Einstein's Brain: Genius, Culture, and Social Networks

by Sal Restivo

Overview

This book reviews the research on Einstein’s brain from a sociological perspective and in the context of the social brain paradigm.  Instead of “Einstein, the genius of geniuses” standing on the shoulders of giants, Restivo proposes a concept of Einstein the social being standing on the shoulders of social networks. Rather than challenging Einstein’s uniqueness or the uniqueness of his achievements, the book grounds Einstein and his achievements in a social ecology opposed to the myths of the “I,” individualism, and the very idea of “genius.”  “Einstein” is defined by the particular configuration of social networks that he engaged as his life unfolded, not by biological inheritances. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9783030329181
Publisher:	Palgrave Pivot
Publication date:	11/19/2019
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	852 KB

About the Author

Sal Restivo is a sociologist/anthropologist who has held professorships and endowed chairs at universities in the U.S., Europe, and China.  He is a former president of the Society for Social Studies of Science and author most recently of Sociology, Science, and the End of Philosophy: How Society Shapes Brains, Gods, Maths, and Logics (Palgrave, 2017).

With Mario Incayawar and Jenelle Clarke.

Table of Contents

1.
“Einstein” as a Grammatical Illusion.- 2. The Social Self: Beyond the Myth of Individualism.- 3. Einstein’s Brain: A Conspiracy of Mythologies.- 4. Genius: Standing on the Shoulders of Social Networks.- 5. The Social Brain Paradigm.- 6. The Social Brain: Implications For Therapeutic And Preventive Protocols In Psychiatry.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“What a wonderful book. It’s a joy to read and delivers a powerful sociological message. Restivo’s account of the debates over analyzing Einstein’s Brain is great to have. I hope the defining slogan of this book will travel widely: ‘Give me a genius and I will give you a social network.’” (Randall Collins, Professor Emeritus, University of Pennsylvania, author of The Sociology of Philosophies (1998))