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An Alchemy of Mind: The Marvel and Mystery of the Brain
From the New York Times bestselling author of The Zookeeper's Wife , an ambitious and enlightening work that combines an artist's eye with a scientist's erudition to illuminate, as never before, the magic and mysteries of the human mind.
Long treasured by literary readers for her uncommon ability to bridge the gap between art and science, celebrated scholar-artist Diane Ackerman returns with the book she was born to write. Her dazzling new work, An Alchemy of Mind, offers an unprecedented exploration and celebration of the mental fantasia in which we spend our days—and does for the human mind what the bestselling A Natural History of the Senses did for the physical senses.
Bringing a valuable female perspective to the topic, Diane Ackerman discusses the science of the brain as only she can: with gorgeous, immediate language and imagery that paint an unusually lucid and vibrant picture for the reader. And in addition to explaining memory, thought, emotion, dreams, and language acquisition, she reports on the latest discoveries in neuroscience and addresses controversial subjects like the effects of trauma and male versus female brains. In prose that is not simply accessible but also beautiful and electric, Ackerman distills the hard, objective truths of science in order to yield vivid, heavily anecdotal explanations about a range of existential questions regarding consciousness, human thought, memory, and the nature of identity.
Long treasured by literary readers for her uncommon ability to bridge the gap between art and science, celebrated scholar-artist Diane Ackerman returns with the book she was born to write. Her dazzling new work, An Alchemy of Mind, offers an unprecedented exploration and celebration of the mental fantasia in which we spend our days—and does for the human mind what the bestselling A Natural History of the Senses did for the physical senses.
Bringing a valuable female perspective to the topic, Diane Ackerman discusses the science of the brain as only she can: with gorgeous, immediate language and imagery that paint an unusually lucid and vibrant picture for the reader. And in addition to explaining memory, thought, emotion, dreams, and language acquisition, she reports on the latest discoveries in neuroscience and addresses controversial subjects like the effects of trauma and male versus female brains. In prose that is not simply accessible but also beautiful and electric, Ackerman distills the hard, objective truths of science in order to yield vivid, heavily anecdotal explanations about a range of existential questions regarding consciousness, human thought, memory, and the nature of identity.
300 pages, Paperback
First published May 25, 2004
128 people are currently reading
2400 people want to read
About the author
Diane Ackerman
71 books1,106 followersDiane Ackerman has been the finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Nonfiction in addition to many other awards and recognitions for her work, which include the bestsellers The Zookeeper’s Wife and A Natural History of the Senses.
The Zookeeper’s Wife, a little known true story of WWII, became a New York Times bestseller, and received the Orion Book Award, which honored it as, "a groundbreaking work of nonfiction." A movie of The Zookeeper’s Wife, starring Jessica Chastain and Daniel Brühl, releases in theaters March 31st, 2017 from Focus Features.
She lives with her husband Paul West in Ithaca, New York.
The Zookeeper’s Wife, a little known true story of WWII, became a New York Times bestseller, and received the Orion Book Award, which honored it as, "a groundbreaking work of nonfiction." A movie of The Zookeeper’s Wife, starring Jessica Chastain and Daniel Brühl, releases in theaters March 31st, 2017 from Focus Features.
She lives with her husband Paul West in Ithaca, New York.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 116 reviews
November 9, 2008
Okay, Diane Ackerman, I get it. You are amazed by amazing things. Everything is amazing. Therefore, you are amazed by everything. Your attention to your own attention to detail is amazing. I was amazed at how towards the end of the book I began reading only every 5th word and then skipped the last 3 chapters or so and tossed the damn thing, which I rarely ever do. I own a copy of "An Alchemy of Mind" by Diane Ackerman. Amazing.
February 22, 2017
I loved Natural History of the Senses and really liked her book on Paul West's stroke. But even as a fan of both popular science, a stream-of-consciousness thinker and a liker of Ackerman, I found this book unbearable to read in places. I made myself finish it to give it a chance, but it was hard going. Some chapters are dramatically more rewarding than others.
The first problem is that the fascination with bazillions of metaphors and similes just turns it into a hallucinogenic fantasy about Ackerman's creativity, rather than reflecting a real love for the amazing process of the brain. It confused me, being neither scientifically accurate nor pleasant to read. In fact it seemed like she wasn't really interested in her subject unless she could get as far away from it as possible. I think part of the problem may be the marketing of the book; it's labelled as a scientifically rigorous book written in a sensuous style. But Ackerman has no qualifications in neurology, and most of her listed bibliography showed old texts, most of which were second-hand metaphorical explanations much like Ackerman's own. Therefore it's more of an dense prose-poem to her consciousness, incorporating a list of inventive metaphors for brain chemistry.
