Dr. Gerald Edelman, the Founder and Director of The Neurosciences Institute, has written extensively about global theories of brain function and consciousness. His major publications on these subjects include Neural Darwinism (1987), The Remembered Present: A Biological Theory of Consciousness (1990), A Universe of Consciousness: How Matter Becomes Imagination (2000), Wider than the Sky: The Phenomenal Gift of Consciousness (2004), and Second Nature: Brain Science and Human Knowledge (2007).

Historically, consciousness was mainly studied by philosophers. However, advances in technology now allow us to investigate consciousness through two main techniques. The first is called functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), which measures blood flow that accompanies neuronal activation to identify locations of active centers under various conditions. The second method is magnetoencephalography (MEG), which measures small changes in magnetic fields generated by neuronal electrical currents in different parts of the brain. MEG can detect rapid changes at given locations, and therefore it enables measurements on a time scales much faster that fMRI.

Institute researchers study the state of consciousness through a variety of approaches (e.g., theoretical modeling, perception of music and language, studies of sleep versus waking states). Collectively our research is leading us toward understanding the brain in the state of health and disease.

For Dr. Edelman's most recent interview about his latest book, Second Nature: Brain Science and Human Knowledge click here. 

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