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Rhythms of the Brain
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Product Description
Studies of mechanisms in the brain that allow complicated things to happen in a coordinated fashion have produced some of the most spectacular discoveries in neuroscience. This book provides eloquent support for the idea that spontaneous neuron activity, far from being mere noise, is actually the source of our cognitive abilities. It takes a fresh look at the co-evolution of structure and function in the mammalian brain, illustrating how self-emerged oscillatory timing is the brains fundamental organizer of neuronal information. The small world-like connectivity of the cerebral cortex allows for global computation on multiple spatial and temporal scales. The perpetual interactions among the multiple network oscillators keep cortical systems in a highly sensitive metastable state and provide energy-efficient synchronizing mechanisms via weak links.
In a sequence of cycles, Gyorgy Buzsaki guides the reader from the physics of oscillations through neuronal assembly organization to complex cognitive processing and memory storage. His clear, fluid writing accessible to any reader with some scientific knowledge is supplemented by extensive footnotes and references that make it just as gratifying and instructive a read for the specialist. The coherent view of a single author who has been at the forefront of research in this exciting field, this volume is essential reading for anyone interested in our rapidly evolving understanding of the brain.
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #51808 in Books
- Published on: 2006-08-03
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Binding: Hardcover
- 464 pages
Editorial Reviews
Review
"Gyorgy Buzsaki's Rhythms of the Brain is an excellent compendium on the rapidly expanding research into the mechanisms and functions of neuronal synchronization. Buzsaki presents such synchronization as a binding glue that integrates many levels of neuroscientific investigation with one another and with neighboring disciplines...Buzsaki manages to elegantly integrate insights from physics, engineering, and cognitive psychology with contributions from cellular, systems, cognitive, and theoretical neuroscience."--Science
"This is definitely an intriguing book that provides a comprehensive review of current knowledge on brain rhythms...this book is worth the time."--Doody's
"In Rhythms of the Brain, Gyorgy Buzsaki does a remarkable job of summarizing a vast body of literature on the topic...The book is a 'must read' for anyone interested in understanding the functioning of large and complex brain circuits."--Nature
"What makes this book so valuable is its range; Buzsaki has a worldly intellect, open to information from any discipline that provides insight, while insisting on a rigorous distinction between fact and baloney...Perhaps the greatest value of Rhythms of the Brain is that it provides a starting point for students and scientists who see the importance of this field and want to get a solid overview."--Nature Neuroscience
"In this entertaining monograph the author addresses issues related to the genesis of brain rhythms and their contribution to the "invisible operations of the brain"...one of the most thought-provoking and fun books in neuroscience that I have read in some time."--Mathematical Reviews
"Highly original exposition of a broad swathe of modern neuroscience. Indeed, it brings together so many apparently disparate strands, and levels on the reductionistic scale, that it deserves a must read score, especially for neuroscientists looking to get an up-to-date and challenging exposition of many of the big questions, even if they are not fundamentally interested in oscillations per se...If sharp wave ripples, associated with consummatory behavior in rodents, have the same connotations in humans, they too will likely occur in the readers brain as a reward for the attention this book deserves."--Neuron
"The book is beautifully written...This book is seriously recommended for those who truly wonder about the brain and its function."--Neuroscience
About the Author
Gyorgy Buzsaki is a Board of Governors Professor of Neuroscience at Rutgers University. His primary research interests are in brain oscillations, sleep and memory, and with more than 200 papers published on these topics, he is among the top 250 most-cited neuroscientists. Dr. Buzsaki is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and honorary member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, and he sits on the editorial boards of several leading neuroscience journals.
Customer Reviews
If you have not read it, for our own brain health, just do!
Really hard to find something like it (Nunez, Eccles and Shepherd work is some how on that level), and almost impossible to find a better one. A classic neuroscience work!
Complete book
Nearly every brain oscillation is discussed, and importantly, the descriptions are very detailed, ad aided by numerous footnotes and useful references. I recommend this book to anyone interested in brain waves, their interactions, functions and their possible origins.
Also a word of warning: despite, or perhaps because of the completeness of the text, the book may not be very reader-friendly in some places: Full understanding of new theories or topics may require additional reading of the references, chiefly in chapter 11 and 12. Also, everyone I know who read this book took a pretty long time reading it through. In a way, it is not so much an explanation as it is a reference book.
If you have not read other books dealing with this subject, I recommend reading 'A Universe Of Consciousness' by Edelman and Tononi, first.
Like the brain itself
The Buzsaki book on brain rhythms is a marvellous tour of neuroscience from the cellular through the behavioural to the wisely hypothetical. The concepts are presented in loops and cycles, with deep foot-notes, analogous to the brain mechanisms Buzsaki so clearly and entertainingly describes. Again, modelling brain processes themselves, Buzsaki has interacted with colleagues from many disciplines outside biology to emerge with succinct accounts of neural mechanisms.
Particularly enjoyable in this content-packed book, is that Buzsaki incorporates historical gems to acknowledge the origins of many of the fundamental ideas.
In the course of a few months, this book has become my most thumbed and dog-eared neuroscience reference.
