Secrets of the Mind


Book Description

Written in a provocative, witty, and highly accessible style, this is not only a splendid general introduction to the central questions of consciousness and brain science, but also an answer to some of them. The author -- noted Glaswegian chemist A.G. Cairns-Smith -- believes our feelings and sensations are not simply alternative descriptions of neural events but have themselves evolved and have physical effects in the brain as well as physical causes. Secrets of the Mind portrays a vision of the world as it may come to be seen by a future science. Sand, sea water, air, and the atoms from which such materials are made are now well understood by science, but the same can not be said of our personal feelings, our sensations and emotions. Science tells us that these too must be forms of quantum energy if they evolved, yet is only now beginning to explain how.




THE SECRETS OF HUMAN CONSCIOUSNESS


Book Description

We are on the edge of an impending Spiritual – Scientific revolution. This is unlike any other revolution, scientific discovery or an invention in the past. Every revolution, discovery or invention has brought about a shift in the consciousness of humanity. Consciousness is the basis of existence and awareness of existence. This book is an endeavour to unravel the mysteries of human consciousness, a challenging subject and an intersecting point to both science and spirituality. There have always been certain aspects of life and existence that have time and again ignited the human imagination. Even while we believe that we have reached the ultimate, we only come to realize that this could just be the curiosity and that truth lies well beyond the horizon. Nothing can come closer to explain this than the following words of T.S. Eliot “We shall not cease from exploration, and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we began and to know the place for the first time…” Amongst many of the open questions in science today, ones that sit right at the top are bewildering the researchers a long time now: Where and how the Human Consciousness originates? Does matter have any Consciousness? Are we coincidentally into existence in this Universe, or is there a steering higher Consciousness? Those armed with scientific materialism would immediately brush aside these questions as either philosophical or something irrelevant for science to answer. They might say that science has employed all its alternatives to these non-physical phenomena and proved them to be non-existing. Since the French philosopher Rene Descartes isolated Science from Spirituality almost four centuries back, it has become a fad to put Spirituality at odds with Science. It has done no good to the scientific community. It has restricted the observation and exploration of science to merely physical matter, something which they themselves consider now as less than five percent of the universe. Note: Instead of the term ‘Religion’ we have invariably used ‘Spirituality’ which is non-affiliated, subtle, broader and with inside-out approach. In the last many centuries, we have looked up only to Material science for development, expansion, mitigation of our problems, and meeting our needs. We have also got solutions to a large extent. However, material science now either seems to be exhausting itself, or it comes with its challenges and even evil. It's time now to shift our paradigm, look inwards and seek the answers from our inner space. It will only help to complement and fill the gaps left by material science. The wisdom of the eastern world has always captivated the attention of scientists, thinkers and philosophers from around the world. It is not just the religious belief; it is a perfect blend of Science and Spirituality - interestingly cited as the Science of Spirituality and the Spirituality of Science. Decoding Human Consciousness is not just a window where science can sneak peek into Spirituality. It is a gateway for humanity to a new dimension where we can evolve from within and seek answers on questions related to our existence and well-being. Interestingly the Conscient entity could not be proved through scientific methods in a laboratory set up. Hence, it is still more challenging to scientifically verify the consciousness originating from this entity. Until one goes beyond the identity of oneself as a physical phenomenon and experiences self as a conscient being, it would be too arduous to use all the scientific apparatus to analyse the continuous stream of consciousness emanating therefrom. It's like looking for a needle in a haystack, that too non – physical !! This book is dedicated to unravelling the mysteries of Human Consciousness on Scientific, Psychological and Spiritual realms. Most of the work has come through insights from transcendental experiences that have been further corroborated by research and practice. We have taken into consideration many books, periodicals and research papers. References have been given wherever necessary. Some of the notes taken here are a verbatim copy of the lines from the work of authors while some have been rearticulated. This book is an attempt to recollect, reconnect and re-establish the scientific theories, philosophical postulations in all eras and the ancient wisdom of different scriptures spread across the world, and converge them to unravel the mysteries of consciousness. Much of the mystifying insights with divine wisdom have come from different etheric mediums and divine channels, which has been further substantiated with ancient esoteric knowledge from different origins. The present book is a concise effort to study and establish the knowledge of Consciousness, one of the most sought after mystery. The objective is to make this knowledge as a new gateway for Science to accept and discover hitherto undiscovered metaphysical realms - Spiritual awakening in a scientific way and find solutions to holistic well-being for people from all walks of life. This book is truly an amateur endeavour to reach out to the readers in a rather plain and straightforward style. We leave it to the wisdom of our readers to assess by their own experience. Any questions and suggestions are graciously invited. Magic Diamond of Group




