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This podcast is a channel on the New Books Network. The New Books Network is an academic audio library dedicated to public education. In each episode you will hear scholars discuss their recently published research with another expert in their field. Discover our 150+ channels and browse our 28,000+ episodes on our website: newbooksnetwork.com Subscribe to our free weekly Substack newsletter to get informative, engaging content straight to your inbox: https://newbooksnetwork.substack.com/ Follow us on Instagram and Bluesky to learn about more our latest interviews: @newbooksnetworkSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/neuroscience
Based on 6 episodes we listened to · June 2026
A patient Science feed for listeners who want neuroscience and mind research handled through serious, book-centered conversations.
New Books in Neuroscience treats Science as a long conversation with a book at the center, not a rush to explain the latest idea. The show stays close to the brain and mind, then lets the subject widen: neural networks and intelligence, Buddhist theories of consciousness,…
You want neuroscience books questioned until whales, MRIs, neural nets, aura images, and balance systems start making sense.
Press play if you want
Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
A clear look at how memory can be activated, altered, and made strange.
Steve Ramirez and Caleb Zakarin frame the episode around a plain but unsettling question: what does it mean to alter a memory, and when does that change start to become something else?
A steady account of the brain as an organic computer.
The piece treats the brain as an organic computer and follows that idea through neuronal ensembles and Hopfield-style attractors, showing how coordinated activity can give rise to thought.
A measured look at how context, neural networks, and self-explaining minds shape understanding.
The episode treats The Emergent Mind as a plain but sturdy argument: intelligence is shaped by context, not by isolated rules. It moves from neural networks to the surrounding signals that shape perception and judgment, and the 1970s stocking experiment gives that idea a useful…
A steady look at the vestibular system and the way it keeps balance.
Jeffrey Sharon turns a specialized subject into something easy to follow. The discussion traces how the vestibular system helps the body stay upright, how the brain reads motion, and why ordinary dizziness can be worth studying.
Revenge comes off as a learned reward loop, not a slogan.
James Kimmel Jr. treats revenge less like a moral reflex and more like a brain loop, and Caleb Zakrin lets the argument unfold without rushing it.
A clear look at intelligence that treats creativity as a human need, not just a technical feature.
The discussion of intelligence works best when it moves away from abstract praise and toward the human needs beneath it. It makes a clear case that machines may be creative, but they do not bring the same drive people have to make ideas that are new, useful, and worth acting on.
A careful conversation that turns addiction science into plain terms without flattening it.
The piece tracks a clear through-line: some drug effects can push the body toward the opposite of the relief people expect. It keeps the science legible by moving through caffeine, melatonin, and tryptophan instead of staying abstract, and the examples land because they stay…
Learning and motivation are framed as a feedback loop, not separate tasks.
The episode keeps coming back to a plain but useful point: learning can feed motivation, not just follow it. Most of the discussion stays with the loop between low-stakes quizzing, confidence, and the willingness to keep going, which gives it a clear practical center.
Mushroom culture from soil to society.
Clear neuroscience for curious minds.
Plant papers, jokes, and useful uncertainty.
Weed science, from genomes to paddocks.
Biomedical careers, described from the inside.
Human stakes behind biomedical progress.
Gregory McNiff speaks with Eduardo Mercado III about Why Whales Sing, published by Johns Hopkins University Press in the United States in November 2025.
An interview with Adam Zeman about his book on the science of imagination.
Your brain fired before you felt like moving—that experiment shattered free will.
Neuroscientist Steve Ramirez discusses his book 'How to Change a Memory', explaining the physical basis of memory (engrams), how memories can be artificially activated and altered (including creating false memories in rodents), and the potential therapeutic applications for conditions like PTSD and depression.
Gregory McNiff speaks with Rafael Yuste about Lectures in Neuroscience.
A neuroscientist reveals how discovering neuroplasticity saved her academic life.
Host Gregory McNiff interviews Gaurav Suri and Jay McClelland about their book 'The Emergent Mind,' exploring how intelligence arises from non-intelligent components through neural networks.
Gregory McNabb speaks with Jeffrey Sharon about The Great Balancing Act, An Insider's Guide to the Human Vestibular System.
Caleb Zakrin speaks with James Kimmel Jr.
Frances Egan discusses her book 'Deflating Mental Representation,' arguing against traditional naturalistic accounts of mental content.
Paul Thagard discusses his book 'Bots and Beasts,' comparing intelligence across humans, animals, and machines.
Emily Dufton speaks with Judith Grisel about addiction and the brain, especially the idea that drugs can push the brain into the opposite state from the one users wanted.
Rebecca Limov, a professor of history of science at Harvard University, discusses The Instability of Truth, Brainwashing, Mind Control, and Hyper-Persuasion with host Renee Garfinkel on the Van Leer Institute series on ideas.
Host Anne-Marie Varenna interviews Dr.
Miranda Melcher speaks with Jeremy Stolow about Picturing Aura: A Visual Biography and uses the book to open up broader questions about how bodies get represented.
Renee Hale speaks with an author about Writing for the Reader's Brain.
Caleb Zakrin talks with Kira Green, co-author with Gillian Murphy of Memory Lane, The Perfectly Imperfect Ways We Remember, about how human memory actually works.
Jessica Zhu introduces Peter to talk about consciousness through a Buddhist lens.
Grace Lindsay discusses her book 'Models of the Mind,' exploring how physics, engineering, and mathematics shape our understanding of the brain.
Adrian Perkle talks with the host about his book on human aggression.
An interview with a philosopher about her new book on neuroscience, part of the New Books Network.
An interview with Dr.
An interview with neuroscientist Camilla Nord about her book on the science of mental health.
An interview with neuroscientists about their book on healthy habits for brain health and happiness.
An interview with a professor about the role of imagination in human innovation, part of the New Books in Neuroscience podcast.
An interview with Caroline Dicey-Jennings about her chapter on attention, technology, and creativity in the book 'Scenes of Attention'.
An interview with Shane O'Mara about his book on the neuroscience of conversation.
An interview with Kimberly Wilson about her book 'Unprocessed' exploring how ultra-processed foods fuel the mental health crisis.
An interview with a scholar discussing their recently published research in neuroscience, featuring a segment on St.