Episode notes
In this podcast, I am joined by Matthew Cobb, author of the fascinating book The idea of the Brain, to discuss the different concepts of the brain that have emerged over the centuries.
Matthew Cobb is Professor of Zoology at the University of Manchester where he studies the neurobiology of the sense of smell.
Matthew Cobb explores current and historical metaphors of the brain, from the machine and the mill to the battery and the computer.
Matthew also flavours his history with gripping anecdotes, from Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. And he draws lessons from such giants of science, from Galvani and Volta to Steno and Francis Crick.
Matthew is also a non-professional historian, having written several other books, most recently Life’s Greatest Secret: The Race to Crack the Genetic ...