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Journey of the Mind

How Thinking Emerged from Chaos
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Journey of the Mind explores the evolution of consciousness, tracing the development of minds from simple neural organisations to complex human thought. It delves into the biological and psychological mechanisms that underpin our experience of awareness, drawing on scientific insights to examine how minds operate across different species. The authors aim to shed light on the intricate processes that define what it means to have a conscious mind.
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you're fascinated by the intricacies of human consciousness and the evolution of the mind. It offers intriguing insights into how our brains have developed sophisticated capabilities over time. Fans of science and nature will appreciate the blend of psychology, neuroscience, and evolutionary biology presented in an engaging narrative.

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Two neuroscientists trace a sweeping new vision of consciousness across eighteen increasingly intelligent minds, from microbes to humankind and beyond

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Why do you exist? How did atoms and molecules transform into sentient creatures that experience longing, regret, compassion, and even marvel at their own existence? What does it truly mean to have a mind—to think? Science has offered few answers to these existential questions until now.

Journey of the Mind is the first book to offer a unified account of the mind that explains how consciousness, language, self-awareness, and civilisation arose incrementally out of chaos. The journey begins three billion years ago with the emergence of the universe's simplest possible mind. From there, the book explores the nanoscopic archaeon, whose thinking machinery consists of a handful of molecules, then advances through amoebas, worms, frogs, birds, monkeys, and humans, explaining what each "new" mind could do that previous minds could not.

Though they admire the triumph of human consciousness, Ogi Ogas and Sai Gaddam argue that humans are hardly the most sophisticated minds on the planet. The same physical principles that produce human self-awareness are leading cities and nation-states to develop "superminds," and perhaps planting the seeds for even higher forms of consciousness.

Written in lively, accessible language accompanied by vivid illustrations, Journey of the Mind is a mind-bending work of popular science, the first general book to share the cutting-edge mathematical basis for consciousness, language, and the self. It shows how a "unified theory of the mind" can explain the mind's greatest mysteries—and offer clues about the ultimate fate of all minds in the universe.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

The book by Ogi Ogas and Sai Gaddam receives praise for its ambitious exploration of the essential nature of thinking, offering insights that challenge conventional assumptions. It draws analogies to Sapiens in its impact on understanding consciousness and complexity, presenting a compelling narrative from biology to an evolutionary argument for kindness. The work is described as enlightening, thought-provoking, and filled with fascinating insights that promise to change the reader's understanding of the mind.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781324050575

Publisher: WW Norton & Co

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 21 March 2023

Country: United States

Imprint: WW Norton & Co

Illustration: 21 illustrations; 85 infographics; 4 photographs

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 28.0mm

Width: 140.0mm

Height: 211.0mm

Weight: 327g

Pages: 432

About the Author

Ogi Ogas, PhD, was a Department of Homeland Security Fellow at the Department of Cognitive and Neural Systems at Boston University. He lives in Boston, Massachusetts. Sai Gaddam PhD, was a post-doctoral fellow in the Center for Adaptive System at Boston University. He lives in Mumbai, India.

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