Synopses & Reviews
Now in its second edition,
Brain Architecture is the continued exploration of how the brain works. At the very core of our existence, the brain generates our thoughts and feelings, directs our voluntary interactions with the environment, and coordinates all of the vital functions within the body itself. This long-overdue new edition explains this oftentimes daunting intricacy and exquisite detail.
The first half of the book discusses the basic parts and how they work, presenting an overview of the nervous system at both the microscopic and macroscopic levels. The approach follows three classic lines of thought that proceed from simple to complex: the history of neuroscience research, the evolution of the nervous system, and the embryological development of the vertebrate central and peripheral nervous systems.
The second half of the book outlines the basic wiring diagram of the brain and nervous system-how the parts are interconnected and how they control behavior and the internal state of the body. This is done within the framework of a new four-system network model that greatly simplifies understanding the structure-function organization of the nervous system.
Written in clear and sparkling prose, beautifully illustrated, and thoroughly updated, Brain Architecture, Second Edition is must-read for anyone interested in the science of how the brain works.
Review
"This short book deserves wide readership. It could serve both as a general introduction for the undergraduate and as a means to wide one's horizon for the experienced researcher." -- Jan Voogd in Science
"I was pleasantly surprised by the comparative and evolutionary approach used to introduce the major concepts, and I was drawn in by the historical context in which the story is told...a clearly written and logically organized overview of the major functional subdivisions of the vertebrate nervous system...Swanson's writing style and his ability to present complicated systems and relationships will make this book particularly accessible to students, and generally useful to anyone interested in the neurosciences...commendable job distilling the essential principles from an exceptionally complex subject, making the brevity of this book one of its greatest strengths." -- Kenneth C. Catania in Nature Neuroscience
"Larry Swanson, one of the great contemporary students of brain anatomy, has given us a broad overview of the structure and function of the brain using insights from embryology and from evolutionary comparison to highlight the principles that govern the anatomical substrates of behavior. This book will be read avidly by both students and practicing scientists." -- Eric R. Kandel, MD, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Columbia University, Nobel Laureate in Physiology or Medicine
"Neuroanatomy is usually associated with boring memorization and dense terminology. But Swanson has brought the subject to life by focusing on the principles that underlie brain structure and function. These principles, illuminated by an historical perspective and placed in an evolutionary context, actually constitute a theory of brain. This book's logical organization, intellectual sweep, and clear writing made it a joy for me to read." -- Charles F. Stevens, MD, PhD, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, The Salk Institute for Biological Sciences
"Efforts to generate a comprehensive wiring diagram of the mammalian brain have been propelled, in part, by the renewed realization that brain architecture holds a structural key to the understanding of behavior. Larry Swanson's new edition of 'Brain Architecture' provides us with a consummate master class in the principles of brain structure and its links to behavior. Swanson is one of today's pre-eminent neuroanatomists and in these pages he conveys, with remarkable clarity and precision, the basic features of brain organization - from the simple networks that direct stereotypic invertebrate behaviors to the complex logic of cortical columnar units. Simply put, this book will serve as an essential companion for all students of brain function, whether molecular or psychological in affinity." -- Thomas M. Jessell, PhD, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY
"The new Brain Architecture: Understanding the Basic Plan by Larry Swanson, interprets for us how come the brain is organized the way it is. The book is written with phenomenal insight from the perspective of both structure and function and it also incorporates the historic dimension of neuroscience. It is a pleasure to read and it contains information of great value not only for the undergraduate but also the experienced neuroscientist." -- Prof. Sten Grillner, Nobel Institute for Neurophysiology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
"Larry Swanson paints on a broad canvas of brain structure and function that spreads across the historical development of ideas, through evolutionary, genetic and comparative issues to modern investigations of neural connectivity, in which he is a leading expert. He exhibits a remarkable range of knowledge that results in a refreshingly modern synthesis of neural organization, accessible to readers at all levels." -- Edward G. Jones, MD, PhD, Center for Neuroscience, University of California, Davis, CA
"In this era of information explosion it is sometimes difficult to keep track of the big questions. In Neuroscience in particular, this is a time of great excitement with an onslaught of new techniques and new data but, at the same time, of great conceptual confusion. Swanson's book is a remarkable effort to "put it all together" and provide a roadmap for what the nervous system could be doing, based on the structural design of the brain. His clear thinking and writing goes a long way in providing a general framework with which to interpret current data. In addition, he also brings in a unique historical perspective, which helps ground even more our basic assumptions and understand where they came from. I use this text in my undergraduate seminar and would consider it required reading for all students of neural circuits." -- Rafael Yuste, MD, PhD, HHMI, Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University, New York, NY
Synopsis
Now in its second edition,
Brain Architecture is the continued exploration of how the brain works. It summarizes traditional views about brain structure-function organization clearly and comprehensively and elaborates a new four system network model of nervous system organization. Thoroughly updated and refreshingly clear, this is a must-read for anyone interested in the science of how the brain works.
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About the Author
Larry W. Swanson, PhD, is Milo Don and Lucille Appleman Professor of Biological Sciences at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, CA. Dr. Swanson has published over 250 research articles and numerous books on brain organization, and is a member of National Academy of Sciences, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the Grolier Club.
Table of Contents
Preface to First Edition
1. Thinking about the Brain: Body and Mind
2. How the Brain Works: History, Structure and Function
3. The Simplest Nervous Systems: Neurons, Nerve Nets, and Behavior
4. Centralization and Symmetry: Ganglia and Nerves
5. The Basic Vertebrate Plan: Transverse Divisions
6. Neurogenesis: Longitudinal Divisions, Parts List, and Adult Flatmap
7. Brain and Behavior: A Four Systems Network Model
8. The Motor System: Coordinating External and Internal Behaviors
9. The Behavioral State System: Intrinsic Control of Sleep and Wakefulness
10. The Cognitive System: Thinking and Voluntary Control of Behavior
11. The Sensory System: Inputs from Environment and Body
12. Modifiability: Learning, Stress, Cycles, and Damage Repair
13. Genome and Connectome