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Embracing the Wide Sky: A Tour Across the Horizons of the Mind |  | Author: Daniel Tammet
Publisher: Free Press
List Price: $15.00
Buy New: $10.12
as of 11/25/2009 07:22 CST details
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Rating:  36 reviews
Sales Rank: 89073
Media: Paperback
Pages: 320
Number Of Items: 1
ISBN: 1416576185
Dewey Decimal Number: 920
EAN: 9781416576181
ASIN: 1416576185
Publication Date: December 29, 2009 (In 34 Days)
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Availability: Not yet published
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Product Description
Owner of "the most remarkable mind on the planet," (according to Entertainment Weekly) Daniel Tammet captivated readers and won worldwide critical acclaim with the 2007 New York Times bestselling memoir, Born On A Blue Day, and its vivid depiction of a life with autistic savant syndrome. In his fascinating new book, he writes with characteristic clarity and personal awareness as he sheds light on the mysteries of savants' incredible mental abilities, and our own. Tammet explains that the differences between savant and non-savant minds have been exaggerated; his astonishing capacities in memory, math and language are neither due to a cerebral supercomputer nor any genetic quirk, but are rather the results of a highly rich and complex associative form of thinking and imagination. Autistic thought, he argues, is an extreme variation of a kind that we all do, from daydreaming to the use of puns and metaphors. Embracing the Wide Sky combines meticulous scientific research with Tammet's detailed descriptions of how his mind works to demonstrate the immense potential within us all. He explains how our natural intuitions can help us to learn a foreign language, why his memories are like symphonies, and what numbers and giraffes have in common. We also discover why there is more to intelligence than IQ, how optical illusions fool our brains, and why too much information can make you dumb. Many readers will be particularly intrigued by Tammet's original ideas concerning the genesis of genius and exceptional creativity. He illustrates his arguments with examples as diverse as the private languages of twins, the compositions of poets with autism, and the breakthroughs, and breakdowns, of some of history's greatest minds. Embracing the Wide Sky is a unique and brilliantly imaginative portrait of how we think, learn, remember and create, brimming with personal insights and anecdotes, and explanations of the most up-to-date, mind-bending discoveries from fields ranging from neuroscience to psychology and linguistics. This is a profound and provocative book that will transform our understanding and respect for every kind of mind.
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Showing reviews 1-5 of 36
 A lovely and lucid analysis of many interesting psychological phenomena August 26, 2009
Paul Sas (Berkeley)
Gifted with an amazing mind, and a gentle spirit, Daniel Tammet discusses a wide range of interesting psychological topics. His expository style is very lucid, and even when he criticizes another writer, he does it with kindness. One real keeper (worthy of being added as a node in wikipedia) concerns his treatment of Oliver Sacks' story about autistic twins (which fed directly into the Rain Man script). According to Sacks, the twins mainly spoke to one another by exchanging 4 digit primes. He recorded their miraculous subitizing of the entire contents of a matchbox, which when it was knocked to the floor, caused both twins to shout "111." Tammet points out how nearly impossible it would be to accurately count this many falling matches; it's much more plausible, he notes, that the twins had primed the box by keeping only 111 matches in it, since that number is so "match-like" to Tammet, and quite plausibly, to the twins as well. Rather than the miracle of counting the sticks instantaneously, he gives a much better explanation. He also raises a serious question about Sacks' veracity in claiming to have brought a book to the twins that contained 10 to 20 digit primes. For those who enjoyed this work, as well as Tammet's autobiography, Born on a Blue Day, I'd recommend a scan of Tyler Cowen's recent Create Your Own Economy, which sustains a very attractive vision of what we can gain from respecting neurodiversity.
 Delving into the MYSTERY and BEAUTY of the human MIND July 28, 2009
Stephen Pletko (London, Ontario, Canada)
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"This book is about the mind--its nature and abilities. It combines some of the latest neuroscientific research with my personal reflections and detailed descriptions of my abilities and experiences. My primary intention in writing it is to show that differently functioning minds such as mine...are not so strange, in fact, and that anyone can learn from them. Along the way, I hope to clear up many misconceptions about the nature of savant abilities and want it means to be intelligent or gifted."
The above is found in the introduction of this interesting book by Daniel Tammet, one of fifty savants in the world today and now a writer, linguist, and educator.
