The [insert adjective] Brain: Implications for Neuroscience in Popular Media
Via amazon.com The Addicted Brain. The Female Brain. The Male Brain. Chemobrain. Buddha’s Brain. The Winner’s Brain. The Republican Brain . These days, it seems that everybody’s brain is being scanned and their behavior analyzed. In fact, these are all titles of books published in the past decade that communicate the latest findings in neuroscience and psychology research to lay audiences. As a budding neuroscientist, I am excited that science, and neuroscience in particular, has now flooded into popular American culture. Evidence of its expanding domain is everywhere: in magazines ( Scientific American ’s “ MIND ”), blogs ( Neuroskeptic ), radio programs (NPR’s “ Radiolab ”), podcasts ( Nature ’s “ Neuropod ”) and books. For further examination of the reasons for this cultural shift, see the discussion of the phenomenon in the new book “ Brain Culture: Neuroscience and Popular Media ,” by Davi Johnson Thorton, Southwestern University's Assistant Professor of Communication Studies....