The Spaces Between Us: A Story of Neuroscience, Evolution, and Human Nature

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The Spaces Between Us: A Story of Neuroscience, Evolution, and Human Nature

Book: Hardcover 05 - 01 - 2018

Product ID: 4451464

Condition: New
Publisher : Oxford University Press, USA

Language : English

Hardcover : 216 Pages

ISBN-10 : 0190461012

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Review "The Spaces Between Us is a sparkling example of popular science-writing, mainly on the strength of Graziano's smart but affable teaching ability. The range of his curiosity about everything from the minute discriminations of laughter to the mysteries of the 'hand blink' reflex is inherently inviting, and the result is a book that will have readers questioning their every tiny twitch and shrug." --Open Letters Monthly "Graziano (Princeton Univ.) has written a brief yet compelling book about the dynamics, experience, and importance of setting personal boundaries or what he refers to as a "second, invisible skin" that separates self from other. The initial chapters describe early scientific observations of personal space related to humans and other animals. Graziano then turns to research by neuroscientists, including himself, who discovered the elegantly simple mechanism in the brain that monitors the sense of personal space to help people avoid danger. These chapters are exceptionally well written; though aimed toward a general readership, they rely heavily on animal and biological science and will likely appeal to a scientifically sophisticated general audience. The later chapters, which should appeal to a broader audience, focus on the most recent scientific insights into these matters with an emphasis on how broadly and profoundly self-defined personal boundaries impact people's lives. Graziano concludes with a gripping chapter about the painful life tribulations his son has experienced because of a physical disability, dyspraxia, that makes it difficult for him to effectively monitor his and others' sense of personal space." --CHOICE Product Description Each of us has a protected zone two or three feet wide, swelling around the head and narrowing towards the feet. This zone isn't fixed in size: if you're nervous, it grows; if you're relaxed, it shrinks. It also depends on your cultural upbringing. Personal space is small in Japan and large in Australia. This safety zone, called personal space, provides an invisible spatial scaffold that frames our social interactions. As Michael Graziano argues in The Spaces Between Us, it also organizes our social and emotional spacing, influences our facial expressions, and shapes our interactions with everyday objects including tools, furniture, and clothing. Even ordinary actions like walking are informed by a continuous under-the-surface calculation of threats and obstacles around the body: what Graziano calls a virtual bubble-wrap of active neurons that fire and move us to action, even before we may be conscious of our course corrections in real time. Humans evolved a complex way of interacting with others and their environment, and The Spaces Between Us looks at how this infrastructure may have led to the first smile and to a host of other human activities, from tool use, to courtship, and to a sense of self. The book concludes with a case study of Graziano's son, who had heart-breaking difficulties developing a functioning personal space. Written with poignant narrative clarity, Graziano makes the case for the interested scientific public that this system in the brain is more than a fascinating scientific topic: it's deeply personal and shapes our human nature. About the Author Michael S. A. Graziano is a professor of neuroscience at Princeton University. He is an internationally renowned scientist and an award winning novelist. For thirty years he has studied the brain basis of movement control, personal space, and conscious experience. He is also a science columnist, writing for the New York Times, The Atlantic, and other magazines.

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