E-grāmata: Switched On

"When John Elder Robison published Look Me in the Eye, his darkly funny bestselling memoir about growing up with Asperger's Syndrome, he was launched into international prominence as an autism expert. But in spite of his success, he still struggled to decode the secret language of social interactions, and often felt like a misfit who understood car engines better than people. So when a group of Harvard neuroscientists told John about TMS (Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation), an experimental brain therapy that promised to remediate the disabilities of autism and unlock his emotional intelligence, he jumped at the chance to join their study. Switched On recounts the adventure that followed, as John became a guinea pig to the world's top brain researchers inan effort to understand the social and emotional deficits that lie at the heart of autism, with electrifying results. As Robison describes his transformation: "For the first time in my life, I learned what it was like to truly 'know' other people's feelings. It was as if I'd been experiencing the world in black and white all my life, and suddenly I could see everything--and particularly other people--in brilliant beautiful color.""--

A follow-up to "Look Me in the Eye" continues the story of the author's struggles with Asperger's Syndrome, recounting how, after undergoing an experimental brain therapy, he began to experience empathy in ways that challenged his perceptions about his relationships, memories, and sense of identity.

A follow-up to the best-selling Look Me in the Eye continues the story of the author's struggles with autism, recounting how after undergoing an experimental brain therapy he began to experience empathy in ways that challenged his perceptions about his relationships, memories and sense of identity.

An extraordinary memoir about the cutting-edge brain therapy that dramatically changed the life and mind of John Elder Robison, the New York Times bestselling author ofLook Me in the Eye
 
Imagine spending the first forty years of your life in darkness, blind to the emotions and social signals of other people. Then imagine that someone suddenly switches the lights on.
 
John Elder Robison’s bestselling memoir Look Me in the Eye is one of the most widely read and beloved accounts of life with autism. InSwitched On, Robison shares the second part of his journey, pushing the boundaries of scientific discovery as he undergoes an experimental brain therapy known as TMS, or transcranial magnetic stimulation. TMS drastically changes Robison’s life. After forty years of feeling like a social misfit—either misreading other people’s emotions or missing them completely, and accepting this as his fate—Robison can suddenly sense a powerful range of emotion in others as a result of the treatments: “It was as if I’d been experiencing the world in black and white all my life, and suddenly I could see everything—and particularly other people—in brilliant, beautiful color.” The ability to connect emotionally with others for the first time brings Robison a kind of joy he has never known.
           
And yet, Robison’s newfound insight has very real downsides. As the emotional ground shifts beneath his feet, he must find a way to move forward without losing sight of who he is, what he values, and all he has worked so hard for. Robison is our guinea pig and our guide, bravely leading us on an adventure that holds the key to new ways of understanding the mysteries of the human brain. In this real-lifeFlowers for Algernon, he grapples with a trade-off, the very real possibility that choosing to diminish his disability might also mean sacrificing his unique gifts and even some of his closest relationships.Switched On is a fascinating and intimate window into what it means to be neurologically different, and what happens when the world as you know it is upended overnight.
 
Praise for Switched On
 
“Switched On is a mind-blowing book that will force you to ask deep questions about what is important in life. Would normalizing the brains of those who think differently reduce their motivation for great achievement?”—Temple Grandin, author ofThe Autistic Brain
 
“In this fascinating book John Elder Robison raises deep questions: What does TMS do to the brain? Will it permanently change his experience of music, his emotions, and his ability to read faces? And if autism involves disability as well as talent, if we alter the different wiring in an autistic brain, is this a good thing? Robison’s honest, brilliant, and very personal account helps us understand the perspective of someone living with autism.”—Simon Baron-Cohen, professor, Autism Research Centre, Cambridge University