Great Myths of the Brain

The brain has never been subject to such intense scrutiny, barely a day passes without a newspaper splashing the results of the latest brain scan study purporting to reveal the neurological location of happiness, love, rage, or any number of human emotions. Yet for all of the gains in our understanding of brain function credited to scientific research, there is a growing body of hype and misinformation about how the brain works. Great Myths of the Brain presents a comprehensive examination of myths surrounding the function of the human brain. Cognitive neuroscience expert Christian Jarrett takes on well over 50 myths associated with brain function—from those based on falsehoods or partial truths to ones cloaked in scientific language. Jarrett first explores general myths, such as the idea that we only use 10 per cent of our brains, or that adults can’t grow new brain cells. He then goes on to address a variety of more contemporary issues, including technological myths (can brain scans really read your mind?); structural myths, including the recent hype around mirror neurons; perceptual myths, including the idea that you perceive the world as it really is; and a variety of contemporary myths swirling around brain disorders—including epilepsy, autism, and dementia. Illuminating and insightful, Great Myths of the Brain takes some of the mystery out of the most mysterious and complex organ in the human body.

Christian Jarrett has a PhD in Cognitive Neuroscience from the University of Manchester. He is editor of the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest ; author of the Brain Watch blog for WIRED; a blogger for Psychology Today ; and columnist for 99U, the New York–based creativity think tank. Dr. Jarrett is also the author of The Rough Guide to Psychology (2011) and editor of 30 Second Psychology (Icon Books)