Robert Ornstein and Paul Ehrlich explain that we are causing our own problems because we have created a world where our basic mental functions are no longer suitable. We evolved over a period of millions of years to survive in small tribal families on the wild grassy plains of East Africa. Now the way we live has nothing to do with that time and place, but the mental tools that were developed to survive on the savanna have remained unchanged. These instincts were wonderfully adapted to the...

This is a book that shows, in simple detail, one of the most startling findings of modern science: We don't experience the world as it is, but as virtual reality. And while much of the latest scientific work demonstrates this, as do many of the classical psychological illusions, it is an important meeting point for students of the mind, brain, philosophy and religion because, as we can now see in light of this book, all these disciplines begin at the same place. This is no...

A stunning unification of science and tradition for a revolutionary new concept of spirituality to address the challenges of the modern world. The book explores how our "everyday" mind works as a device for selecting just a few parts of the outside reality that are important for our survival. We don't experience the world as it is, but as a virtual reality - a small, limited system that evolved to keep us safe and ensure our survival. This system, though essential for getting us safely acr...

When we think of family, we most often think of our sisters and brothers, our cousins and grandparents, rather than our world family or even our community connections. We still identify with our differences more than our similarities, unless it's convenient to do otherwise. Here, two seasoned authors tackle the question of family and what it means to us now and how it might change to help us address the problems that affect us all. Using specific examples throughout the work, they present ...

A provocative look at how the human mind evolved, and what this means for our future. What is the mind? How is it that, like the proverbial fish that knows so little about the surrounding water, we know so little about something that controls every aspect of our individual and collective lives? Passionate, entertaining and provocative, The Evolution of Consciousness presents a fundamental challenge to our assumptions about the mind and how it works. Robert Ornstein tackles the min...

Meditation and Modern Psychology examines meditation from two perspectives: first, from the perspective of religions and philosophies such as Zen, Yoga and those of the Sufis and Christian mystics; and then from the modern psychologist's point of view: what is happening neurophysiologically during and after meditation? By looking at meditation from both points of view, Ornstein produces a modern scientific synthesis - one sympathetic to the practice of meditation, enabling the re...

For years, North Americans have been seeking rational, analytical answers to despair and anxiety. But now, this rational Western perception of consciousness has been challenged by an Eastern discipline which brings into sharp focus the travesty and deception underlying many of the contemporary awareness movements. Yet it is also the author's intent to combat the easy criticisms of the super-rationalists who dismiss every new development as the irresponsible inventions of the "guru-of-the-m...

Robert Ornstein's classic, Multimind, presents a startling new concept of how the human mind works. In a readable and accessible way, he introduces a new science of the mind, explaining why our emotions and attitudes are so easily swayed, and the difficulty of ever really knowing oneself or another person. Ornstein faults the narrowness of IQ tests, stressing the many varied abilities that make up intelligence. Citing studies of hypnosis and multiple personality, he explains how m...

This new, revised edition of the classic study takes a fresh look at human consciousness and the untapped potential of the human mind. Robert Ornstein reexamines what's known about consciousness and why this understanding is so important at this time of enormous challenge, change and potential. He begins with an exploration of how the human brain evolved as a complex system for limiting what we "pick up" from the vast external environment to just the information we need to survive. He desc...

The Healing Brain presents an easy-to-read, amusing, entertaining, and yet highly authoritative account of how our brain "minds" our body - actively guarding and defending our health and wellbeing. Neurologist Robert Ornstein and physician David Sobel highlight the themes most important to understanding this fascinating science. They explain that, contrary to many of our assumptions about the main purpose of our brain, it evolved primarily for "higher thinking" - and that, in fact...

What does it mean to go beyond our ordinary perception of reality? Why has almost all of humanity, throughout our history, had the concept of transcendence and connection to “the other” – to “the spirit world,” to “God,” or to “the One behind it all?”This remarkable work coalesces findings from the shamans of the Ice Age (God 1.0), to the first temples, priests and gods of the Neolithic era and Mesopotamia (God 2.0), to the Axial Age prophets and the three major monotheistic religi...

A new revised edition of the classic study takes a fresh look at human consciousness and an exciting new view of the untapped potential of the human mind.What is consciousness and why do we need to know?In this new fourth edition of his revolutionary study, Robert Ornstein reexamines what is known about consciousness and why this understanding is so important at this time of enormous challenge, change and potential.He begins with an exploration of how the human brai...