case against the idea that we live in a “determined” world is fascinating and liberating, solidifying his place among the likes of Oliver Sacks, Antonio Damasio, V.S. Ramachandran, and other bestselling science authors exploring the mysteries of the human brain.

From the Back Cover:

There is no "you" consciously making decisions. So how do we make decisions? How can we have free will if we don't pull the levers on our own behavior? What moral and legal implications follow if we don't have free will? Who's in Charge? is a primer for a new era in the understanding of human behavior that ranges across neuroscience, psychology, ethics, and the law with a light touch but profound implications.

About the Author:

Michael S. Gazzaniga is the director of the SAGE Center for the Study of the Mind at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He is the president of the Cognitive Neuroscience Institute, a member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, the Institute of Medicine, and the National Academy of Sciences. In addition, he is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and newly elected to serve on its Board of Directors. He is also past president of the Association of Psychological Science and served on the President's Bioethics Council from 2002-2008. The author of many popular science books, including Who's In Charge? (Ecco, 2011), Human (Ecco, 2008), Nature's Mind (Basic, 1992), and Mind Matters (Houghton Mifflin, 1988), he is featured regularly on Public Television and National Public Radio, and his research has been presented on NBC Nightly News and The Today Show. Gazzaniga lives in California with his wife. He has six children.