Miriam Boleyn-Fitzgerald
Miriam Boleyn-Fitzgerald is a recipient of the Thomas J. Watson Fellowship and the Ida M. Green Award for graduate studies in Science, Technology, and Society at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She has worked as a staff writer for President Clinton’s Advisory Committee on Human Radiation Experiments and as an analyst for the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Union of Concerned Scientists. She has spent fifteen years publishing on a wide range of scientific topics for curious readers of all backgrounds.
Books
Pictures of the Mind: What the New Neuroscience Tells Us About Who We Are
Once, neuroscientists believed your brain was essentially “locked down” by adulthood—no new cells and no major changes. If you grew up depressed, angry, sad, aggressive, or nasty, you’d be that way for life. As you grew older, there’d be nowhere to go but down—as disease, age, or injury wiped out precious, irreplaceable brain cells. But they don’t believe that anymore. Now, using fMRI and PET scanning technology, they can look inside the human brain. And they’ve discovered that it’s amazingly flexible, resilient, and plastic.
This book is about what they’re learning—and what it means for you and your loved ones. You’ll watch human brains healing, growing, and adapting to challenges...gain powerful new insights into the interplay between environment and genetics...see how people can influence their own intellectual abilities and emotional makeup. Along the way, you’ll learn about the tantalizing discoveries that might lead to cures for traumatic brain injury, stroke, emotional disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, drug addiction, chronic pain, memory problems—maybe even Alzheimer’s.
- Strengthening the neural pathways that lead to a better life
Teaching yourself to be happier, less fear driven, kinder, and more effectual - Where, what, and who are you?
Consciousness inside the fMRI scanner: experiences of self, other, and neither - The making and breaking of memories
Remembering more of what you want to and less of what you don’t - The power of mindfulness and meditation
What neuroscientists are learning from Buddhist monks
Bonus Content
Pictures of the Mind: What the New Neuroscience Tells Us About Who We Are
“Life, Death, and the Middle Ground”
Miriam Boleyn-Fitzgerald discusses the uses of MRI technology for patients in comas. Read More…
What Are People Saying?
“Pictures of the Mind is an extraordinary book. It makes the unfolding scientific story of consciousness vivid, even joyous, while offering a sophisticated tour of what is known about ourselves, our emotions, and our brains. A beautiful read.”
--Ruth R. Faden, Philip Franklin Wagley Professor of Biomedical Ethics and
Director of the Berman Institute of Bioethics at Johns Hopkins University
“This book explores the many ways in which neuroscience is revealing remarkable things about the inner workings of our minds—not the least of which is the transformative impact that meditation can have on destructive thoughts and behavior. I have no doubt that Miriam Boleyn-Fitzgerald’s work will be of great benefit to those with an interest in this fascinating new area of inquiry.”
--Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, author of The Joy of Living: Unlocking the Secret and Science of Happiness
“The mind is embodied, and it is relational. In this straightforward and illuminating book, Miriam Boleyn-Fitzgerald reveals pictures in both visual and narrative form that capture the power of the mind to transform the brain. How our mental lives shape and are shaped by neural circuitry—itself forever being molded by experience—is the central theme of these powerful portraits of what it means to be human. By learning to focus our minds in more compassionate ways—toward ourselves and others—we can literally promote a healthier and more integrated brain. Read these pages, and you'll be able to see for yourself!”
--Daniel J. Siegel, M.D., author of Mindsight: The New Science of Personal Transformation, Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the UCLA School of Medicine,
Co-Investigator at the Center for Culture, Brain, and Development, and Co-Director of the Mindful Awareness Research Center
“Miriam Boleyn-Fitzgerald has given us a remarkably clear and engaging account of the ways that the new brain imaging technologies can give us deep insights into our gravest maladies. Her conclusion, that healing may often lie with us, joins science with the wisdom of the ages.”
--Jonathan D. Moreno, author of Mind Wars, David and Lyn Silfen University Professor, and Professor of Medical Ethics and of History and Sociology of Science at the University of Pennsylvania
“An engaging and compelling read that illustrates how the new brain science can help us understand elements of our basic humanity.”
--Zindel Segal, author of The Mindful Way through Depression and Cameron Wilson Chair in Depression Studies at the University of Toronto and the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health