science

Music is without a doubt a universal language that transcends time, generations, and cultures. It makes for good entertainment, interest, and constructive pursuit that enriches the lives of whomever it touches. Some researchers believe that our natural, almost universal predisposition to the enjoyment of and emotional reaction to music is hard-wired into us – that it has always played a pivotal role in helping humans develop their minds and relationships with others. One writer suggests, “ Babies are born with musical wisdom and appetite, music facilitates well-being and returns people to well-being from mental and physical impairments – it is deep in our genetic structures” (1).

In her book, The Female Brain, Louanne Brizendine describes the stages that the female brain goes through during life, citing brain structure and chemistry as the departure for differences between the male and female brains. Most of the misunderstanding of female psychology, Brizendine notes, stems from the misconception held by scientists during most of the 19th and 20th centuries - “that women are essentially small men in psychology and physiology”. She says that it is important to make the distinction between male and female psychologies because physiological sources for these differences do exist, contrary to the reality that they are usually just brushed off as mere deviations during studies.

   Malcolm Gladwell’s book Blink is an exploration of rapid cognition, of the thinking that happens in the blink of an eye, and is an attempt to “understand this magical and mysterious thing called judgment” (Gladwell 260). He refrains from using “intuition” to describe this kind of thinking, as he believes we use that word to describe irrational thought. Gladwell argues that those first two seconds of rapid cognition are completely rational and just involve thinking that moves a little faster and operates a little more mysteriously than deliberate, conscious thought and decision-making.

 Dolphins are my favorite animals, partly because of their extra-cute appearances: “friendly smile”, little flippers, and sleek and shiny body. But their intelligence is what amazes me the most. I once watched a video about dolphin training. I remember in one of the training sessions, the trainer asks the dolphin to go grab a ball from a basket, yet there is no ball in that basket. So the dolphin takes back the empty basket with him to show the trainer and presses the “No” button available. In another session, the trainer gestures two dolphins to perform two simple tricks then gestures them to perform the two tricks in one action. The dolphins immediately perform a combination of the two tricks without the trainer teaching them how.

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    Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) are serious neurological disorders, which usually present themselves in an individual before three years of age. The spectrum refers to the wide variety in severity and type of characteristics. Young autistic individuals generally appear physically normal but engage in a variety of bizarre activities that are markedly different from those of other children their age. They often appear disconnected, self-absorbed, and avoid major and minor routine changes. Both autistic children and adults are generally seen (to varying degrees) to be impaired socially and emotionally, as extremely sensitive to loud noises, lights or smells, and as having difficulty with language as well (9).

    Oliver Sacks’ novel, An Anthropologist on Mars, contains seven fascinating and strange neurobiological stories that explore unique perceptions and experiences of both the world and oneself in the world. The first tale, “The Colorblind Painter”, is about Jonathan I., a painter who, after an accident, lost his ability to perceive color in the world, his memories, and even his dreams. He could not remember what color ever looked like (the entire concept was obliterated from his brain), yet, intriguingly, it was determined that he could discriminate wavelengths of light.

 Eric Kandel: In Search of Memory

Throughout In Search of Memory: The Emergence of a New Science of Mind, Eric Kandel describes his approach to understanding how memories are stored. While at first glance, the book might seem like a boring biography of an experiment; in the first chapters, Kandel’s captivating writing constantly keeps you wondering about the next chapter.