The Changing Brain: Alzheimer's Disease and Advances in Neuroscience (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780195156973)

In The Changing Brain, Ira Black tells the fascinating story of modern neuroscience. A rich, multifaceted tale spanning a century and taking place on multiple continents, it moves from Fascist Italy, with the discovery of nerve growth factor (NGF) by a young scientist working secretly in a makeshift laboratory in her bedroom, to current experiments in which transplanted, laboratory-grown cells lead to recovery and function in damaged brain regions. In the mid 1990s, a revolutionary new conception of the brain emerged--instead of the traditional view that the brain's role in perception, memory, learning, and emotions was based on a static, non-renewable network of brain cells and connections, research revealed that the human brain is an ever-changing, fantastically complex system that is continually being shaped and reshaped by a subtle interplay of genetic clues and life experiences.

To bridge the gap between abstract concepts and real-world experience, Dr. Black draws upon his expertise as a clinical neurologist to provide a dramatic account--the fictionalized story of a successful investment banker named Enoch Wallace and his battle with Alzheimer's disease--that vividly illuminates the narrative. From his first fleeting memory lapses to his final descent into dementia, each step in Wallace's decline becomes a window into another aspect of brain function and the latest groundbreaking research in neuroscience.

Author: Ira B. Black
ISBN-10: 0195156978
ISBN-13: 9780195156973
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Language: English
Published: 11/28/2002
Pages: 272
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.78lbs
Size: 8.50h x 6.70w x 0.73d