Reading is cne of the highest farns of aa;ru:i. red oogni ti ve func- tioos. It cares as no sw:prise, therefore, that the study of reeding has attracted nmerous investigators who, in spite of their diverse background, have been notivated by cne ultimate goal --to understand how we read and how we learn to reed. A s\bstantial prQIX)rticn of these investigators have attenpted to gain knowled~ about the neuro- p:;ychological processes that 1mderlie the reading process by studying individuals who fail to acquire reading skill (developtental dyslexia) and individuals wOO aa;IUire a reading deficit as a result of brain pathology (alexia~ aa;IUired dyslexia). OVer the years, these two sources, using different tedmiqll3S and nethods, have yielded a good deal of infonration. Unfortunately, the enpirical findings that have been c:btained under these two circunstances have, to a lar~ extent, failed to influence the other. Bringing these two approaches (developtental dyslexia and aCXIUired alexia) t~ther, therefore, remains a top priority. With a view towards bringing these two disciplines together, the Scientific Affairs Divisioo of the North Atlantic Treaty Organi- zation (NAro) cwarded us a grant to ccnduct an Advanced Stuly Institute (ASI) in Maratea, Italy, from Octc:ber 10-22, 1982. '!his volure is the result of that Institute. The book is divided into four parts: developtental reading and spelling disorders, acquired alexia, diagnosis and reI'lEdiation, and research :inplications.

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) awarded us a grant to conduct an Advanced Study Institute (ASI) on Neuropsychology and Cognition. The ASI was conducted at Augusta, Georgia, USA, from September 8-18, 1980. Two volumes resulted from this Institute. Volume one consists of chapters from Corballis, Dimond, Spreen, Bakker, Pirozzolo, Aaron, Whitaker and Zangwill. Corballis discusses the evolution of laterality and Dimond presents specialization of hemispheric functions. Neuropsychological assess ment is the theme of Spreen's chapter and neuropsychological aspects of dyslexia is examined by Bakker, Pirozzolo, and Aaron. Whitaker analyzes a rare form of language impairment. The volume closes with a critical review of cerebral dominance by Zangwill. Volume two deals with such topics as hemispheric specialization neuropsychological assessment, neuropsychological aspects of cogni tion, language, and reading, and research implications in neuro psychology. These two volumes will be useful to practicing clinicians, educationists, psychologists, linguists, speech pathologists and audiologists. We sincerely thank NATO Scientific Affairs Division for their financial and moral support. The Institute was successful because of the generous help from the Oregon State University, Medical College of Georgia, and the Augusta Hilton. The Institute would not have been possible without the understanding and contribution of lecturers and participants."