This work contains a Foreword by Baroness Susan Greenfield, Director, Royal Institution of Great Britain, Fullerian Professor of Physiology, Senior Research Fellow Lincoln College and Honorary Fellow, St. Hilda's College, University of Oxford. This practical, concise and up-to-date guide is ideal as a quick reference. It is easy to read, refer to and comprehend - the perfect text to have on hand in the laboratory. "Laboratory Skills for Science and Medicine" contains useful equations, overviews of various techniques, and tips to help research run smoothly. Undergraduate and postgraduate students of science, medicine and biomedical science will find this manual invaluable, as will PhD candidates and researchers returning to laboratory work. 'Becoming a good biomedical researcher, like everything else in life, doesn't just happen overnight. Exploring your knowledge and skills base, and the gaps therein allows you to develop your approach to research in a systematic and productive manner. By taking advantage of the experience bundled into this volume, you are giving yourself the advantage of both an increased factual knowledge and useful practical applications which will help you on the road to achieving your goals, whether that is a good first degree, your first publication, that first grant or a Noble prize! If you want to give yourself a flying start in your lab career, then this book is for you.' - Maxine Lintern, in the Introduction.

The book is an exploration of how this century is going to change not just the way we think, but also what we actually think with - our own individual minds. How will new technologies transform the way we see the world? At the beginning of the twenty-first century, we may be standing on the brink of a mind make-over far more cataclysmic than anything that has happened before. As we appreciate the dynamism and sensitivity of our brain circuitry, so the prospect of directly tampering with the essence of our individuality becomes a possibility.

In Mind Change, Susan Greenfield discusses the all-pervading technologies that now surround us, and from which we derive instant information, connected identity, diminished privacy and exceptionally vivid here-and-now experiences. In her view they are creating a new environment, with vast implications, because our minds are physically adapting: being rewired. What could this mean, and how can we harness, rather than be harnessed by, our new technological milieu to create better alternatives and more meaningful lives? Using the very latest research, Mind Change is intended to incite debate as well as yield the way forward. There is no better person to explain the situation in a way we can understand, and to offer new insights on how to improve our mental capacities and well being.

Identity is a term much used yet hard to define. Perhaps for this reason, the concept has long been a favourite with philosphers, and for the very same reason has been avoided by brain scientists, - until now. In this neurobiological exploration of identity, Greenfield briefly reviews the social perspective from finger prints, to faces, to signatures of the many ways we try to identity ourselves, - in vain. The psychiatric perspective however does offer some valuable clues that then leads to an excursion into the physical brain: the neuroscience perspective. But identity cannot just be an objective phenomenon: hence any pertinent brain phenomena have to be seen also, as they are in the follwing chapter, from an individual perspective. Armed with the insights gained from these diverse approaches, Greenfield attempts to conceive of actual scenarios in the physical brain that would correspond to familiar examples of identity. However, given the physical brain adapts exquisitely to the environemnt, and the 21st Century environment is changing in unprecedented ways, are we facing correspondingly unprecedented changes to our identity?

A Sunday Times and Financial Times Book of the Year What happens in our brains when we wake up, savour a meal or a glass of wine, walk the dog, stare at a screen, daydream or sleep? World-renowned neuroscientist Susan Greenfield draws on her own pioneering research to illuminate the mystery of consciousness, and how our brains make us who we are. 'Offers tantalising clues to the universe inside our heads' Rob Kingston, Sunday Times, Science Books of the Year 'One of the few brain researchers making a serious effort to investigate the rich continuum of conscious thoughts and feelings that underlie every moment of our waking lives' Clive Cookson, Financial Times 'An illuminating, engrossing journey' Nature 'Her writing is clear, sharp, devoid of difficult jargon and chatty. The brain's complexity comes across vividly' Anil Ananthaswamy, New Scientist

What is happening in the brain when we drink too much alcohol, get high on Ecstasy or experience road rage?

Emotion, says internationally acclaimed neuroscientist Susan Greenfield, is the building block of consciousness. As our minds develop we create a personalized inner world based on our experiences. But during periods of intense emotion, such as anger, fear or euphoria, we can literally lose our mind, returning to the mental state we experienced as infants. Challenging many preconceived notions, Susan Greenfield’s groundbreaking book seeks to answer one of science’s most enduring mysteries: how our unique sense of self is created.

