A Beginner's Guide to the Brain: Major Discoveries that Will Change Your Life

With a straightforward approach, Johnson, an internationally recognized authority on contextual teaching and learning, explains the basics of brain structure and function, and then tackles such topics as memory and emotion. She also cogently explains the relationship between emotion and decision-making, and argues that the human brain in wired with an inherent morality that includes a sense of fairness, a desire to do no harm, a respect for authority, and a sense of purity. All of this serves as prologue for Johnson's central aim: how to put this knowledge to work to live a happier life and contribute to a healthier social community. Her prescriptions are basic: live a life consistent with basic morality, get adequate sleep and exercise, nourish good relationships, and make conscious use of critical faculties. Mundane or not, these suggestions are more than platitudes when reinforced by the sophisticated description of the brain's functioning. Readers will appreciate Johnson's accessible explanation of complex processes.