Brain Bytes: Quick Answers to Quirky Questions About the Brain

Neuroscience in small bits for the brain-curious.

From magazine covers to Hollywood blockbusters, neuroscience is front and center. This popular interest has inspired many questions from people who wonder just what is going on in the three pounds of tissue between their ears.

In Brain Bytes, neuroscience educators Eric Chudler and Lise Johnson get right to it, asking and answering more than one hundred questions about the brain. Questions include: Does size matter (do humans have the largest brains)? Can foods make people smarter? Does surfing online kill brain cells? Why do we dream? Why can’t I tickle myself? Why do cats like catnip? Why do we yawn and why are yawns contagious? What can I do to keep my brain healthy?

Whether you are interested in serious topics like the history of neuroscience or practical topics like brain health or fun topics like popular culture, this book is sure to provide your brain with some piece of information it didn’t have before.

Eric H. Chudler, PhD, is the executive director of the Center for Neurotechnology and a neuroscientist at the University of Washington. He hosts the popular Web site Neuroscience for Kids and lives in Seattle, Washington.