The Body Has a Mind of Its Own

by Sandra Blakeslee and Matthew Blakeslee

Your body has a mind of its own. You know it's true. You can feel it, you can sense it, even though it may be hard to articulate. You know your body is more than just a meat-vehicle for your mind to cruise around in, but how deeply are mind, brain and body truly interwoven? Take a moment to ask yourself: How do you know you have a body? What gives you your sense of being in charge of it, and how real, how robust, how fragile is that sense? How does your mind know where your body ends and the outside world begins? Answers can be found in the emerging science of body maps...
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The Authors

Sandra and Matthew, mother and son, are the third and fourth generation of science writers in the Blakeslee family. Sandra's grandfather Howard worked for the Associated Press starting in the 1920s and was one of the pioneers of American science writing. Howard's son Alton – Sandra's father, Matthew's grand- father – took over as AP science editor until retiring in 1985.

Sandra is a veteran science writer who contributes regularly to the New York Times. Her specialty is neuroscience. She lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where she continues to work for the Times and write books. With Dr. Judith Wallerstein she co- authored Second Chances, The Good Marriage, The Unexpected Legacy of Divorce, and What About the Kids. She co-authored Phantoms in the Brain with Dr. V.S. Ramachandran and wrote On Intelligence with Jeff Hawkins.

Matthew trained in cognitive science but in the end decided not to become a neuroscientist. In 1999 he switched tracks and took up science writing, almost by accident. He lives in Topanga Canyon in Los Angeles, California, and divides his time between freelance and book writing. This is his first credited book.