You Can't Use Your Brain If You're a Jellyfish

by Fred Ehrlich, Amanda Haley (Illustrator)

Starting with the lowly earthworm, Dr. Fred Ehrlich looks at the brains of insects, birds, mammals, and finally humans. How are human brains different from those of other animals? What can they do that we can't? What can we do that they can't? Dr. Fred Ehrlich makes the most complicated subjects understandable to young minds. In his third contribution to this popular series, he again combines a fact-packed text with humorous verse to emphasize important points. Illustrated with Amanda Haley's child-friendly drawings. Includes a glossary of difficult words.

Genres: Science, Childrens, Nonfiction

44 pages, Hardcover

First published September 8, 2005

Reviews

[Jen Traub · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a really interesting premise, in my opinion. The author starts with insect brains and focuses on how they operate by instinct, then works up through larger brains in birds, cats, dogs, primates, then finally, humans. It was a nice intro, but I found myself really disappointed in the last two sections on primates and humans. There are so many possibilities here, and I felt it fell short. The primates focused on new world versus old world primates, how mommas teach their young, and the size of brains (such as gorillas vs chimpanzees). The human section introduces the idea of “mind” being created by the flesh and blood of brain, but leaves it incredibly vague. The cerebral cortex is introduced earlier, but never mentioned in regards to humans. Brains and empathy, invention, etc... none of it was there, just simply “humans have minds and can change their environment”. It even includes a small section on artificial intelligence (which seemed a stretch given how little human intelligence was explored).

I was disappointed. With so much to learn and explore, this author fell short with oversimplification and generalizations.

[Farah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Waaa.. bacaan ringan untuk hari ini :D
Gue suka banget sama judulnya. You can't use your brain if you are a jellyfish.

Membuat gue berpikir, wah, berarti seharusnya kita jangan marah kalo ada yang ngatain anjing, monyet, atau hewan-hewan penghuni kebun binatang lain, dong yah? Atau kalau kita dibilang berotak udang. Justru harus sangat marah saat dibilang, "DASAR LO UBUR-UBUR!!" Jelas-jelas ubur-ubur ngga punya otak sama sekali...

Ini buku science yang sangat menarik yang pengen banget gue bacain buat anak-anak kecil.

Dari buku ini juga gue tahu, kenapa gadget-gadget yang beredar di pasaran sekarang dibilangnya Smart Phone. Bukan Intelligent Phone.
Ahseek.. Nambah pengetahuan gue :D

Jadi berdasarkan apa yang sudah gue baca di buku ini, film Resident Evil itu agak ngga masuk akal ya.
Kok bisa2nya dunia mau dikalahin sama komputer sementara manusianya dibunuhin atau dijadiin zombie? Cabut aja stop kontaknya. Mesti modyar juga itu komputer jahatnya.

Ah lanjut lagi baca buku yang satunya ah x))