While I often like some personal info in books, I really don't think a long description of Ackerman deciding she was hungry, going to get food, selecting the food and then forgetting to bring the bowl upstairs had any interest or relevance to the subject matter. You could certainly say it related to the brain, but only as much as any written piece does. In some places this is a good tactic which creates a place to breathe; in others it is merely out of place.
It seemed more like the self-centred ramblings of someone who thinks everything they do and say is a detailed explanation of the neurological process. But any one of us could think of our personal experiences; we are, after all, individual minds reading the book. I already know it's possible to feel hungry, feel moved, think and eat...what the book promised was an understanding into the actual processes. Popular science does need to have an element of clarity, and a very well-informed teller, and that's a gift not everyone has. It may because she started as a poet; the dense structure of poems does not always lend itself well to prose and can easily become exhausting after hundreds of pages, plus the selectiveness that makes poetry effective is lost in this long prose work.
Selection is such an important part of good writing. It's not enought to merely have loads of creative comparisons strung together; they all tend to blur into one if they don't have enough space. At the worst this book was completely incoherent and at best lucid and insightful when discussing more abstract concepts. I'd say it has some interesting snippets of magpie-like info padded out with lots of irrelevant filler.
There are some lovely little gems in here, so if you approach it a bit like fossil-hunting it could yield some good insights. I think Ackerman is best when the book hinges on natural history and general human motivations, and in stressing the subjectivity of human experience, rather than things at the more molecular level. She doesn't quite appreciate the beauty of occasional clarity, which suits neurological descriptions better in my opinion.
In the end I used bits of this one for collage, as there were some gems hidden among all the confusion!
The first problem is that the fascination with bazillions of metaphors and similes just turns it into a hallucinogenic fantasy about Ackerman's creativity, rather than reflecting a real love for the amazing process of the brain. It confused me, being neither scientifically accurate nor pleasant to read. In fact it seemed like she wasn't really interested in her subject unless she could get as far away from it as possible. I think part of the problem may be the marketing of the book; it's labelled as a scientifically rigorous book written in a sensuous style. But Ackerman has no qualifications in neurology, and most of her listed bibliography showed old texts, most of which were second-hand metaphorical explanations much like Ackerman's own. Therefore it's more of an dense prose-poem to her consciousness, incorporating a list of inventive metaphors for brain chemistry.
While I often like some personal info in books, I really don't think a long description of Ackerman deciding she was hungry, going to get food, selecting the food and then forgetting to bring the bowl upstairs had any interest or relevance to the subject matter. You could certainly say it related to the brain, but only as much as any written piece does. In some places this is a good tactic which creates a place to breathe; in others it is merely out of place.
It seemed more like the self-centred ramblings of someone who thinks everything they do and say is a detailed explanation of the neurological process. But any one of us could think of our personal experiences; we are, after all, individual minds reading the book. I already know it's possible to feel hungry, feel moved, think and eat...what the book promised was an understanding into the actual processes. Popular science does need to have an element of clarity, and a very well-informed teller, and that's a gift not everyone has. It may because she started as a poet; the dense structure of poems does not always lend itself well to prose and can easily become exhausting after hundreds of pages, plus the selectiveness that makes poetry effective is lost in this long prose work.
Selection is such an important part of good writing. It's not enought to merely have loads of creative comparisons strung together; they all tend to blur into one if they don't have enough space. At the worst this book was completely incoherent and at best lucid and insightful when discussing more abstract concepts. I'd say it has some interesting snippets of magpie-like info padded out with lots of irrelevant filler.
There are some lovely little gems in here, so if you approach it a bit like fossil-hunting it could yield some good insights. I think Ackerman is best when the book hinges on natural history and general human motivations, and in stressing the subjectivity of human experience, rather than things at the more molecular level. She doesn't quite appreciate the beauty of occasional clarity, which suits neurological descriptions better in my opinion.
In the end I used bits of this one for collage, as there were some gems hidden among all the confusion!
October 17, 2012
This was a great book. Diane Ackerman has a way with words that I find fascinating. This book is, on a basic level, about how the mind works but to use that as a summary would be to sell the book short. Personally, I did not learn much that was new from this book, but I did gain a different viewpoint. Most books on the brain and how “mind” works, are interesting, but they do tend to be straight and to the point and absent anything other than the facts. Ackerman adds style, passion and feeling to the topic that is hard to sufficiently summarize. Interesting facts draped in a poetic coat, may be as close as I can come to doing the book justice. If you do not know much about neurology and how the brain works, then you have everything to gain from this book. If you know more and can simply appreciate a different perspective, with colorful paint added to the drab shade of straight facts, you too, will not be disappointed. In much the same way that Philosophy has brought me a deeper appreciation for nature, human behavior and general science, this book has shown me a different side of Neurology and brain science that is difficult to ignore. I look forward to reading some of her other work.
