Helen Plum Library

Modern medicine has transformed the dangers of childbirth, injury, and infectious disease from harrowing to manageable. But in the face of our inevitable aging and death, what it can do often runs counter to what it should do. Now Atul Gawande reveals the suffering this has produced. He examines the profession's limitations and failures as life draws to a close, and he shows how the ultimate goal is not a good death, but a good life -- until the very...

"If you want to gain insight into the mind of great athletes, adventurers, and peak performers then prepare to be enthralled by Alex Hutchinson's Endure"--Bear Grylls. From the National Magazine Award-winning Runner's World columnist, frequent New Yorker online contributor, and Cambridge-trained physicist: a fascinating and definitive exploration of the revolutionary new science of endurance and the secrets of human performance. Alex Hutchinson, Ph.D.,...

"The magic of the brain is not found in the parts it's made of but in the way those parts unceasingly reweave themselves in an electric living fabric. And there is no more accomplished and accessible guide than renowned neuroscientist David Eagleman to help us understand the nature and changing texture of that fabric. With his hallmark clarity and enthusiasm he reveals the myriad ways that the brain absorbs experience: developing, redeploying, organizing,...

Explores the roles of both genetics and training in athletic success, arguing that both are equally necessary components of athletic achievement while considering such topics as race, gender, and genetic testing We all knew a star athlete in high school. The one who made it look so easy. He was the starting quarterback and shortstop; she was the all-state point guard and high-jumper. Naturals. Or were they? The debate is as old as physical competition....

"From the operating room, where he performs some of the riskiest surgeries around, to the lab, where he is working on growing skin cells and injecting them into the brain to replace worn out neural tissue, Dr. Rahul Jandial is on the cutting edge of the latest advancements in neuroscience. This fascinating book draws on Dr. Jandial's broad-spectrum expertise and brings together the best of various fields--surgery, science, brain structure, the conscious...

Prescriptive Stretching is a well-illustrated, scientfically sound book that will help you achieve better flexibility and improved wellness

In this riveting investigation, Stanislas Dehaene provides an accessible account of the brain circuitry of reading and explores what he calls the "reading paradox": Our cortex is the product of millions of years of evolution in a world without writing, so how did it adapt to recognize words?

Neuroscientist Penny Lewis explores the latest research into the nighttime brain to understand the real benefits of sleep, showing how, while our body rests, the brain practices tasks it learned during the day, replays traumatic events to mollify them, and forges connections between distant concepts

"The first running book by a world's leading pioneering running doctor and athlete, creator of the Air Force's Efficient Running program--the result of more than three decades of study, practice, and science that shows us in clearly illustrated and accessible text how easy it is to run efficiently and injury-free, whether you're in your 20s, 60s or 70s; for beginning runners and experienced marathoners. In Run for Your Life, Dr. Mark Cucuzzella explains...