A Short Review of the Book "The Brain That Changes Itself"

I loved this one for several reasons which I want other readers to explore. Best book to understand the basics of Brain Science.

The book is about plasticity of the brain, which in yesteryears believed to be fixed and unchanging. The book accumulated various stories from laboratories and personal triumphs to support its point and which are really convincing. For example, how a blind man has other heightened senses, the reason for that is other cortices for reception are using visual cortex now and hence sharpened responses. At the micro level there was a huge shift in brain chemistry as millions of new neuronal connections were made. There are numerous experiments conducted on animals, mentioned in detail in the book, which unveil the magical powers of brain in changing itself and adapt to almost anything. The fascinating stories of stroke victims with zero mobility recovered and started living a normal life; and that of mentally impaired people with verbal and processing difficulties improved tenfold and other shocking stories in the same vein will render you speechless. The book tells you how to break free from old habits by giving a comprehensive insight into competitive plasticity which surrounds two themes: “neurons that fire together wire together” and “use it or lose it.” One thing which is astonishing for people like me, raised in the book is that we are not the product of our genes; what is coded in our DNA has much to do with our choice. Our behavior and social aspects can alter our gene. Later, the book proffered amazing techniques to sharpen mental faculties and how to combat Dementia and Alzheimer-degenerative mental diseases- affecting staggering number of old people today. Maybe you will find this book a bit exaggeration at some places but the information it imparts is worth knowing and implementing.