History of the Human Brain: From the Sea Sponge to CRISPR, How Our Brain Evolved

(Hardback)

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In the large-scale anthropologic tradition of Yuval Harari's Sapiens but with a neuroscientific focus reminiscent of Human by Michael Gazzaniga, Brain Power tells the eye-opening story of how the brain made us human - and where it might go from here. Just over 125,000 years ago, humanity was on the edge of extinction when a dramatic shift occurred - Homo sapiens started tracking the tides and eating the nearby oysters. Before long, they'd pulled themselves back from the brink of extinction. What saved us during that period of endangerment The human brain, and its evolutionary journey is unlike anything else in history. In Brain Power, neuroscientist and popular science writer Bret Stetka takes readers through that far-reaching journey, showing exactly when and how the human brain evolved to shape who we are today. The whole millennia-long journey raises the question of where the brain might head next. Brain Power explores the burgeoning concept of epigenetics as well as technologies like CRISPR that allow scientists to manually edit our own genetic code. The biologic, philosophic, and ethical questions are wide-ranging: Could the evolutionary path of the human brain be leading to its own replacement AUTHOR: Bret Stetka is an editorial director at Medscape.com. He is a non-practicing physician, and a freelance health and science journalist. He is a graduate of the University of Virginia School of Medicine. He is a regular contributor to NPR, as well as Scientific American, where he writes about neuroscience, psychiatry, and evolution. His work has also appeared in WIRED, Men's Journal, Slate, Popular Mechanics, and The Atlantic. 22 photographs

Reviews

"A History of the Human Brain is a unique, enlightening, and provocative account of the most significant question we can ask about ourselves." --Richard Wrangham, author of The Goodness Paradox

"One of the most lucid, clear-eyed, and talented science writers of our time--Bret Stetka--now turns his attention to the evolution of the human brain, taking us on a captivating journey from its origins to the present, enhancing our understanding of how this phenomenal organ and its 100 billion neurons work." --Eric Topol, MD, author of Deep Medicine

"Clear, evidence based and engrossing. What we know about how the human brain works could fit on a figurative pinhead. But if you want to understand what we know about its evolution, this book is a terrific resource." --Felice Jacka, PhD, director of the Food Mood Centre, Deakin University, Australia

"There are lots of ideas out there about consciousness and the human brain--the untidy product of millions of years of evolution. Bret Stetka comes as close as you could hope to making sense of them in this entertaining and wide-ranging book." --Ian Tattersall, curator emeritus, Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History

"Crack open this book and take a read. You will be transported, illuminated, and delighted." --Psychology Today

"Science journalist Bret Stetka takes the reader on a roller coaster ride up the evolutionary trail from the sponge to modern man." --The San Francisco Book Review

"A readable and engaging history of how our most mysterious organ developed over time... from the brain's improbable and watery beginnings to the super-complex marvel that's found within the head of Homo sapiens today." --The Genetic Literacy Project

Author Bio

Bret Stetka is an editorial director at Medscape.com. He is a non-practicing physician, and a freelance health and science journalist. He is a graduate of the University of Virginia School of Medicine. He is a regular contributor to NPR, as well as Scientific American, where he writes about neuroscience, psychiatry, and evolution. His work has also appeared in WIRED, Men's Journal, Slate, Popular Mechanics, and The Atlantic.