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07/24/2001 Archived Entry: "Review of the Mind"

How the Mind Works by Steven Pinker

If this book is any different from other science books, it's in the density of the ideas. Never before have I encountered the sheer number and variety of ideas, concepts and facts about the brain or indeed any other subject packed within 560 pages. It's almost bewildering, and often I had the feeling that many lesser books could have taken a single chapter from How the Mind Works, expanded it and still ended up with a decent book.

I've refrained from using the word 'pop science' in this review because I think that How the Mind Works, like a few other notable books (such as The Elegant Universe) transcends the traditional ideas of pop science books that don't present challenging ideas or make the reader figure out things for himself. And of course the book is better for it; there were several times during my reading that I had to back up and think to myself, 'Well, exactly what does this mean?' or 'How does this work?'

That might seem like a fault of poor explanations on Pinker's part, but I don't agree. I suspect one of the reasons why I found the first few chapters of this book so tough to get through is because I'm not used to thinking for myself rather than having things spoonfed to me - which still occurs in Cambridge University, would you credit it! But perhaps I'm giving Pinker undue praise here. The first few chapters were difficult to read and they still would have been difficult even if I was a regular reader of science books.

This difficulty comes from the way in which Pinker has placed (to me) all of the most difficult and complex concepts right at the start of the book. I think it's a very brave thing for him to do and it gets all the tough stuff out of the way so that he can discuss the more interesting and sexy topics without having to fill in backstory - but of course it doesn't come without its penalties.

So exactly what is this book about? As you'd expect from this type of book, it isn't an examination of how the neurones and dendrites within the brain interact on a biochemical basis - rather, it takes a more systems-based view that nevertheless incorporates and hypothesises on how the behaviour of individual neurones might influence gross behaviour. For example, in his sections on the categorisation and associational areas of the brain, he proposes a way in which the interactions of individual neurones might create a full functioning logic processor (hence the word 'neuro-logical'), through established knowledge that neurones have synapses and impulses that require certain thresholds to be met.

But that's not all. Pinker discusses every question and aspect of the brain and consciousness - how we see (from photons striking our retina to the creation of a mental 'picture' and models of objects), how we talk, how we experience emotions, and why we do all of this from an evolutionary point of view. You'd expect that if he has to cover such a huge range he can hardly afford to talk about specifics in each case, but he somehow manages to pull it off.

When I first started reading this book, I felt satisfied if I read 50 pages in one day. Towards the end I voraciously read the last 150 pages in a few hours. How the Mind Works provided me with insight on any number of subjects about the brain and also helped me clear up my confusion on concepts regarding emotions. I didn't agree with everything that Pinker wrote (in particular, his beliefs about the evolution of sexual reproduction) but it was all well-thought out.

It's not an easy book to read at first, but nothing worth doing is ever easy. Read this book if you have the slightest interest in how your brain works.