Physics in Mind

Loewenstein, Werner R.

ISBN 10: 0465029841 / ISBN 13: 9780465029846

Published by The Perseus Books Group, 2013

About this Item

2013. 0th Edition. Hardcover. An eminent biophysicist asks: What can quantum mechanics tell us about the brain? Num Pages: 240 pages, black & white illustrations, figures. BIC Classification: PDZ; PSAN. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 240 x 166 x 31. Weight in Grams: 564. . . . . . Books ship from the US and Ireland.

Seller Inventory # V9780465029846

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Physics in Mind
• Publisher: The Perseus Books Group
• Publication Date: 2013
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0465029841
• ISBN 13: 9780465029846
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

No one can escape a sense of awe when reflecting on the workings of the mind: we see, we hear, we feel, we are aware of the world around us. But what is the mind? What do we mean when we say we are "aware" of something? What is this peculiar state in our heads, at once utterly familiar and bewilderingly mysterious, that we call awareness or consciousness?

In Physics in Mind, eminent biophysicist Werner R. Loewenstein argues that to answer these questions, we must first understand the physical mechanisms that underlie the workings of the mind. And so begins an exhilarating journey along the sensory data stream of the brain, which shows how our most complex organ processes the vast amounts of information coming in through our senses to create a coherent, meaningful picture of the world. Bringing information theory to bear on recent advances in the neurosciences, Loewenstein reveals a web of immense computational power inside the brain. He introduces the revolutionary idea that quantum mechanics could be fundamental to how our minds almost instantaneously deal with staggering amounts of information, as in the case of the information streaming through our eyes.

Combining cutting-edge research in neuroscience and physics, Loewenstein presents an ambitious hypothesis about the parallel processing of sensory information that is the heart, hub, and pivot of the cognitive brain. Wide-ranging and brimming with insight, Physics in Mind breaks new ground in our understanding of how the mind works.

About the Author

Werner R. Loewenstein was professor of physiology and biophysics at Columbia University and director of its Cell Physics Laboratory. Author of The Touchstone of Life, he lives in Woods Hole, on Cape Cod, Massachusetts.