The Brain

April 16, 2012
In conjunction with the exhibition Brain: The Inside Story, American Museum of Natural History curators DeSalle and Tattersall (the duo behind Human Origins: What Bones and Genomes Tell Us About Ourselves) provide an engaging and complex examination of the development of the human brain throughout its evolutionary history. The "human brain's being the hugely creative and simultaneously both logical and irrational organ that it is," the authors are comfortable using references ranging from YouTube to detailed explanations of ionotropic glutamate receptors. The first three chapters, "The Nature of Science: Our Brains at Work," "The Nitty-Gritty of the Nervous System," and "Hanging Our Brains on the Tree of Life," feature diagrams of scientific concepts and phylogenetic trees, as well as cogent illustrated analogies, as when DeSalle and Tattersall show that an increased sample size of pennies greatly decreases the probability of flipping all heads or all tails. As the book builds upon itselfâlike the layering of cells in a fish cortexâlay readers will likely get bogged down in technical information. However, in the chapter "Decisions, Behaviors, and Beliefs," the authors hit their stride, focusing on human neuropsychology, "The First Cosmopolitan Hominid," and "The Emergence of Modern Behavior." Given the enormity of their subject, DeSalle and Tattersall maintain an admirably consistent level of enthusiasm, but the fact remains that the brainâand this textâare incredibly complicated entities.

Starred review from May 1, 2012

Inspired by the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) exhibit in New York City, Brain: the Inside Story, this book guides readers through a remarkable exploration of evolution that incorporates physical and behavioral ancestral records, compares the human brain's evolution to that of other mammals and organisms, and describes how sensory perception engages the nervous system, influencing brain development and evolution. In examining the brain's molecular responses, reflexive reactions, emotional responses, and memory, DeSalle (curator, Sackler Inst. for Comparative Genomics, AMNH) and Tattersall (curator, emeritus, anthropology, AMNH) use clear examples from the exhibit as well as humor. They cover the impact of language and linguistic development, the visual system, the hominid's use of tools, the development of complex social communities, and the importance of a diet enriched by animal fat and protein in enlarging the hominid brain. VERDICT Superbly written and well researched, this is a welcome addition to the popular neuroscience canon. It will appeal to those interested in human evolution, anthropology, brain evolution, and human consciousness. Highly recommended.--Candice A. Kail, Columbia Univ., New York

Copyright 2012 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.