Brain Wars: The Scientific Battle Over The Existence Of The Mind

These profound questions have provoked considerable debate throughout history and have over several centuries led cultures to develop beliefs about human nature, immortality and the afterlife. Scientists working under the presumption that matter is all that exists have concluded that consciousness can be seen as simply a collection of nerve cells in the brain. That is, there is no separation between consciousness or the mind—who we are—and the function of brain.

Dr. Beauregard disagrees. He asserts that multiple lines of hard evidence reveal that consciousness is transmitted and filtered through the brain but is not generated by the brain. This controversial theory turns accepted science on its head by showing how mental events exist outside of the brain and, further, how these events can significantly influence the functioning of our brains and our bodies. In other words, humans are more than complex biological machines. The fact that our minds function apart from our brains invites a whole new understanding of the universe.

Filled with the latest scientific research and remarkable stories of the mind’s incredible abilities, Brain Wars is a page-turning, paradigm-shifting work. The evidence can no longer be ignored, and Dr. Beauregard introduces a major shift in our understanding of the age-old mind/body debate. Our consciousness transcends the material world, and this new understanding has profound social, moral and spiritual implications for the future.

MARIO BEAUREGARD, PhD, is currently an associate research professor in the departments of psychology and radiology and at the Neuroscience Research Centre, Université de Montréal. He is the author of more than one hundred publications in neuroscience, psychology and psychiatry. In 2000, Beauregard was selected by the World Media Net as one of the One Hundred Pioneers of the 21st Century. Beauregard is the author of a number of books, including The Spiritual Brain. He lives in the Montreal area.