Neuroscience, Memory, and Language: Papers Presented at a Symposium Series Cosponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health and the Library of - Hardcover

Broadwell, Richard D.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0844408158 ISBN 13: 9780844408156

Publisher: Library of Congress

Synopsis

Almost twenty-five hundred years ago the ancient Greeks realized that human mental life emerges from the brain. Over the years, our understanding of how the brain works and what goes wrong when it is injured or diseased has grown, but we still have much more to learn. Disorders of the brain - ranging from degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's or Parkinson's to stroke, schizophrenia, depressive disorders, epileptic seizures, and impairments of speech, language, and hearing - affect millions of people alive today. Powerful microscopes, the study of genetics, and major advances in brain-imaging devices are giving physicians and scientists ever greater insight into the brain. Computer-controlled imaging technologies - first positron emission tomography (PET) and now functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) - give researchers a window into the brain, a view of its neural circuits working together. A new era of discovery is dawning in brain research.
A series of semiannual symposia cosponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health and the Library of Congress features presentations by the nation's leading neuroscientists. This forum provides opportunities for scientists, policymakers, representatives of foundations and private industry, and others to discuss policy and legislative issues related to the rapid advances in neuroscience. The first symposium, convened at the Library, of Congress in July of 1991, presented an overview of neuroscience advances in brain imaging technology, artificial intelligence, and the question of human consciousness. The second symposium, held in February 1992, concentrated on learning and memory and emphasized the growing understanding of how the brain learns and remembers. The third symposium, presented in September 1992, focused on the neural basis of language in all its forms. These three symposia form the basis for volume I of what will be an ongoing series highlighting progress during the Decade of the Brain.

Edition details

• Publisher: Library of Congress
• ISBN 10: 0844408158
• ISBN 13: 9780844408156
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English