The Neurosciences: Third Study Program ed. by F. O. Schmitt and F. G. Worden (review)

Abstract

parative Approaches to the Nervous System," "Nerve Cells and Brain Circuits," "Membrane Excitability and Synaptic Transmission," "Neuro Transmitters and Brain Functions," "Adventures with Unexpected Observations," "Sensory and Motor Systems," "Behaviour and the Brain," "The Brain: Neural Object and Conscious Subject," "The Neuroscience Community: People and Ideas," "The Neuroscience Community: Some Organizational Developments," "On the Nature of Research in Neuroscience." This list is sufficient to indicate the range of topics that are covered in this fascinating book. It should be read by all senior neuroscientists and ought to be required reading for graduate students. Nowhere else can they "listen" in to the personal accounts ofso many that helped to make neurobiology the great science that it is today. The Neurosciences: Third Study Program. Editors in Chief F. O. Schmitt and F. G. Worden. Cambridge, Mass.: M.I.T. Press, 1974. Reprinted 1975 in 12 paperback vols. $2.95 each. The sections are: (1)Hemüpherk Specialization andInteraction, edited by Brenda Milner; (2) Feature Extraction by Neurons and Behaviour, edited by Gerhard Werner; (3) Central Processing of Sensory Input, edited by Karl H. Pribram; (4) Central Processing ofSensory Input Leading to Motor Output, edited by E. V. Evarts; (5) Invertebrate Neurons and Behavior, edited by C. A. G. Wiersma; (6) Circadian Oscillations and Organization in Nervous Systems, edited by Colin S. Pittendrigh; (7) Hormonal Factors in Brain Function, edited by Donald Pfaff; (8) Biochemistry and Behaviour, edited by S. H. Snyder; (9) Molecular Machinery of the Membrane, edited by Gerald M. Edelman; (10) Regulatory Biochemistry in Neural Tissues, edited by Louis Sokoloff; (11) Dynamics of Synaptic Modulation, edited by F. E. Bloom; and (12) Interaction ofBrain Cellsand Viruses, edited by Harvey M. Shein. These books represent an extremely wide coverage of neurobiology, from the molecular and membrane level up through invertebrate neuronal systems to the mammalian and human brain. For these brains, the themes ofperception, motor control, and conscious processes are covered in the first four sections, which comprise most valuable contributions. Section 5 and most of 6 are concerned with invertebrate nervous systems. The remaining 6 sections are concerned with neurochemistry and molecular neurobiology. The original volume contained over 1,100 double-column pages and is very bulky to handle. In the subdivision, the original pagination is retained, so they should be referenced as sections of the parent volume. It is unfortunate therefore that the parentage is not recognized in the paperback editions except as a note in small print on the inside cover. There is also a note on the outside of the back cover that lists in full the 12 sections. Sir John Eccles CH6611 Contra (Ticino) Switzerland Perspectives in Biology and Medicine ¦ Spring 1977 \ 459 ...