Mina Herz > Recent Status Updates

It’s the most ambitious thing of Berlin’s I read, so far. He’s put into words lots of things that only have existing within myself as swirling sensations

This is such an annoying feature. Does this count as a review?

Okay, I love this book, but what is it? It’s half self help and half philosophical treatise. Both are good, but could be separate books

Tolstoy in many ways is the quintessential Russian. A real profound spiritual sensitivity, and a burning hole in his heart, which he was desperate to fill with the truth.
Both this and his diaries really indulge you how neurotic he was, and how the temptation of suicide never fully left his mind.

Set in Kursk - also South Russia, about a ten hour drive from Rostov

This is a good book. My problem with most self help books is they spend 90% talking about WHY a particular thing is important, and the negative consequences of neglecting said important thing, without actually giving any actionable guidance on how to improve said thing. (Eg: Matthew Walker’s book on Sleep). This isn’t like that

Love this bloke

Not very sophisticated, although perhaps would like to think it is - full of cliches but all fundamentally true

Any neuroscience book that opens with a piece of quantum physics gets my seal of approval

An incredibly interesting book, that attempts the ambitious task of connecting neuroscience with affectivity, and yet does so brilliantly.

In terms of readability - realistically, its going to be a slog for anyone without some science background, and indeed there are points where you can tell the author is almost trying to pull himself back from delving into more specialist points.

Loving this so far. Couldn't get into this at first, because its a bit unstructured and rambly at points, but it really is fantastic. Can't tear myself away from it.


Also - the behaviouralists have really impoverished our understanding of neuroscience.

Loving this so far. Couldn't get into this at first, because its a bit unstructured and rambly at points, but it really is fantastic. Can't tear myself away from it.


Also - the behaviouralists have really impoverished our understanding of neuroscience.

A wonderful and staggering book that I'm really enjoying so far.

Just sublime.

I have the impression that the author was maligned by his peers (and wrongly) and the way it bleeds into the text is quite amusing but can be a bit jolting at times. Although perhaps fitting in a book based on the mind brain interface

Gives Freud his due credit tbh. Freud was wrong on the repression point of dreams, but he was working with what information he has. He was correct on the emotional salience point

Leader is truly his best when writing about the two sexes. Really glorious. I’ve stopped reading his book on sleep for now