Switched On: a memoir of brain change, emotional awakening, and the emerging science of neurostimulation

Switched On is a real-life Flowers for Algernon with a happy ending - a compelling memoir that blends Robison's brilliant storytelling and humour with cutting-edge neuroscience, electronics, and a little bit of rock and roll. 'For the first time in my life, I learned what it was like to truly 'know' other people's feelings. It was as if . . . suddenly I could see everything - and particularly other people - in brilliant beautiful colour.' People with autism have trouble reading the unspoken signals of others. The conventional wisdom says they don't have the wiring in their brains to do it. But now, thanks to advances in brain-mapping technologies, a revolutionary new brain therapy called Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS), pioneered at Harvard Medical School and, in Australia, at Monash Alfred Psychiatry Research Centre, is providing a new frontier of scientific possibility for people with autism spectrum disorders, as well as those living with depression, bi-polar disorder, and other conditions. In Switched On, we follow New York Times bestselling author and 'free-range Aspergian' John Elder Robison as he journeys towards having his emotional intelligence 'unlocked' by this astounding new treatment. Robison's story of how he came to awaken the dormant pathways inside his mind is astonishing and entirely unique, but this is also a book about the remarkable advances in the way we view, and treat, a variety of psychological conditions. Switched On is a real-life Flowers for Algernon with a happy ending - a compelling memoir that blends Robison's brilliant storytelling and humour with cutting-edge neuroscience, electronics, and a little bit of rock and roll. 'Switched On is a mind-blowing book that will force you to ask deep questions about what is important in life. Would normalising the brains of those who think differently reduce their motivation for great achievement?' -Temple Grandin 'John Elder Robison is an extraordinary guide, carefully elucidating the cutting-edge science behind this revolutionary new brain therapy, TMS, alongside the compelling story of the impact it has on his relationships, his thinking and emotions, and indeed his very identity. At the heart of Switched On are fundamental questions of who we are, of where our identity resides, of difference and disability and free will, which are brought into sharp focus by Robison's lived experience.' -Graeme Simsion, author of The Rosie Effect 'Switched On is an eye-opening book with a radical message ... The transformations John Elder Robison undergoes throughout the book are astonishing - as foreign and overwhelming as if he woke up one morning with the visual range of a bee or the auditory prowess of a bat.' -Jennifer Senior, The New York Times

About the Author :
John Elder Robison is the New York Times bestselling author of Look Me in the Eye. He is a world-recognised authority on life with autism, and is the Neurodiversity Scholar in Residence at the College of William and Mary, and a member of the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee for the US Department of Health and Human Services. John is also a member of the International Society for Autism Research. He lives with his wife and son in Amherst, Massachusetts.

Review :
'Switched On is a mind-blowing book that will force you to ask deep questions about what is important in life. Would normalising the brains of those who think differently reduce their motivation for great achievement?'; Temple Grandin, author of The Autistic Brain;;'In this fascinating book John Elder Robison raises deep questions: what does TMS do to the brain? Will it permanently change his experience of music, his emotions, and his ability to read faces? And if autism involves disability as well as talent, if we alter the different wiring in an autistic brain, is this a good thing? Robison's honest, brilliant, and very personal account helps us understand the perspective of someone living with autism.'; Simon Baron-Cohen, professor, Autism Research Centre, Cambridge University;;'A fascinating companion to the previous memoirs by this masterful storyteller.'; Kirkus Reviews;;'John Elder Robison is an extraordinary guide, carefully elucidating the cutting-edge science behind this revolutionary new brain therapy, TMS, alongside the compelling story of the impact it has on his relationships, his thinking and emotions, and indeed his very identity. At the heart of Switched On are fundamental questions of who we are, of where our identity resides, of difference and disability and free will, which are brought into sharp focus by Robison's lived experience.'; Graeme Simsion, author of The Rosie Effect