August 15, 2015
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As Francine Prose wrote, this book is " A love song to the brain." After reading this book, I fell in love with my mind :)
In this fascinating book, the author tackles the topic of "mind" from different angels. This book is not pure science, but rather combines history and art in order to illuminate the mysteries of the human brain. It explores the workings of the mind and attempts to explain the meaning of memory, emotions and dreams among many other concepts. The book is divided into several chapters, each discusses a set of related topics. These chapters are written beautifully in an accessible prose. Including stories from her own life or other people, the author was able to deliver her book successfully. In the beginning I thought it would be a difficult read, but as soon as I read the first pages I fell in love with the book ! It is not just that it is unchallenging, but it is a very gripping book. * Thanks for the tweep who recommends it !*
The book urges the reader to think more about their minds. It also helps them to understand several complex concepts related to the mind. The author is a poet, so no wonder that the book is written like a poem dedicated to the mind.
Do I need to say "it is recommended?" :)
As Francine Prose wrote, this book is " A love song to the brain." After reading this book, I fell in love with my mind :)
In this fascinating book, the author tackles the topic of "mind" from different angels. This book is not pure science, but rather combines history and art in order to illuminate the mysteries of the human brain. It explores the workings of the mind and attempts to explain the meaning of memory, emotions and dreams among many other concepts. The book is divided into several chapters, each discusses a set of related topics. These chapters are written beautifully in an accessible prose. Including stories from her own life or other people, the author was able to deliver her book successfully. In the beginning I thought it would be a difficult read, but as soon as I read the first pages I fell in love with the book ! It is not just that it is unchallenging, but it is a very gripping book. * Thanks for the tweep who recommends it !*
The book urges the reader to think more about their minds. It also helps them to understand several complex concepts related to the mind. The author is a poet, so no wonder that the book is written like a poem dedicated to the mind.
Do I need to say "it is recommended?" :)
January 12, 2014
I think I'm giving up, at around p. 85. Why exactly? I think that I just don't . . . _believe_ Ackerman. I don't doubt she knows the brain science, but she opens with an altogether too easy conflation of "I" and "my brain," and then proceeds to attempt to bedazzle with lurid metaphor after lurid metaphor. These, I suppose, are supposed to evoke marvel and mystery, but they have become cloying to me. Some of them are clever and eye-catching, but it's too much. I feel . . . queasy. The attempt to poeticize at all costs a science that, if true, has a poetry that is perhaps better appreciated with at least some plain-spokenness, at least some of the time. I don't need to be constantly I also have read the first few chapters of Patricia Churchland's _Touching a Nerve_ in the last few days and, while I feel like she doesn't always hit the note just right either, I am finding her book much more informative AND imaginative.
October 18, 2009
This book is a prose poem ode to the brain. Thesis: the human brain is pretty awesome. And that's pretty much it. The writing is beautiful in fragments, with lovely turns of phrase and construction of imagery that will impress any writer attempting to elucidate minute beautiful details of the natural world. But these moments don't hold together in a bigger way.
I remember being a kid coming into consciousness of thought and getting all philosophical about things - like, whoa, I'm using my *brain* to think about my *brain*!!!!111 Deep! This book is pretty much like that. Well, more eloquent for sure. I was hoping for more science stuff and less of the author's ruminations about getting distracted while writing the book. I don't feel like I learned anything new, and I definitely don't know that much about the brain and science.
I remember being a kid coming into consciousness of thought and getting all philosophical about things - like, whoa, I'm using my *brain* to think about my *brain*!!!!111 Deep! This book is pretty much like that. Well, more eloquent for sure. I was hoping for more science stuff and less of the author's ruminations about getting distracted while writing the book. I don't feel like I learned anything new, and I definitely don't know that much about the brain and science.
March 3, 2016
I must admit that my interest dropped exponentially after the "left-brain person and right-brain person," chapter.
Nevertheless, one of the parts that touched me deeply in the book and I don't seem able to forget is the excerpt of emails from a patient with an early stage Alzheimer's written to his neurologist.
He writes:
"Thoughts no longer percolate in my brain. They've slowed, become viscous. Living with incurable, progressive dementia, the horrors of the fact and the illness combined is like living in the aftermath of a nuclear war, surrounded on all sides by devastation and waiting for radiation sickness to make you finally wither and drop."
And in another email he wrote:
"What difference does a little dementia really make, when the greatest minds have struggled in vain to know themselves?"
What difference really does it make?
Nevertheless, one of the parts that touched me deeply in the book and I don't seem able to forget is the excerpt of emails from a patient with an early stage Alzheimer's written to his neurologist.
He writes:
"Thoughts no longer percolate in my brain. They've slowed, become viscous. Living with incurable, progressive dementia, the horrors of the fact and the illness combined is like living in the aftermath of a nuclear war, surrounded on all sides by devastation and waiting for radiation sickness to make you finally wither and drop."
And in another email he wrote:
"What difference does a little dementia really make, when the greatest minds have struggled in vain to know themselves?"
