David Linden
Encyclopedia
David J. Linden is an American professor of neuroscience
at Johns Hopkins University
in Baltimore, Maryland, and the author of The Accidental Mind: How Brain Evolution Has Given Us Love, Memory, Dreams, and God.
The book The Accidental Mind is an attempt to explain the human brain to intelligent lay readers, and recently received a silver medal in the category of Science from the Independent Publisher Association
. As of July 1, 2008, he has been the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Neurophysiology
.
Linden's second book, The Compass of Pleasure: How Our Brains Make Fatty Foods, Orgasm, Exercise, Marijuana, Generosity, Vodka, Learning, and Gambling Feel So Good, was released on April 14th, 2011 (ISBN 978-0670022588).
In addition to Linden's academic research, he is known as a popularizer of brain science, often making biochemistry understandable to non-science majors in his numerous appearances on the radio and on college campuses.
; his graduate work took place at Northwestern University
in Evanston, Illinois
. He also worked briefly at Hoffmann-La Roche
, in Nutley, New Jersey
after receiving his doctorate. The aspect of his work that appeals to "lay people" is becoming increasingly popular, which has led to appearances around the country in which he discusses quirky facts about brain chemistry, and grants interviews on neuroscience. At a recent talk for freshmen at a liberal arts college, he proclaimed I had no idea my book would become required reading for 500 freshmen. I'm so sorry; I feel like those guys who worked on the Manhattan Project
.
Newsweek
ran an extensive summary of The Accidental Mind in 2007 by Sharon Begley that summarized his conclusions:
In the spring of 2007 the online magazine Slate
ran a roundup of interviews with the nation's top popularizers of brain science in which Linden declared, somewhat facetiously:
; his late father was a well-regarded psychiatrist in Los Angeles
with a celebrity clientele; his mother, now retired, was an editor of (and proofreader for) textbook publishers.
Linden attended Santa Monica High School
, where he associated with a crowd that called itself "The Olive Starlight Orchestra," or "The Olives" for short (the group had nothing to do with music). He knew people like Sandra Tsing Loh
, Daphne Nugent, Jan Steckel
, film editor Kate Sanford, internet activist Susan P. Crawford
, mathematician and teacher Paul Lockhart, entrepreneur Keith Goldfarb (co-founder of Rhythm and Hues), computer-graphics researcher Greg Turk
, and speculative fiction writer Janine Ellen Young. The Olives were loosely affiliated with Tsing Loh's organization at Samohi, "The Young Bureaucrats, Of Coarse," and were referred to by blogger Joy McCann as "the late 20th Century's Bloomsbury Group
."
Linden is an amateur photographer, and has held a few private exhibitions, including one that featured pictures of house paint, and one in the 1990s that concentrated on images of neon
signage.
Linden now lives in Baltimore
with his son and daughter.
lists 87 articles in peer-reviewed journals for Linden, which have been cited over 6000 times, giving him an h-index
of over 40.
Linden was also featured in a tribute to children's literature entitled Everything I Need To Know I Learned from a Children's Book, compiled by Anita Silvey and published in 2009; his contribution was an ode to Homer Price
.
Neuroscience
Neuroscience is the scientific study of the nervous system. Traditionally, neuroscience has been seen as a branch of biology. However, it is currently an interdisciplinary science that collaborates with other fields such as chemistry, computer science, engineering, linguistics, mathematics,...
at Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
in Baltimore, Maryland, and the author of The Accidental Mind: How Brain Evolution Has Given Us Love, Memory, Dreams, and God.
The book The Accidental Mind is an attempt to explain the human brain to intelligent lay readers, and recently received a silver medal in the category of Science from the Independent Publisher Association
Independent Publisher Book Award
The Independent Publisher Book Awards , launched in 1996, are designed to bring increased recognition to titles published by independent authors and publishers...
. As of July 1, 2008, he has been the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Neurophysiology
Journal of Neurophysiology
The Journal of Neurophysiology is a peer-reviewed scientific journal founded in 1938. It is published by the American Physiological Society on a monthly basis, edited by David Linden. It publishes original research reports concerning the physiological aspects of neuroscience, along with a small...
.
Linden's second book, The Compass of Pleasure: How Our Brains Make Fatty Foods, Orgasm, Exercise, Marijuana, Generosity, Vodka, Learning, and Gambling Feel So Good, was released on April 14th, 2011 (ISBN 978-0670022588).
In addition to Linden's academic research, he is known as a popularizer of brain science, often making biochemistry understandable to non-science majors in his numerous appearances on the radio and on college campuses.
Brain Chemistry and Neuroscience
Most of Linden's undergraduate work was performed at University of California, BerkeleyUniversity of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
; his graduate work took place at Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
in Evanston, Illinois
Evanston, Illinois
Evanston is a suburban municipality in Cook County, Illinois 12 miles north of downtown Chicago, bordering Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, and Wilmette to the north, with an estimated population of 74,360 as of 2003. It is one of the North Shore communities that adjoin Lake Michigan...
. He also worked briefly at Hoffmann-La Roche
Hoffmann-La Roche
F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd. is a Swiss global health-care company that operates worldwide under two divisions: Pharmaceuticals and Diagnostics. Its holding company, Roche Holding AG, has shares listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange....
