In the Palaces of Memory: How We Build the Worlds Inside Our Heads by George Johnson

by George Johnson

Even as you read these words, a tiny portion of your brain is physically changing. New connections are being sprouted--a circuit that will create a stab of recognition if you encounter the words again. That is one of the theories of memory presented in this intriguing and splendidly readable book, which distills three researchers' inquiries into the processes that enable us to recognize a face that has aged ten years or remember a melody for decades. Ranging from experiments performed on the "wetware" of the brain to attempts to re-create human cognition in computers, In the Palaces of Memory is science writing at its most exciting.

Genres: Science, Psychology, Nonfiction

Paperback

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

Librarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name

George Johnson (born January 20, 1952) is an American journalist and science writer. He is the author of a number of books, including The Ten Most Beautiful Experiments (2008) and Strange Beauty: Murray Gell-Mann and the Revolution in 20th-Century Physics (1999), and writes for a number of publications, including The New York Times.

He is one of the co-hosts (with science writer John Horgan) of "Science Saturday", a weekly discussion on the website Bloggingheads.tv, related to topics in science. Several prominent scientists, philosophers, and bloggers have been interviewed for the site.

Reviews

[Irini Gergianaki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ένα πόνημα για τις εξεργασίες του εγκεφάλου όταν βλέπουμε κάποιον ή μιλάμε ή έχουμε κάποια πνευματική δραστηριότητα. Με κούρασε λίγο και νομίζω ποια έχει ξεπεραστεί από τις επιστημονικές εξελίξεις.

[Judith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Have you ever wondered exactly how we learn? How we remember? Remembering, of course, is a crucial part of learning. This book takes us deeply into the realm of neuroscience, into the brain itself, and particularly into those synapses that fire (or don't) from time to time.

As yet, the exact mechanism for remembering has not been found, but various disciplines have been merging toward a common conclusion. The persons studying the science of memory have come from neuroscience, biology, physics, and even philosophy and computer science. The different researchers headed in different directions for years, until finally in the 1990s they started to pull in the same direction.

Honestly, a lot of the specific explanations for how the synapses fire and what the neurotransmitters do did not stick firmly in my head. I can't really blame Johnson for that, however, because he has done an amazing job of explaining without dumbing down. I found the stories of the individuals involved sometimes more interesting and absorbing. We may think scientists are devoid of envy and ambition but of course that is not true. There are many different ways to go astray, even for a scientist.

The general ideas I did take away from this book serve me well. It makes good sense to me, for example, that we can retrain certain paths that we have developed over time, to go in different directions. This was not the focus of the book but one of the side effects.

If you are interested in how it all really works, this is the book to start with. I am guessing that there are others written more recently that might build on it.

[Johnny · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's very odd that after playing the computer adventure game "Gray Matter" I suddenly get hold of a book dealing with neuro(psyscho)logy. The consequence of this is that inside my head all the text was read to me by Steven Pacey, who does the voice of the character David Styles in said game.

The book makes me think of the version of Sherlock Holmes played by Benedict Cumberbatch, where he often retreats into his "mind palace".

This book talks about how a biologist, a physicist and a philosopher try to explain how the human brain stores everything we see, hear and do, in such a way that we can retrieve them sometimes even decades later. Intriguing, but the book dates from 1991, and I wonder how far science has advanced since then, and what we are capable of today, as well as in making it easier to remember, as in blocking bad memories.

[Elizabeth Blake · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting book combining science of neuro-anatomy with theories of memory. At the end the author states: "Memory works that way. The first time you tell someone about your trip"...."it has become trivialized. Raw experience has been converted into a few set pieces." The book has helped me ponder memories that were hugely influential in my life, but cannot be adequately handled by my memories of them. That's what I liked best about the book.

[Mad Russian the Traveller · Rating 3 out of 5]

This an excellent explanation of the development of neuroscience as it relates to memory in the human brain. The author does a good job of explaining the various concepts and mechanisms for the layman; you don't have to have a degree in Biology or Chemistry to understand the subject related here. A good introduction to the vast field of Cognitive Science in general. Recommended.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really dislike books that attempt to take on a somewhat complicated topic and use a tone that's trying too hard to be conversational or lighthearted.

[Abigail Ludwig · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was very interesting. It did get very technical and science-y toward the middle, though.

[Jeff Youngstrom]

My review from 1994

[Tessa]

It was hard to get through because it was very dense. It largely dealt with neuroscience at the very very scientific level and had very little to do with psychology and philosophy which I had been looking for. It's a bit esoteric for the layman, even though that's who it is written for.