What difference really does it make?
October 4, 2009
A book about the human brain that explores phenomena such as consciousness, memory, emotions, language and creativity. The difference between this and other books about the latest in neuroscience research is that this one is written by a poet. She writes as a creative artist describing how the brain functions in language that is both fascinating and accessible. Drawing on metaphor as well as her own experience she illuminates how a brain develops and works to produce the illusion of a coherent self and reality. What I like best about the book is the author’s optimism about humans as a species. Full of interesting facts as well as lovely flights of fancy, this is a good read when you are feeling guilty about consuming too much fiction, but don’t want to have to take life too seriously.
April 23, 2014
I can understand the two popular contrasting opinions on this book. It's like a "hate it or love it" book, but more complex. You either appreciate the eloquence of the book and think about it applying the scenarios to yourself or you either just read it to read it and get annoyed by how much time went into this.
For me, I actually stand in the middle. It was good, and I liked it. I didn't love it, nor did I hate it. I think the book has great potential but at some points it could be over done.
For me, I actually stand in the middle. It was good, and I liked it. I didn't love it, nor did I hate it. I think the book has great potential but at some points it could be over done.
February 1, 2009
Another interesting book by Ackerman. I'll follow this woman wherever she goes. Although, A Natural History of the Senses is still my favorite book by her, I really enjoyed this one. Within this book, she explores and blurs the dichotomy of the mind/body problem: who dictates who? Again, her use of language is gorgeous. I found myself reading this aloud to my husband every night.
August 1, 2018
Lyrical, thoughtful, fun...
September 13, 2020
A boundless, ceaseless, transcendental delight. One of the best books I have ever read. Should be required reading for all humans, or at least the smart ones.
April 18, 2017
I'm proud of myself for picking up this book, buying it, reading it, and finishing it. I've been trying to get back into reading regularly and it's been a rocky start so this was a step forward!
I learned a lot about the brain and gained new perspectives about that thing that we humans have in our noggins. The appeal of this book for me was its prose and way of communicating such scientific information in a digestible, poetic way that really stuck with me. Sometimes the author's words flew over my head and I found myself needing to re-read paragraphs over and over because I wasn't paying attention. However, there are also some very thought-provoking sentences and positions that I enjoyed learning about.
Yay.
I learned a lot about the brain and gained new perspectives about that thing that we humans have in our noggins. The appeal of this book for me was its prose and way of communicating such scientific information in a digestible, poetic way that really stuck with me. Sometimes the author's words flew over my head and I found myself needing to re-read paragraphs over and over because I wasn't paying attention. However, there are also some very thought-provoking sentences and positions that I enjoyed learning about.
Yay.
December 31, 2008
Well... I got this and a Martha Stewart book out from the library at the same time. A weird library day where I was fussy and in a 20 minute parking spot. While I learned how to properly slice onions from Martha, I'm not sure what I'm getting from this one. You know I'm studying medicine all the time, so I like when there's another approach. Something told in a different way that might stick. This is over the top descriptive though, and in a very Berkeley over rapturous way that makes me uninterested. I'm trying to finish it though. If it were toned down even a bit I think I'd get something from it.
January 31, 2008
Mom- this is the book about the human brain. It's a great read. I learned a lot about memory, creativity, healing, and development.
December 28, 2015
amazing take on memory
October 23, 2020
Thanks to son Jack for this recommendation.
September 24, 2019
Though fifteen years have passed since publication, Diane Ackerman’s lyrical prose woven with straight-forward factual information stands up well. A lovely read.
February 10, 2023
I had read favourable cross references to Diane Ackerman and this book in particular and was looking forward to reading this book for some time. Unfortunately, while I thought it was ok, I didn't love it, it wasn't that interesting and was not what I had expected.
With a title such as "An Alchemy of Mind: The Marvel and Mystery of the Brain", and with reviews prominently featured on the front cover proclaiming it to be "Evocative and meaningful." and "A love song to the brain...combines flights of lyricism and autobiographical reflection with a cooler, more cerebral amalgam of science, anthropology, psychology, history, and literature." – I found this book to be a bit lightweight if not glancing and flimsy, coming across as more like a collection of loosely connected articles than a cohesive book.
I appreciate Ackerman's desire to pull from different disciplines and sources, all of which I usually adore, but it didn't seem novel, captivating or diverse. This could, perhaps, be because it was published in 2004, and in the intervening years the pertinent disciplines have no doubt progressed tremendously?
There were a couple of instances where Ackerman argues from a point of theory I thought had been disproved or amended, (left brain/right brain modality and the ratio of ADHD in males to females), but I could be quite mistaken. Of course, these kinds of instances may be inevitable and to be expected in an evolving and cutting-edge field.
