Two Heads
A Graphic Exploration of How Our Brains Work with Other Brains
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- $14.99
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
This “charming and addictively accessible introduction to neuroscience” (Steven Pinker) takes us on a highly entertaining tour through the wonders and mysteries of the human brain—from a renowned husband-and-wife team of cognitive neuroscientists.
Professors and husband-and-wife team Uta and Chris Frith have pioneered major studies of brain disorders throughout their nearly fifty-year career. Here, in this “pleasing mix of wonder, genial humor, and humility” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review), they tell the compelling story of the birth of neuroscience and their paradigm-shifting discoveries across areas as wide-ranging as autism and schizophrenia research, and new frontiers of social cognition including diversity, prejudice, confidence, collaboration, and empathy.
Working with their son Alex Frith and artist Daniel Locke, the Friths delve into a wide range of complex concepts and explain them with humor and clarity. You’ll learn what it means to be a “social species,” explore what happens when we gather in groups, and discover how people behave in pairs—when we’re pitted against each other, versus when we work together. Is it better to surround yourself with people who are similar to yourself, or different? And, are two heads really better than one?
Highly original and ingeniously illustrated, Two Heads is a “magical book...[and] a fantastically fun way to learn about the brain, the mind, and the lives of two of the world’s most brilliant scientists” (Sarah-Jayne Blakemore, author of Inventing Ourselves).
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Neuroscientists Uta and Chris Frith team up with their children's book author son Alex (100 Things to Know About Space) and artist Daniel Locke (Out of Nothing) to construct this comprehensive graphic guide to the workings of the brain, covering topics spanning autism to the psychology of game theory. Uta and Chris chaperone the reader through opaque mysteries of academia, explicating a range of experiments and case studies on different aspects of how the mind operates. In particular, they focus on the ways people's minds interact with one another and the world around them. For example, the truism that "we copy those we like because we want to be liked" is bolstered by evidence that copying is efficient learning not only for human and animal brains, but also machine learning. It's chock-full of science facts and delves into issues such as bias in academic research and mental disorders. Personal anecdotes wind a path through dense topics made accessible for general readers. The art style, however, skews picture book and sometimes feels flat. Though the presentation leaves something to be desired, the work overall has the feel of being invited to dinner with a friend's eccentric genius parents: there are some awkward moments, but readers will learn much by the last course.
