The Brain That Changes Itself: Stories of Personal Triumph from the Frontiers of Brain Science is a book on neuroplasticity by psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Norman Doidge, M.D. It features studies of several patients suffering from neurological disorders and details how the brain adapts to compensate for their disabilities. Interviews with the patients and doctors make up a large portion of the contents. Doidge uses examples of previous work car...
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The Brain That Changes Itself: Stories of Personal Triumph from the Frontiers of Brain Science is a book on neuroplasticity by psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Norman Doidge, M.D. It features studies of several patients suffering from neurological disorders and details how the brain adapts to compensate for their disabilities. Interviews with the patients and doctors make up a large portion of the contents. Doidge uses examples of previous work carried out by neuroscientists such as Paul Broca and Paul Bach-y-Rita to show that the brain is adaptive, and thus plastic. Through the case studies, Doidge demonstrates both the beneficial and detrimental effects that neuroplasticity can have on a patient, saying, "Neuroplasticity contributes to both the constrained and unconstrained aspects of our nature," and "it renders our brains not only more resourceful, but also more vulnerable to outside influences."
An important example of neuroplasticity is how humans gain skills. Doidge presents an...
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