Groping around a familiar room in the dark, or learning to read again after a traumatic brain injury; navigating a virtual landscape through an avatar, or envisioning a scene through the eyes of a character—all of these are expressions of one fundamental property of life, Alain Berthoz argues. They are instances of vicariance, when the brain sidesteps an impasse by substituting one process or function for another. In The Vicarious Brain, Creator of Worlds, Berthoz shows that this capacity is the foundation of the human ability to think creatively and function in a complex world.
Vicariousness is often associated with proxies and delegates, but it also refers to a biological process in which a healthy organ takes over for a defective counterpart. Berthoz, a neuroscientist, approaches vicariance through neuronal networks, asking how, for example, a blind person can develop a heightened sense of touch. He also describes how our brains model physical reality and how we use these models to understand things that are foreign to us. Forging across disciplinary boundaries, he explores notions of the vicarious in paleontology, ethology, art, literature, and psychology.
Through an absorbing examination of numerous facets of vicariance, Berthoz reveals its impact on an individual’s daily decision making and, more broadly, on the brain’s creation of worlds. As our personal and social lives are transformed by virtual realities, it is more crucial than ever before that we understand vicariance within our increasingly complex environment, and as an aspect of our own multiplying identities.
Le informazioni nella sezione "Riassunto" possono far riferimento a edizioni diverse di questo titolo.
Le informazioni nella sezione "Su questo libro" possono far riferimento a edizioni diverse di questo titolo.
Spese di spedizione:
EUR 4,63
In U.S.A.
Descrizione libro Hardciover. Condizione: New. Condizione sovraccoperta: New. First Printing. 215pp. Translator by Giselle Weiss. Photos on request. Size: 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Codice articolo 089299
Descrizione libro Condizione: New. Codice articolo 26679296-n
Descrizione libro Condizione: New. Buy with confidence! Book is in new, never-used condition. Codice articolo bk0674088956xvz189zvxnew
Descrizione libro Condizione: New. New! This book is in the same immaculate condition as when it was published. Codice articolo 353-0674088956-new
Descrizione libro Hardback or Cased Book. Condizione: New. Vicarious Brain, Creator of Worlds 0.8. Book. Codice articolo BBS-9780674088955
Descrizione libro Condizione: New. Codice articolo ABLIING23Feb2416190096871
Descrizione libro HRD. Condizione: New. New Book. Shipped from UK. Established seller since 2000. Codice articolo WH-9780674088955
Descrizione libro Hardcover. Condizione: new. Codice articolo 9780674088955
Descrizione libro hardback. Condizione: New. Language: ENG. Codice articolo 9780674088955
Descrizione libro Condizione: New. Codice articolo I-9780674088955