, in Nutley, New Jersey
Nutley, New Jersey
2010 Census Data:*TOTAL: 28,370 or 100%*White: 23,405 *African American: 628 *Asian: 2,824 *American Indian and Alaska Native: 36 *Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander: 4...
after receiving his doctorate. The aspect of his work that appeals to "lay people" is becoming increasingly popular, which has led to appearances around the country in which he discusses quirky facts about brain chemistry, and grants interviews on neuroscience. At a recent talk for freshmen at a liberal arts college, he proclaimed I had no idea my book would become required reading for 500 freshmen. I'm so sorry; I feel like those guys who worked on the Manhattan Project
Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a research and development program, led by the United States with participation from the United Kingdom and Canada, that produced the first atomic bomb during World War II. From 1942 to 1946, the project was under the direction of Major General Leslie Groves of the US Army...
.
Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
ran an extensive summary of The Accidental Mind in 2007 by Sharon Begley that summarized his conclusions:
In the spring of 2007 the online magazine Slate
Slate (magazine)
Slate is a US-based English language online current affairs and culture magazine created in 1996 by former New Republic editor Michael Kinsley, initially under the ownership of Microsoft as part of MSN. On 21 December 2004 it was purchased by the Washington Post Company...
ran a roundup of interviews with the nation's top popularizers of brain science in which Linden declared, somewhat facetiously:
Personal life
Born in 1961, Linden grew up in Santa Monica, CaliforniaSanta Monica, California
Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, US. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is surrounded on three sides by the city of Los Angeles — Pacific Palisades on the northwest, Brentwood on the north, West Los Angeles on the northeast, Mar Vista on the east, and...
; his late father was a well-regarded psychiatrist in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
with a celebrity clientele; his mother, now retired, was an editor of (and proofreader for) textbook publishers.
Linden attended Santa Monica High School
Santa Monica High School
Santa Monica High School, informally known as SAMOHI, is located in Santa Monica, California. Founded in 1884, it is one of the oldest high schools in the state....
, where he associated with a crowd that called itself "The Olive Starlight Orchestra," or "The Olives" for short (the group had nothing to do with music). He knew people like Sandra Tsing Loh
Sandra Tsing Loh
Sandra Tsing Loh is a Los Angeles, California-based writer, actress, performance-artist, pop-culture analyst, and radio commentator.-Biography:Loh is the daughter of a Chinese father and a German mother...
, Daphne Nugent, Jan Steckel
Jan Steckel
Jan Steckel, M.D. is a San Francisco Bay Area-based writer of poetry, fiction and creative nonfiction, who is also known as an activist in the bisexual community and an advocate on behalf of the disabled and the underprivileged....
, film editor Kate Sanford, internet activist Susan P. Crawford
Susan P. Crawford
Susan P. Crawford was until December 2009 President Barack Obama's Special Assistant for Science, Technology, and Innovation Policy...
, mathematician and teacher Paul Lockhart, entrepreneur Keith Goldfarb (co-founder of Rhythm and Hues), computer-graphics researcher Greg Turk
Greg Turk
Greg Turk is an American-born researcher in the field of computer graphics and a Professor at the School of Interactive Computing in the College of Computing at the Georgia Institute of Technology...
, and speculative fiction writer Janine Ellen Young. The Olives were loosely affiliated with Tsing Loh's organization at Samohi, "The Young Bureaucrats, Of Coarse," and were referred to by blogger Joy McCann as "the late 20th Century's Bloomsbury Group
Bloomsbury Group
The Bloomsbury Group or Bloomsbury Set was a group of writers, intellectuals, philosophers and artists who held informal discussions in Bloomsbury throughout the 20th century. This English collective of friends and relatives lived, worked or studied near Bloomsbury in London during the first half...
."
Linden is an amateur photographer, and has held a few private exhibitions, including one that featured pictures of house paint, and one in the 1990s that concentrated on images of neon
Neon
Neon is the chemical element that has the symbol Ne and an atomic number of 10. Although a very common element in the universe, it is rare on Earth. A colorless, inert noble gas under standard conditions, neon gives a distinct reddish-orange glow when used in either low-voltage neon glow lamps or...
signage.
Linden now lives in Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
with his son and daughter.
Writings
The Web of ScienceWeb of Science
ISI Web of Knowledge is an academic citation indexing and search service, which is combined with web linking and provided by Thomson Reuters. Web of Knowledge coverage encompasses the sciences, social sciences, arts and humanities. It provides bibliographic content and the tools to access, analyze,...
lists 87 articles in peer-reviewed journals for Linden, which have been cited over 6000 times, giving him an h-index
H-index
The h-index is an index that attempts to measure both the productivity and impact of the published work of a scientist or scholar. The index is based on the set of the scientist's most cited papers and the number of citations that they have received in other publications...
of over 40.
Linden was also featured in a tribute to children's literature entitled Everything I Need To Know I Learned from a Children's Book, compiled by Anita Silvey and published in 2009; his contribution was an ode to Homer Price
Homer Price
Homer Price is the title character of a pair of children's books written by Robert McCloskey. Homer Price was published in 1943, and Centerburg Tales in 1951.-Characters:Homer lives in Centerburg, a small town in Ohio just north of Columbus...
.