Unlike Tammet's first bestselling book "Born on a Blue Day" (2006) which is a memoir and intimate account of his life as a high-functioning autistic savant, this book is less intimate letting instead selective research be the main focus of the narrative.
There are three chapters that I thought were fascinating that detail descriptions of Tammet's own abilities in memory, language, and number sense, all areas where his autism helps him to excel. And I definitely agree that "these chapters represent the most comprehensive personal account of savant ability ever written."
Tammet, however, goes on to look at the brain, intelligence, creativity, and perception. I was not overly impressed with these chapters perhaps because they were not as intimate as the above three chapters.
My greatest problem with the book was that even though this book is about mind, Tammet does not define what "mind" is. As one would expect, several definitions of mind exist. It seems to me Tammet is defining mind mainly as a collection of processes (perception, memory, etc) as well as defining mind as equivalent to brain and intelligence.
Another problem I had was that two of the final chapters seem to be somewhat pontifical. For, example Tammet makes it abundantly clear that he does not like lotteries and by extension, readers should not like them either. He seems to be unfamiliar with the following:
"The poker player [or the lottery player] learns that sometimes both science and common sense are wrong; that the bumblebee can fly; that perhaps one should never trust an expert; and that there are more things in heaven and earth that are dreamt by those with an academic bent."
Another example is attempting to show that vaccinations are basically safe and effective. (Specifically, he looks at a certain vaccination that is said by many to cause autism.) He goes on to "prove" his point by examining selective research that says vaccinations are safe (or the particular vaccination that is said to cause autism is safe). The fact is vaccinations are very controversial and I thought Tammet's discussion here was somewhat flimsy.
Finally, I would recommend reading "Born on a Blue Day" first before reading this book. This will give any potential reader a sense of who Tammet is.
In conclusion, caveats aside, this book is well-written and provides much food for thought!!
*** 1/2
(first published 2009; introduction; 10 chapters; main narrative 265 pages; acknowledgements; bibliography; index)
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 100 Books in One June 28, 2009
Pavel Somov, Ph.D., Author of Eating the Moment: 141 Mindful Practices to Overcome Overeating One Meal at a Time (Pittsburgh, PA, USA)
Embracing Wide Sky is as encyclopedic, imaginative, creative, clear and self-aware as the mind that wrote it. It's a 100 books in one - qualitatively, that is, not quantitatively.
[...]
Embrace it for what it is June 5, 2009
BeagleGrin (Wilmington, DE United States)
WOW
What I got from this book was an entirely different view on the mind. My only gripe, if it can even be considered a gripe, is that at times it seems I'm being lectured to, as if sitting once again in a lecture hall.
Not that that is a bad thing. But, while reading, it seemed a bit impersonal, almost like being talked TO instead of "talking with" someone. Not that you talk with books, but this book reads in a way reminiscent of my college textbooks or even my college professors. And again, that is not necessarily a bad thing, just a different style than I am used to reading in an everyday book. But this is not an everyday book. My mind was opened by someone whose thought processes do differ from my own. BUT, there is never any real proof we all think the same anyway!
Almost gave it five stars, but could only do four, something seemed missing, not sure if it was the writing style that threw me. What I can say, is material is presented in laymans terms, easy to understand and easy to follow. And quite an eye opener. So, embrace this book for what it is and for who wrote it. You will not be dissapointed.
The Well Connected Mind May 31, 2009
J. Finkel (Hoboken, NJ)
In Embracing the Wide Sky, Daniel Tammet discusses the human brain and many of its marvels. As a savant, Tammet has unique insight on the seemingly mystical abilities some geniuses portray. The mystery is removed and what lies beneath beautifully explained. Specifically, Tammet professes that his brain, along with many high-functioning autistics, contains a much higher degree of connectedness than the 'normal' human adult brain.
The majority of the book is spent delving into anecdotes, research and personal experience regarding the quirky workings of the brain. How can you get the most out of your brain? What are the urban myths regarding savants and what are the facts? How does a person with autism see the world differently than someone without autism? These are some of the major topics thoroughly dissected.
Overall, I truly enjoyed the book from start to finish. There were times I felt some humor would have been welcome and the tone approached that of a textbook. However, the concise language, varied vocabulary and impeccable sentence structure and organization made for a very strong presentation. Best of all, there is little repetition or otherwise wordy fluff. An excellent read, highly recommended.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 36
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