Axonal Conduction Time and Human Cerebral Laterality: A Psycological Theory

This book takes a new and up-to-date look at the prominent theory that the left hemisphere is specialised for representing patterns extended in time whereas the right hemisphere represents simultaneous or 'spatial' patterns. What makes it unique in the field is that it looks at this theory from a neurobiological basis. It suggests that the difference resides in the range of conduction times in the axons connecting different regions of the cortex in each hemisphere. This hypothesis is discussed with respect to theoretical models of brain dynamics, and both gross and microscopic structure of the hemispheres. It deals with the psychological implications of the hypothesis for higher functions of the human cerebrum and outlines testable implications wherever possible.

About the Author

Robert Miller studied physiology and neuroscience at Oxford and went on to do post-graduate studies at Glasgow University. He has been a lecturer at the University of Otago, New Zealand since 1976 and was made Senior Lecturer in 1980. In 1991 he was awarded a Senior Research Fellowship by the Health Research Council of New Zealand, for his research on schizophrenia. Early; in his career he conducted research in experimental neuroscience but he has since moved away; from direct involvement, taking a library-based, theoretical approach to the forebrain.