The Ultimate Human Secrets


Book Description

We usually roam our existence and find ourselves after years have passed by, having gone in so many directions, some of which paths that we chose that were excellent for our personal growth. However, many others were so negative that they always will affect our life's quality for many years to come. The Ultimate Human Secrets - The Hidden Power in our Unconscious Mysterious Knowledge, is a book that will genuinely positively impact your existence. This book is a comprehensive account of life's dynamics discussed in "The YOU beyond you - The knowledge of the Willing." It is also a must-read at least once in a lifetime, as it thoroughly examines the unconscious knowledge that holds the real secrets of our existence. When reading this book, you will embark on a thorough examination of life's dynamics and how everything is formed or thawed. Concepts that are genuinely oblivious to us, but which one would discover their ultimate reality after familiarizing himself with them. A manuscript that contains our life's deepest secrets and a guide for readers to help them take complete control of their lives and change their realities, based on how mind, body, and soul work in us and our reality. This book will show you how negative age-old beliefs and perceptions accumulated and how they can be dissolved and directed towards a new reality where one can flourish and thrive. If you're ready to face the actual riddles of life, overcome obstacles in your way of thinking and step out of your comfort zone to grow to succeed, then this book is the right book for you. This comprehensive guide will provide you with a new extraordinary life approach inspired by hundreds of hours of life contemplation and backed up by biological and psychological theories and ideas. A book that will truly transform your life and expose realities that were utterly oblivious to you. After reading this book, you will be able to reflect on: What is the true nature of our reality? What are the dynamics that make or break life? What is the fundamental wisdom that we unconsciously overlook in our lives? How can you thrive and prosper in our reality? How to take control and improve ourselves and the environment around us for self-betterment. How to experience the awareness to take complete control over your reality. What concepts can bind truth in your way? What is Spirituality, and how can you reach enlightenment. And so much more! It's time for a new outlook on life--Get this book and start transforming your LIFE now.




Consciousness Explained


Book Description

Daniel Dennett's "brilliant" exploration of human consciousness — named one of the ten best books of the year by the New York Times — is a masterpiece beloved by both scientific experts and general readers (New York Times Book Review). Consciousness Explained is a full-scale exploration of human consciousness. In this landmark book, Daniel Dennett refutes the traditional, commonsense theory of consciousness and presents a new model, based on a wealth of information from the fields of neuroscience, psychology, and artificial intelligence. Our current theories about conscious life — of people, animal, even robots — are transformed by the new perspectives found in this book. "Dennett is a witty and gifted scientific raconteur, and the book is full of fascinating information about humans, animals, and machines. The result is highly digestible and a useful tour of the field." —Wall Street Journal




Beyond the Conscious Mind


Book Description

The Nobel Prize-winning work of Roger Sperry revolutionized our understanding of human consciousness by proving that separate thinking and knowledge could exist in the left and right halves of the brain. Now, popular science writer Thomas Blakeslee - author of the highly acclaimed The Right Brain - takes us to a new level of understanding based on the theory of neural Darwinism by Gerald Edelman, another Nobel Prize winner. Blakeslee explains that our neurons spontaneously organize into hundreds of groups called modules that compete to respond to every situation in our lives - from reading this paragraph to falling in love. A vast preponderance of this activity operates outside of our conscious awareness.




The Psychology of Consciousness


Book Description

A Series of books in psychology; Variation: Series of books in psychology.




The Human World in the Physical Universe


Book Description

How is it possible for the world as we experience it to exist embedded in the physical universe? How can there be sensory qualities, consciousness, freedom, science and art, friendship, love, justice--all that which gives meaning and value to life--if the world really is more or less as modern science tells us it is? This is the problem that is tackled by this book. The solution proposed is that physics describes only a selected aspect of all that exists--that aspect which determines the way events unfold. Sensory qualities, inner experiences, consciousness, meaning and value, all these exist but lie beyond the scope of physics, and of that part of science that can be reduced to physics. Furthermore, these human features of the world are to be explained and understood, not scientifically, but "personalistically," a kind of understanding distinct from, and not reducible to, science. This view that the world is riddled with what may be called "double comprehensibility" leads to a proposed solution to the philosophical mind/body problem, and to the problem of free will; it leads to a reinterpretation of Darwin's theory of evolution, and to an account of the evolution of consciousness and free will. After a discussion of the location of consciousness in the brain, the book concludes with a proposal as to how academic inquiry might be changed so that it becomes a kind of inquiry rationally designed to help humanity create a more civilized human world in the physical universe.




