Category Archives: Assignments

Lieberman makes brain science approachable

Posted on March 22, 2015 by Yael Rosenstock

I fear this could end up becoming a list of praises but I want to applaud Lieberman on his use of layman terms, how he breaks down experiments, and even how he explains sections of the brain. The last piece … Continue reading →

Posted in Assignments, Social Relations | 2 Comments

P1) Lieberman & Picking a fight? piggybacking? leapfrogging? Oh my

Posted on March 21, 2015 by Yael Rosenstock

I wish I had read the prompts earlier as it is driving me nuts that I can’t find the moment in the book where Lieberman explicitly states that scholars are often on both sides but that the argument should really … Continue reading →

Posted in Assignments, Social Relations | 3 Comments

Viegener, 2500 Random Things/Miller, Memoir?

Posted on March 15, 2015 by David Liburd

Not been one for “eavesdropping” on other peoples lives much, unless they are somewhat closely related to me. In consequence information and or circumstances would need to have an adverse effect on my life. Yes I see and read and … Continue reading →

Posted in Assignments, Autobiography, Uncategorized | 2 Comments

random 25

Posted on March 14, 2015 by Yael Rosenstock

Looking at the water travel down the street makes me wonder where it goes.   I suppose I’m not that curious because I could probably look it up or explore it further by foot but I don’t.   The golden … Continue reading →

Posted in Assignments, Narrative, Uncategorized | 3 Comments

Casey and Hacking Thoughts

Posted on March 3, 2015 by Ayanna K. Alexander-Street

The first line that struck me of Hacking’s chapter, that brought me back to many discussions with friends, was: “…mental illnesses, more neurotic than psychotic and we wonder which of them are affectations, cultural artifacts, clinician-enhanced, or copycat syndromes, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Assignments, Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Present, past and future selves

Posted on March 2, 2015 by Julia Schaffer Gruberg

I appreciate Liz’s question about whether/how The Man Who Walked Away fits into the form of novel. Casey’s use of fragmentation and repetition is very effective. She conveys Albert’s sense of mystery and wonder and limited well of information by repeating images or … Continue reading →

Posted in Assignments, Maud Casey, Narrative | 2 Comments

Autobiographical Self in its State of Balance

Posted on March 2, 2015 by Berni Moestafa

Maud Casey’s novel contains plenty of pieces that, just like Elizabeth’s puzzle, shapes one’s identity into a whole. Among these pieces what strikes me as central, at least to the Doctor’s attempt in helping Albert regain his Self, is the … Continue reading →

Posted in Assignments, Autobiography, Ian Hacking, Maud Casey, Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Mental health and homeostasis

Posted on March 1, 2015 by Jennifer MacDonald

My parents are both psychiatric nurses who worked their entire careers in state-run mental health facilities. In Casey, there is a line from the Director (on p. 151): “There is pleasure in a schedule…. It calms the mind.” This made … Continue reading →

Posted in Assignments, Ian Hacking, Maud Casey | 2 Comments

Posted on February 17, 2015 by Ayanna K. Alexander-Street

Let’s try this again, I’m working from my iPad, and this will just not post! First, as a neuroscientist, I am not accustomed to using these beautiful, poetic terms to describe consciousness—I relate to a line in his introduction in … Continue reading →

Posted in Assignments, Uncategorized | 2 Comments

A Mind on its Own

Posted on February 16, 2015 by Berni Moestafa

In the first few chapters of the books The Feeling of What Happens and Self Comes to Mind, Antonio Damasio takes on the mystery of consciousness by grounding his answers to the biological foundation of the mind. Of particular interest … Continue reading →

Posted in Assignments, Damasio | 3 Comments