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| The Brain That Changes Itself | 
 enlarge | Manufacturer: Viking
Category: EBooks
List Price: $16.00
Buy New: $9.99
You Save: $6.01 (38%)
Avg. Customer Rating:  109 reviews
Sales Rank: 323
Format: Kindle Book
Media: Kindle Edition
Edition: 1
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 448
Dewey Decimal Number: 612.8
ASIN: B000QCTNIW
Publication Date: March 15, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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| Customer Reviews:
 The Review That Wrote Itself March 27, 2007
23 out of 24 found this review helpful
A revolution is now sweeping through the field of brain science, and this book chronicles the stories of the men and women who have ushered in a new age. The brain is no longer viewed as a machine that is hard-wired early in life, unable to adapt and destined to "wear out" with age. Instead, we learn that scientists are beginning to unlock the secrets of the powerful, lifelong, adaptability - or "plasticity" - of the brain. The implications are enormous for treating neurological disease, for addressing the aging process and for dramatic improvements in human performance. Author Norman Doidge is a psychiatrist on the Columbia faculty and he tells one spell-binding story after another, as he travels the globe interviewing the scientists and their subjects who are on the cutting edge of a new age. Each story is interwoven with the latest in brain science, told in a manner that is both simple and compelling. It may be hard to imagine that a book so rich in science can also be a page-turner, but this one is hard to set down.
 Exciting new understanding of the brain written by 'true believer' May 28, 2008
19 out of 21 found this review helpful
This is a book that my men's book club enjoyed. I also enjoyed the book, but found the author to be a bit of true believer - if what he claims is true most every case of autism, paralysis, tinitis, and other neurological disorders can be fixed by taking advantage of the new understanding that the brain can create new routes and perhaps new nerves. The range of impact of this approach is staggering and will have implications for many years to come. The topics covered include sexual attraction, social skills, 'itches' of amputated limbs, fetishism, spatial reasoning, stroke recovery, feelings from phantom limbs, pain of phantom limbs, pornography addiction, cognitive decline, OCD, and even blindness. As you can tell, I found the information of various cases exciting and offering great promise, but I also found the lack of a balanced presentation by the author to be disconcerting.
When Change is Possible - Miracles Can Happen August 26, 2007
15 out of 17 found this review helpful
If you're like me - a rank amateur in the field of brain science - you'll find that Dr. Doidge has authored an interesting and compelling text to explain the science of neuroplasticity. More importantly, you'll discover the implications of the "new" discoveries that show that the human brain is malleable throughout our lifetime.
While I sometimes got lost in the details, Dr. Doidge provided enough easy to understand nuggets to allow me to grasp that the science of neuroplasticity has life altering applicability to all human beings. The text provides many stories of personal triumph that could be seen as unimaginable miracles to those who have no background in this exciting science. The stories have not only been useful in my own life, they have shown themselves to be useful to others as I share these exciting discoveries with friends who have children who struggle with similar stories as those depicted in the text.
I would not classify this text in the self-help genre. It is a detailed exploration of the brains ability to change itself and it prepares the reader with sufficient knowledge and encouragement to seek solutions that just a few years ago were thought to be the stuff of miracles.
 appears to be a sales pitch August 7, 2008
15 out of 22 found this review helpful
I am, and always have been, fascinated by the brain, and the plasticity of the brain is nothing new. This idea has come up in many books about the brain over the past several years, and is pretty much common knowledge. I find the author contradicts himself in several places, making the point of the plasticity of the brain in one part, then stating the old behaviorists' mantra, basically, you are the product of your upbringing (I think this is contradictory because people are flexible enough to become the person they choose to become, not that they are destined to become something because they had a bad childhood). I'm halfway through the book, and it seems to me the author has the goal of pushing Fast ForWord and the products from Posit Science. With a little research, one can find both companies were founded by Dr. Merzenich, and they are very costly. The Fast ForWord program is only available to schools for a hefty sum, and the brain exercises by Posit Science cost $400 for one user (that was the least expensive version). If people suffering from autism, Asberger's, and other spectrum disorders, could be helped by these kinds of programs, don't you think they would be made more affordable in order to help as many families as possible? I think the book, The Mind and the Brain: Neuroplasticity and the Power of Mental Force, sums it up (although unintentionally)on page 234: "...the month after the Science publication (in 1996), Merzenich (et al)...raised enough private financing to form Scientific Learning Corp., the first company dedicated to making money from neuroplasticity." Merzenich-and his research and products- is nearly the main focus of the book. That is why I think this book is just another sales pitch for a high-priced program. Apparently only the wealthy should be helped, perhaps? Or maybe this is another way to prey on the fears of the elderly, those who fear dementia.
Astonishing Stories of Damaged Brains Repairing Themselves June 15, 2007
14 out of 14 found this review helpful
"The Brain That Changes Itself: Stories of Personal Triumph from the Frontiers of Brain Science" by Norman Doidge, is an easily readable, enjoyable, and thought-provoking book that gives the nonprofessional an overview of the new science of neuroplasticity--the brain's ability to reorganize itself by forming new neural connections over the life span. We learn that the brain is no longer thought of as being hard-wired, that people are no longer believed to be merely products of their genes and environment, and that damaged brains have the remarkable ability to repair themselves.
Doidge recounts stories of real people who have benefited from advances in neuroplasticity. He gives us just enough background information about each case so that we find ourselves genuinely caring about these people--each person comes to life, like characters in a fine novel. He tells us stories about stroke victims with major physical dysfunction who were able to recover nearly everything that they lost, and then go on to live normal lives again. There is an astonishing story of a woman who lost her balance mechanisms; with help from neuroplasticians, she was able to rewire her brain to use other senses to achieve the same goal. We learn that neuroplastic physicians can design high-technology devices capable of bringing sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, and movement to the paralyzed. We learn about an utterly courageous woman who, completely on her own, was able to rewire her brain to compensate for a large number of severe learning disabilities. Eventually, she goes on to found a very successful network of schools devoted to the methodologies she used.
The basic concept is simple: the brain can change itself--rewire itself, so to speak. Often it needs only a little structured help to force it into making the new connections.
The implications of this new science are staggering. Imagine retraining the brains of the severely mentally disadvantaged--the learning disabled, the autistic...perhaps even the psychopath--so that they are able to function almost normally in society. Imagine the impact this new science may have on prison rehabilitation, special education, psychiatry, and rehabilitation therapy, to name but a few. This is a truly astonishing new frontier, and Doidge makes the concepts easy and enjoyable. I recommend this book highly.
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