Brain bytes : quick answers to quirky questions about the brain

Chudler, Eric H. (author.). Johnson, Lise A., (author.).

Summary: "In Brain Bytes, neuroscience educators Eric Chudler and Lise Johnson get right to it, asking and answering more than one hundred questions about the brain. Questions include: Does size matter (do humans have the largest brains)? Can foods make people smarter? Does surfing online kill brain cells? Why do we dream? Why can't I tickle myself? Why do cats like catnip? Why do we yawn and why are yawns contagious? What can I do to keep my brain healthy? Whether you are interested in serious topics like the history of neuroscience or practical topics like brain health or fun topics like popular culture, this book is sure to provide your brain with some piece of information it didn't have before."--Back cover.

Record details

ISBN: 9780393711448
ISBN: 0393711447
Physical Description: print
xv, 311 pages : illustrations ; 19 cm
Edition: First edition.
Publisher: New York : W.W. Norton & Company, [2017]

Content descriptions

Bibliography, etc. Note:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Formatted Contents Note:

Did people really believe that the bumps on a person's head would say something about a person's intelligence and personaligy? -- How did scientists learn that nerve cells used chemical messages? -- Why does the brain have so many folds? -- Are there foods that make you smarter? -- Does watching TV, playing video games, or surfing the Internet kill brain cells? -- Is memory like a tape recorder, flash drive, or hard drive? -- Can memories be implanted? -- Why can't I remember being a baby? -- Can you learn while you're asleep? -- What is sleepwalking? -- What is phantom limb pain? -- What is synesthesia? -- What causes colorblindness? -- How does LSD cause hallucinations? -- What animals have venom that attacks the nervous system? -- Why do we use only 10 percent of the brain? -- Does the brain work like a computer? -- What is the relationship between the mind and the brain? -- Are brain transplants possible? -- What is a cochlear implant? -- What is prion disease? -- Do vaccines cause autism? -- Why do people get Down syndrome? -- What is a frontal lobotomy, and why was it performed? -- What can I do to keep my brain healthy? -- Why do I sneeze when I walk into bright sunlight? -- Why don't woodpeckers get headaches?