All in all, I didn't care for the tone, the "flights of lyricism", the free-association, even the autobiographical components were cold and emotionless, mechanical and removed. One gets the sense that she's indulging herself in her writing – it's all quite odd.
I'm not completely deterred, I believe I may try out more of her books and writing.
I would liken this book to a brain, existing with all the necessary components to make it function, but lacking consciousness, lacking life.
With a title such as "An Alchemy of Mind: The Marvel and Mystery of the Brain", and with reviews prominently featured on the front cover proclaiming it to be "Evocative and meaningful." and "A love song to the brain...combines flights of lyricism and autobiographical reflection with a cooler, more cerebral amalgam of science, anthropology, psychology, history, and literature." – I found this book to be a bit lightweight if not glancing and flimsy, coming across as more like a collection of loosely connected articles than a cohesive book.
I appreciate Ackerman's desire to pull from different disciplines and sources, all of which I usually adore, but it didn't seem novel, captivating or diverse. This could, perhaps, be because it was published in 2004, and in the intervening years the pertinent disciplines have no doubt progressed tremendously?
There were a couple of instances where Ackerman argues from a point of theory I thought had been disproved or amended, (left brain/right brain modality and the ratio of ADHD in males to females), but I could be quite mistaken. Of course, these kinds of instances may be inevitable and to be expected in an evolving and cutting-edge field.
All in all, I didn't care for the tone, the "flights of lyricism", the free-association, even the autobiographical components were cold and emotionless, mechanical and removed. One gets the sense that she's indulging herself in her writing – it's all quite odd.
I'm not completely deterred, I believe I may try out more of her books and writing.
I would liken this book to a brain, existing with all the necessary components to make it function, but lacking consciousness, lacking life.
January 30, 2019
I had a difficult time getting deeply into this book. It’s not the kind of book that you pick up and cannot put down.
However, the prose is dense and beautiful, and it is so worth the time that you dedicate to reading it when you come cross passages like “They simply dream a different dream, probably much like the one we used to dream, before we crocheted into our neural circuitry the ability to think about thinking, know we know, know what we don’t know, guess what others are thinking, protect our feelings and others, assume others share our opinions, and talk about notions and behaviors”
This book will travel with me to the future, along with my very favorite, “A Natural History of the Senses,” which is by the same author.
This is a very important place for a book to be in my life, because with our nomadic, Foreign Service lifestyle, I have committed to only keeping those books I love, that may not be easy to find again in a library.
This is one of those books.
Now I would simply love to find the audio versions of both this book and “A Natural History of the Senses,” as both are best enjoyed aurally.
However, the prose is dense and beautiful, and it is so worth the time that you dedicate to reading it when you come cross passages like “They simply dream a different dream, probably much like the one we used to dream, before we crocheted into our neural circuitry the ability to think about thinking, know we know, know what we don’t know, guess what others are thinking, protect our feelings and others, assume others share our opinions, and talk about notions and behaviors”
This book will travel with me to the future, along with my very favorite, “A Natural History of the Senses,” which is by the same author.
This is a very important place for a book to be in my life, because with our nomadic, Foreign Service lifestyle, I have committed to only keeping those books I love, that may not be easy to find again in a library.
This is one of those books.
Now I would simply love to find the audio versions of both this book and “A Natural History of the Senses,” as both are best enjoyed aurally.
January 15, 2021
I love Diane Ackerman but this book was my least favorite of the 4 I've read from her so far. I feel her prose really sparkles when she's writing about direct observations and nature, and while the subject matter was definitely interesting, I didn't feel the tug of magic like I have in her other books. It might be because there was not much new information to me in this book. It was a pretty introductory overview of the human brain and how we behave because of the way it works. I did learn a handful of new things, was struck by several stunning insights, and I really enjoyed the chapter on language. But overall the book felt mostly redundant and I was glad to be done with it. I still think it was interesting and well-written, just didn't do as much for me personally as I had hoped.
October 2, 2023
Not too long after starting to read it, my first impression of the book's value became solid: this is no book to study the brain or mind by, but to share in another mind's experience of studying the brain and the mind.
And a beautiful exploration it was. Best thought of as a collection of interlinked essays, it nimbly juggles the familiar big questions about mind, self and consciousness with numerous anecdotes and observations from personal experience, as well as (not always all too rigourously interpreted, and sometimes outdated) citations from neurological research.
What Diane Ackerman has re-established for the so-manieth time, is that her effervescent mixture of curiosity, imagination and lyricism can render any subject into the stuff of poetry.
And a beautiful exploration it was. Best thought of as a collection of interlinked essays, it nimbly juggles the familiar big questions about mind, self and consciousness with numerous anecdotes and observations from personal experience, as well as (not always all too rigourously interpreted, and sometimes outdated) citations from neurological research.
What Diane Ackerman has re-established for the so-manieth time, is that her effervescent mixture of curiosity, imagination and lyricism can render any subject into the stuff of poetry.
