Thomas R. Blakeslee

Thomas R Blakeslee's books have been published in ten different languages. After serving for three years in the U.S. Navy, he earned a degree from the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, California in 1962. After working for IT&T in Antwerp, Belgium, he moved to Silicon Valley in California where he helped found several startup companies as Engineering Vice President.

In 1980 he used his own money to found Orion Instruments Inc. He served as President and then Chairman of the Board until he retired in 1998. A prolific inventor, he holds patents in such diverse fields as photography, hydraulics, electronic circuits, information display, digital telephony, instrumentation and vehicle guidance.

Blakeslee's first book was a textbook on computer design that was adopted by 45 top colleges and universities including CalTech and MIT. At the age of 38 he learned to ski and the experience changed his life. He became aware of the separate, non-verbal thinking of the fight side of the brain. In 1980 he wrote "The Right Brain" to share his insights. It became an international best seller, selling 136,000 copies in seven languages.

Sixteen years later he realized that the simple right vs left brain division was an oversimplification that masked many important insights about how the brain really works. He wrote "Beyond the Conscious Mind", which showed how the brain is a self-organizing system with many specialized centers of thinking that ideally work together harmoniously. A separate "self module" tries to verbally explain behaviors which are actually controlled by separate, specialized parts of the brain.

Watching his mother's aging, he realized that his insights on how the mind works had important implications for understanding the aging process. Deterioration of mental attitudes can be avoided by applying this understanding and the result is an improvement in physical health and longevity. In 1997 he wrote "The Attitude Factor" as a self-help guide to healthy aging. In 2015 he added this update to the preface:

"As I approach my 78th birthday I am amazed and gratified at the results of my having followed the insights of this book. I daily go for long bike rides, play excellent paddle tennis and go surfing often. I've even gone skiing for free as a super senior! Daily sex makes a great finish to the day. If I hadn't written this book, many of these activities would probably be "used to's," as they are for most people my age. It is clear that attitudes can can strongly affect health, longevity and enjoyment of life. Changing your attitudes takes a little practice and determination but the payoff is truly amazing. In the 18 years since this book was first published I have seen many people essentially reverse the aging process and regain their youthful joy by simply following the book's teachings. It takes effort and determination to relearn mental habits learned over a lifetime but the payoff is exciting once you experience its power. Physical disabilities often result from attempts to protect yourself from injuries. Once you understand the principles, you can often reverse the trend towards deterioration and have fun doing things you thought were impossible. Feelings of pleasure and well being directly affect your prospects for good health and longevity."

In 2010 Blakeslee returned to his engineering roots and wrote "Fuel Free: Living Well Without Fossil Fuels," which describes his vision of a world based on clean, renewable energy. He has invested heavily in renewable energy and become a political activist dedicated to leaving a better world for future generations.

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