Human and Machine Consciousness


Book Description

Consciousness is widely perceived as one of the most fundamental, interesting and difficult problems of our time. However, we still know next to nothing about the relationship between consciousness and the brain and we can only speculate about the consciousness of animals and machines. Human and Machine Consciousness presents a new foundation for the scientific study of consciousness. It sets out a bold interpretation of consciousness that neutralizes the philosophical problems and explains how we can make scientific predictions about the consciousness of animals, brain-damaged patients and machines. Gamez interprets the scientific study of consciousness as a search for mathematical theories that map between measurements of consciousness and measurements of the physical world. We can use artificial intelligence to discover these theories and they could make accurate predictions about the consciousness of humans, animals and artificial systems. Human and Machine Consciousness also provides original insights into unusual conscious experiences, such as hallucinations, religious experiences and out-of-body states, and demonstrates how ‘designer’ states of consciousness could be created in the future. Gamez explains difficult concepts in a clear way that closely engages with scientific research. His punchy, concise prose is packed with vivid examples, making it suitable for the educated general reader as well as philosophers and scientists. Problems are brought to life in colourful illustrations and a helpful summary is given at the end of each chapter. The endnotes provide detailed discussions of individual points and full references to the scientific and philosophical literature.




The Secrets of Consciousness


Book Description

The Secrets of Consciousness by the Editors of Scientific American Consciousness is an enigmatic beast. It's more than mere awareness – it's how we experience the world, how our subjective experience relates to the objective universe around us. And therein lies the rub, in that tiny little word "how." These kinds of questions were once the province of philosophy, religion or perhaps fantasy, but within the last few decades, neuroscientists have added a scientific voice to the discussion, using available medical technology to explore just what separates so-called "mind" from brain. How do the neural and chemical workings of our brains create our minds, our total experience of the world, our thoughts and feelings, and that sense of self that distinguishes the individual from everyone else? In this eBook, The Secrets of Consciousness, we look at what science has to say about one of humankind's most fundamental, existential mysteries. We begin at the beginning, as they say, with Section 1 on the very nature of consciousness and move on to discuss theories of neural development. In one article, author David Chalmers calls this the "hard problem," requiring an entirely new theory that places consciousness itself as a fundamental component akin to the forces of physics. In another, leading neuroscientists Christof Koch and Susan Greenfield debate exactly how the neurons and circuits in the brain create conscious awareness. Later sections go deeper into the rabbit hole and examine what we can learn from altered states such as hypnosis or anesthesia as well as the use of formerly blacklisted hallucinogens such as LSD as healing drugs. Gary Stix discusses one study on the possible therapeutic effects of LSD on the intense anxiety experienced by patients with life-threatening disease, such as cancer. Finally, Section 6 explores "The Enigma of Spirituality." David Biello takes on the search in his article, "God in the Brain," highlighting studies searching for specific neurological centers of spirituality. It's been said before, but the brain is the final frontier. Just how that brain creates not only awareness, but also integrates that awareness into creating experiences, memories, and an enduring sense of self—well, it might take overhauling not only how we study ourselves, but how we define our reality in the process of looking.




The Secret Life of the Brain


Book Description

In the long history of the study of anatomy, neuroscience is a relatively new field, and there are plenty of mysteries yet to be uncovered. The Secret Life of the Brain explores the fascinating advances that have been made in the field so far, from the intricacies of memory and intelligence, to the enigmatic workings behind our sense of humour and our dreams. Full of illuminating illustrations and diagrams, this book lifts the lid on how drugs affect the brain; the science behind addiction; how the brain deals with trauma and pain; and the effects on the brain of love, age, and sex. Finally, you'll get a tantalising insight into the cutting-edge theories that are attempting to get behind the elements of neuroscience which we still can't quite explain.