January 26, 2023
My mother first bought me Natural History of Love in high school and I loved it. Though for some reason I am not a fan of her poetry, I do love Ackerman’s prose.
I also find I have to take a long time to read her books, as they are dense and rich. Because there are entire layers of experience Ackerman barely or rarely touches - oppression, power, etc - I don’t rank her books 5/5, as I find that really lacking. But I do find them very rich always and they are some of my most quoted and marked up titles in my library.
I also find I have to take a long time to read her books, as they are dense and rich. Because there are entire layers of experience Ackerman barely or rarely touches - oppression, power, etc - I don’t rank her books 5/5, as I find that really lacking. But I do find them very rich always and they are some of my most quoted and marked up titles in my library.
March 11, 2024
書中總共有七篇文章，講述透過人類演化的進程，打開大腦中的結構，深入研究及導出關於人類的行為、意圖、心理上的變化，分別是「奇幻祕境（演化）」、「理性的甜美夢想（自然的腦）」、「欲進展示館（記憶）」、「絕非沈悶的折磨（自我，與其他想像）」、「世界傷了其他人的心（情感）」、「話語的色彩（語言）」、「內心的曠野（我們共有的世界）；也歸類這三方面—氣味、記憶和愛欲。
關於作者所提及、分析的所有結果，都整理得非常仔細，使我能專心探索大腦的結構。不單有理論的基本支持，還有提及不同生物的行徑與生活模式，與人類作為一個對比，另外也嘗試以日常遭遇的事情作為活生生的例子，有助讀者更易明白當中所要解說的部分。現時為止，深信不同探究大腦、神經的科學家們，仍舊著迷於探索，即使天才愛因斯坦留下大腦也好，有部分無法以科學解讀，不過這無法阻礙相關學者的持續研究，將我們的片面認知不斷加深。關於人類的所有，其延伸性、創造力，往往成為人們會有所關注的焦點。
不得不好奇，不得不繼續探索，期待打開大腦的所有。
大腦裡所有的活動充滿著神秘，讓我著迷於其行徑與潛在意圖，沉浸在時間與記憶是蠻有趣的。花上好幾個星期來讀此書，再一次解構大腦，好不容易將此書的內容大致消化完畢。與已完讀的書本、講座、電影產生有趣的連結，於我而言的確是一個不錯的延續。
而且在腦中的每個運作、系統、程序、結構，比起電腦程式更要複雜，時常覺得能以一本書的厚度，以讀取研究者所得的成果、歸納及整理的完整資訊，的確蠻珍貴，深入研究的每個小細節多麼的令人著迷，繼續珍惜手上每本書，都是最好的寶藏。
關於作者所提及、分析的所有結果，都整理得非常仔細，使我能專心探索大腦的結構。不單有理論的基本支持，還有提及不同生物的行徑與生活模式，與人類作為一個對比，另外也嘗試以日常遭遇的事情作為活生生的例子，有助讀者更易明白當中所要解說的部分。現時為止，深信不同探究大腦、神經的科學家們，仍舊著迷於探索，即使天才愛因斯坦留下大腦也好，有部分無法以科學解讀，不過這無法阻礙相關學者的持續研究，將我們的片面認知不斷加深。關於人類的所有，其延伸性、創造力，往往成為人們會有所關注的焦點。
不得不好奇，不得不繼續探索，期待打開大腦的所有。
大腦裡所有的活動充滿著神秘，讓我著迷於其行徑與潛在意圖，沉浸在時間與記憶是蠻有趣的。花上好幾個星期來讀此書，再一次解構大腦，好不容易將此書的內容大致消化完畢。與已完讀的書本、講座、電影產生有趣的連結，於我而言的確是一個不錯的延續。
而且在腦中的每個運作、系統、程序、結構，比起電腦程式更要複雜，時常覺得能以一本書的厚度，以讀取研究者所得的成果、歸納及整理的完整資訊，的確蠻珍貴，深入研究的每個小細節多麼的令人著迷，繼續珍惜手上每本書，都是最好的寶藏。
Read
May 16, 2023Fascinating.
"Unlike precision instruments brains do not need to be accurate all the time. Good enough often enough will do, even if that means skimping, doubling up, or sheer gamble. A limber brain is a successful brain, however sloppy. A precision brain is a computer. A perfect brain doesn't exist."
I can't wait to tell my husband he is right. He love to use the word "adequate" about many things. I now know why.
"Unlike precision instruments brains do not need to be accurate all the time. Good enough often enough will do, even if that means skimping, doubling up, or sheer gamble. A limber brain is a successful brain, however sloppy. A precision brain is a computer. A perfect brain doesn't exist."
I can't wait to tell my husband he is right. He love to use the word "adequate" about many things. I now know why.