If you've ever wondered what effect video games have on your children's minds or worried about how much private information the government and big companies know about you, ID is essential reading. Professor Susan Greenfield argues persuasively that our individuality is under the microscope as never before; now more then ever we urgently need to look at what we want for ourselves as individuals and for our future society. ID is an exploration of what it means to be human in a world of rapid change, a passionately argued wake-up call and an inspiring challenge to embrace creativity and forge our own identities.

Locked away remote from the rest of the body in its own custom-built casing of skull bone, with no intrinsic moving parts, the human brain remains a tantalising mystery. But now, more than ever before, we have the expertise to tackle this mystery - the last 20 years have seen astounding progress in brain research. Susan Greenfield begins by exploring the roles of different regions of the brain. She then switches to the opposite direction and examines how certain functions, such as movement and vision, are accommodated in the brain. She describes how a brain is made from a single fertilized egg, and the fate of the brain is traced through life as we see how it constantly changes as a result of experience to provide the essence of a unique individual.

What would you see if you removed the skull from the human brain and then slowly worked your way deeper and deeper into the brain, to the level of an individual neuron? With renowned brain researcher Susan Greenfield as your guide, here is your chance to gain a bird's eye view of the human brain,and to learn more about what the brain is, how it works, what happens when one part of the brain is made dysfunctional through stroke or accident, how brain mood-modifying drugs find their targets.In a particularly fascinating chapter, Greenfield surveys for us how a brain is built and then takes us on a tour of the developing brain from the moment of conception.Throughout Greenfield poses the larger questions all readers want to consider, including: At what stage does individuality creep into the developing brain? How does the collection of circuits of neurons give rise not just to an individual brain but an individual consciousness? What might a fetus be conscious of?

Named a Gift Book for the Discerning New Yorker by The New York Times In a metropolis like New York, homelessness can blend into the urban landscape. For editor Susan Greenfield, however, New York is the place where a community of resilient, remarkable individuals are yearning for a voice. Sacred Shelter follows the lives of thirteen formerly homeless people, all of whom have graduated from the life skills empowerment program, an interfaith life skills program for homeless and formerly homeless individuals in New York. Through frank, honest interviews, these individuals share traumas from their youth, their experience with homelessness, and the healing they have discovered through community and faith. Edna Humphrey talks about losing her grandparents, father, and sister to illness, accident, and abuse. Lisa Sperber discusses her bipolar disorder and her whiteness. Dennis Barton speaks about his unconventional path to becoming a first-generation college student and his journey to reconnect with his family. The memoirists share stories about youth, family, jobs, and love. They describe their experiences with racism, mental illness, sexual assault, and domestic violence. Each of the thirteen storytellers honestly expresses his or her brokenheartedness and how finding community and faith gave them hope to carry on. Interspersed among these life stories are reflections from program directors, clerics, mentors, and volunteers who have worked with and in the life skills empowerment program. In his reflection, George Horton shares his deep gratitude for and solidarity with the 500-plus individuals he has come to know since he co-founded the program in 1989. While religion can be divisive, Horton firmly believes that all faiths urge us to "welcome the stranger" and, as Pope Francis asks, "accompany" them through the struggles of life. Through solidarity and suffering, many formerly homeless individuals have found renewed faith in God and community. Beyond trauma and strife, Dorothy Day's suggestion that "All is grace" is personified in these thirteen stories. Jeremy Kalmanofsky, rabbi at Ansche Chesed Synagogue, says the program points toward a social fabric of encounter and recognition between strangers, who overcome vast differences to face one another, which in Hebrew is called Panim el Panim. While Sacred Shelter does not tackle the socioeconomic conditions and inequities that cause homelessness, it provides a voice for a demographic group that continues to suffer from systemic injustice and marginalization. In powerful, narrative form, it expresses the resilience of individuals who have experienced homelessness and the hope and community they have found. By listening to their stories, we are urged to confront our own woundedness and uncover our desire for human connection, a sacred shelter on the other side of suffering.

Since its foundation in 1799, the Royal Institution of Great Britain has inspired enthusiasm and excitement for science, as a means to understanding the world around us. The Friday Evening Discourses were initiated by Michael Faraday in 1826 and are one of the most prestigious series of popular science lectures in the world.
This new selection of essays from the Royal Institution offers fascinating and authoritative accounts of current thinking in diverse areas of science, ranging from cosmic rays to the development of new materials that seem to have a life of their own. Also in this collection are essays that consider how scientists can better convey their work to the general public and to a younger generation.