January Reviews (2008)

Sternberg, Eliezer J. Are You a Machine? : The Brain, the Mind, and What It Means to Be Human. Amherst, New York: Humanity Books, 2007.

It’s one of the curiosities of life that once you become interested in a thing, you find it all around you. I’ve been increasingly interested in the idea of consciousness and the essence of being human. Over the past several months, I’ve seen many new works published on various aspects of these complex and amorphous topics. Many recent articles are available discussing philosophical, medical, scientific, and spiritual, perspectives of consciousness. A simple, cogent discussion of these various positions is not easy to find. At least until now. With Sternberg’s small and concise work, there is one place to begin delving into this fascinating area of study.

This remarkable little book is jam-packed with philosophy and scientific fact. It could be used as an introductory textbook in philosophy or psychology or cognitive science courses. Sternberg discusses in clear, straightforward language the thinking of Descartes, the research of Francis Crick, David Chalmers, and Ray Kurzweil, among others. He presents information in short chapters starting with real-life scenarios that develop into broad discussions of the theory or research covered. The chapter called “The Ghost in the Machine” is one of the best. Sternberg describes two scenes that happen only in his mind. First, he imagines himself playing basketball and making a last minute shot that wins the game. Then, knowing his own capabilities, he sees the scene more realistically without as positive an ending.

He proceeds from this scenario to examine the concepts of dualism, the theater of the mind, and hyperdualism. Then the opposing arguments based on idealism and materialism are presented. Each of these theories seeks to explain how the mind works. He writes:

Some philosophers maintain that the mystery will never be solved. The mind has limitations in
understanding its own mechanisms. Maybe we are not yet advanced enough in our evolution to solve a problem like this. (page 46)

Each chapter ends with a shaded box with the heading “Further Readings.” These annotated bibliographies refer to the complete versions of the works from which Sternberg draws in the preceding pages. The annotations are well written and make the items seem highly accessible to any reader. I found myself making notes to follow up on several.

To the question he poses in the title Sternberg’s answer is no, humans are not machines. But his is a personal conclusion and one that he would say is most exemplary of the human mind. Exercise your mind and read this enjoyable book for yourself. It’s guaranteed to make you think.

Pamela Grudzien
Head of Technical Services
Central Michigan University Libraries.