December 28, 2018
While Ackerman can write beautiful phrases, this book didn’t hang together for me. Entirely too...what. Philosophical maybe, but without great substance. Way too many metaphors and similes flying about. It’s like that one old hippie at the party. “The mind, man. It’s, like far out...” Give me the science without all the ephemera. This is in the pile to give away. Annoying.
June 19, 2019
I really liked this book. It is a random, flowery, skimming of humanness opening my mind to fresh questions to daydream about. My favorite topic was that of language as she bore testimony of Shakespeare's brilliance, I realized she probably attempted to emulate him in her metaphoric writing style, but she's a scientist, so it makes for an interesting writing style!
abandoned
December 27, 2019I read just the beginning of this book (as well as another book of Diane Ackerman's) before having to return it to the library, and life circumstances have made it so it hasn't come back into my possession. But one thing I recall: something about how humans are the only species to be able to imagine and then long for the impossible. I've referenced that thought many times over the years.
January 30, 2021
“「心靈是它自己的美麗俘虜。」因為心靈就是物質，因此我們精心構思，因而舉足輕重。”
這是一本包裹著神經科學外皮的文學作品，它讀起來不像一般科普書籍那樣艱澀、更多的是卓越的文字描述及作者天馬行空的聯想。書名寫做”詩篇”，內容真的狠濕😎😋
本書探討大腦是如何演變成我們的心智，譜出我們日常的心靈幻想曲。
中文書名《氣味、記憶與愛欲》，但這只是本書的其中一個小章節，氣味和愛欲並不是本書的重點，著墨的也很少。 原書名An Alchemy of Mind, 直譯心靈的煉金術，比較符合本書想討論的，大腦變成心智的過程。
（想了解愛欲的人，可以去看液態之愛。😂）
💊我們是否真的只是完全出自於對自我的想像？
💊我們的意識又是從何而來？
提幾個有趣的章節💡
🧠大腦的藝術
大腦並非完全不能改變，它主要的功能在於分析且崇尚嚴謹的邏輯，但大腦不是借用邏輯來推理，而是藉由把事物和環境串連起來，過程包括了突如其來的力量及事件。
我們也許知道brain和mind這兩個詞之間的差異性。
大腦並非心智，心智棲息在大腦之中。心智是大腦想像出的鏡花水月，是一種經驗，而非實體。 心智不只侷限在大腦之中，它能反映出身體的感官感覺，並受體內各種激素的調控。
我們的大腦渴望長生不死，但萬物一生終有其極限，所以大腦便編造了它們無法到達的完美狀態。
🧠思想的形狀
我們大腦裡大約有一千億個神經元，每一個神經元可以聆聽一萬個訊息。它們在心智的叢林裡生長，兩個神經元間的空間為突觸間隙(synaptic cleft)，這是塊狹小的液體空間，腦中的一切運作(溝通)，都仰賴這個活潑的空間。
大腦是藉充實舊細胞來學習，而非生出新細胞。它能夠把源源不斷的感官資訊給簡化，壓縮到能夠處理的數量，若感官沒有提供任何資訊，它也會自行想像。 地球上大部分的生物(動植物）即便沒有大腦，也能活得很好，不過這也關乎牠們是否會遷移，若動物本身要進行長途旅行的話，牠們的大腦就必須大到足以描繪變化萬千的世界，以便當我們隨著世界改變，就能夠提供我們連貫的感覺及媒介。
🧠心靈的火花（記憶）
作者形容「靜謐的記憶像地質般，堅實真確，是意識的岩床。」 好地科的譬喻呀！
沒有記憶，我們就不知道自己是誰，過去又是什麼。我們是自我記憶的總和，若篡改了記憶，我們會不認得自己。 但記憶並非像照相機、隨身碟那般，而是更有創造力的東西。它重情調而非事實，是一直在發展的”想像”。 記憶不僅描述了現在，而在回憶的那剎那也同樣真實，包括你所有的感受、體驗，人一生中所發生的種種傷慟，皆會影響我們重塑記憶的方式。
🧠自我及其想像
「我」的定義究竟是什麼？
我們是混合而來的。自我是心智變出的花招，它源自在突觸上彼此溝通傳遞訊息的千億個神經元。
