The brain: a beginner's guide

It has been remarked that if the brain were so simple we could understand it, we would be so simple we couldn’t. Commencing with a brief history of neuroscience, from the ancient practice of drilling holes in the head to relieve headaches to the latest results from MRI and CT scans, this accessible guide sets out to explore exactly what we do know about the brain. Including the most up-to-date research on the cerebral processes behind a wide array of human activity – from our capacity for language to how we remember – this lively and entertaining introduction assumes no previous scientific knowledge and offers a tantalizing glimpse into man’s most complex organ. Ammar Al-Chalabi is Honourary Consultant Neurologist at King’s College Hospital, and a Senior Lecturer at the Institute of Psychiatry, London. R. Shane Delamont is a Consultant Neurologist at King’s College Hospital, and Martin Turner is Wellcome Fellow in Neurology at The Institute of Psychiatry. All three have extensive experience of teaching the key principles of neuroscience, and between them their specialist fields of expertise cover all of the main areas of contemporary brain research.