由意識、前意識及潛意識結合在一起，揉合了一堆衝動和情緒，像萬花筒般千變萬化，並吞噬了所有的感官和知覺。 自我的狀態時時刻刻都在變化，大腦大部分的活動出自於體內，在心靈劇場、內心的獨白及記憶之中。
我們的腦之所以靈活，主要源自於新的連結，而非來自新產生的細胞，它一邊保持原狀，另一邊卻得有改變的能力。
-
「我們是我們無法了解的事物。」
我們是否為地球出現生命現象以來唯一有意識的生物呢？
時至今日，腦依舊是未知的領域，不過也有越來越多科學家開始描繪它的藍圖，理解它的奧妙。 我們已經能從腦部造影技術，窺探心理變態的大腦運作😂，但我們仍舊無法真正解開心智的謎底。Hopkins曾說：腦有「無人可測」、教人暈眩的心靈懸崖。是啊，身體經常能獲得滿足，但心智，永遠不能。
這是一本包裹著神經科學外皮的文學作品，它讀起來不像一般科普書籍那樣艱澀、更多的是卓越的文字描述及作者天馬行空的聯想。書名寫做”詩篇”，內容真的狠濕😎😋
本書探討大腦是如何演變成我們的心智，譜出我們日常的心靈幻想曲。
中文書名《氣味、記憶與愛欲》，但這只是本書的其中一個小章節，氣味和愛欲並不是本書的重點，著墨的也很少。 原書名An Alchemy of Mind, 直譯心靈的煉金術，比較符合本書想討論的，大腦變成心智的過程。
（想了解愛欲的人，可以去看液態之愛。😂）
💊我們是否真的只是完全出自於對自我的想像？
💊我們的意識又是從何而來？
提幾個有趣的章節💡
🧠大腦的藝術
大腦並非完全不能改變，它主要的功能在於分析且崇尚嚴謹的邏輯，但大腦不是借用邏輯來推理，而是藉由把事物和環境串連起來，過程包括了突如其來的力量及事件。
我們也許知道brain和mind這兩個詞之間的差異性。
大腦並非心智，心智棲息在大腦之中。心智是大腦想像出的鏡花水月，是一種經驗，而非實體。 心智不只侷限在大腦之中，它能反映出身體的感官感覺，並受體內各種激素的調控。
我們的大腦渴望長生不死，但萬物一生終有其極限，所以大腦便編造了它們無法到達的完美狀態。
🧠思想的形狀
我們大腦裡大約有一千億個神經元，每一個神經元可以聆聽一萬個訊息。它們在心智的叢林裡生長，兩個神經元間的空間為突觸間隙(synaptic cleft)，這是塊狹小的液體空間，腦中的一切運作(溝通)，都仰賴這個活潑的空間。
大腦是藉充實舊細胞來學習，而非生出新細胞。它能夠把源源不斷的感官資訊給簡化，壓縮到能夠處理的數量，若感官沒有提供任何資訊，它也會自行想像。 地球上大部分的生物(動植物）即便沒有大腦，也能活得很好，不過這也關乎牠們是否會遷移，若動物本身要進行長途旅行的話，牠們的大腦就必須大到足以描繪變化萬千的世界，以便當我們隨著世界改變，就能夠提供我們連貫的感覺及媒介。
🧠心靈的火花（記憶）
作者形容「靜謐的記憶像地質般，堅實真確，是意識的岩床。」 好地科的譬喻呀！
沒有記憶，我們就不知道自己是誰，過去又是什麼。我們是自我記憶的總和，若篡改了記憶，我們會不認得自己。 但記憶並非像照相機、隨身碟那般，而是更有創造力的東西。它重情調而非事實，是一直在發展的”想像”。 記憶不僅描述了現在，而在回憶的那剎那也同樣真實，包括你所有的感受、體驗，人一生中所發生的種種傷慟，皆會影響我們重塑記憶的方式。
🧠自我及其想像
「我」的定義究竟是什麼？
我們是混合而來的。自我是心智變出的花招，它源自在突觸上彼此溝通傳遞訊息的千億個神經元。
由意識、前意識及潛意識結合在一起，揉合了一堆衝動和情緒，像萬花筒般千變萬化，並吞噬了所有的感官和知覺。 自我的狀態時時刻刻都在變化，大腦大部分的活動出自於體內，在心靈劇場、內心的獨白及記憶之中。
我們的腦之所以靈活，主要源自於新的連結，而非來自新產生的細胞，它一邊保持原狀，另一邊卻得有改變的能力。
-
「我們是我們無法了解的事物。」
我們是否為地球出現生命現象以來唯一有意識的生物呢？
時至今日，腦依舊是未知的領域，不過也有越來越多科學家開始描繪它的藍圖，理解它的奧妙。 我們已經能從腦部造影技術，窺探心理變態的大腦運作😂，但我們仍舊無法真正解開心智的謎底。Hopkins曾說：腦有「無人可測」、教人暈眩的心靈懸崖。是啊，身體經常能獲得滿足，但心智，永遠不能。
May 8, 2025
Diane Ackerman a sciencey poet
Often above my head, but right into my heart. I was thrilled to find this at a book swap and brought it with me when I ended up that day in the hospital with a TIA. Daughter found it and LAUGHED (through tears.) It took me months, but I’ve finished it and I know it helped get me through.
Often above my head, but right into my heart. I was thrilled to find this at a book swap and brought it with me when I ended up that day in the hospital with a TIA. Daughter found it and LAUGHED (through tears.) It took me months, but I’ve finished it and I know it helped get me through.
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