Scan barcode
Reviews
How Dogs Love Us: A Neuroscientist and His Adopted Dog Decode the Canine Brain by Gregory Berns
shalini_gunnasan's review against another edition
4.0
It is good to find like-minded souls. In this case, I am glad to read the experiences and studies of a scientist who loves and respects dogs as much as I do. I hope the Dog Project receives the funding it deserves so that the good work can continue. It is high time man's best friend is really, truly understood for the wondrous beings that they are.
bookysue's review against another edition
5.0
Truly fascinating. And incredibly entertaining! And yet...science-y! I kind of got a Radiolab-type feeling while reading this book, and that's a very good thing. Much like Radiolab, it simplified the science and made it easy enough for someone like me to understand, and although I found the author's writing style strangely stiff and almost robotic at first, I really came to love it by the end. He sort of just tells it like it is, sometimes to the point of silliness. Like on page 71 when he introduces the idea of building an MRI simulator: "I was looking forward to this. Constructing a simulator would let me dust off some woodworking equipment that had been lying dormant in the garage. It's fun to build stuff."
I was like, "It's fun to build stuff? Really??" But what can I say, the guy's charming. And I think it was his matter-of-fact style that helped me survive the chapter about Lyra's death. I almost didn't make it through, and I'm not afraid to admit that I sobbed like a damn baby. But I can't say I was surprised to find such a tearjerker in a book about dogs...Writers just can't resist it.
The other cool thing about the book was the sprinkling of photos - It was neat to see Callie and some of the other dogs in the project, and the brain scans were really cool. And the visuals were subtle and carefully chosen - it wasn't too much, as it easily could have been.
This book has it all - amazing scientific discoveries, cute dogs, parts that made me guffaw, and parts that made me cry. I was skeptical at first, but it turned out to be a fantastic book that I could not put down - I had to read it all in one day. And best of all now I know my dog's caudate is lighting up when she looks at me with those beautiful brown eyes of hers cuz she has mad feelings for me.
I was like, "It's fun to build stuff? Really??" But what can I say, the guy's charming. And I think it was his matter-of-fact style that helped me survive the chapter about Lyra's death. I almost didn't make it through, and I'm not afraid to admit that I sobbed like a damn baby. But I can't say I was surprised to find such a tearjerker in a book about dogs...Writers just can't resist it.
The other cool thing about the book was the sprinkling of photos - It was neat to see Callie and some of the other dogs in the project, and the brain scans were really cool. And the visuals were subtle and carefully chosen - it wasn't too much, as it easily could have been.
This book has it all - amazing scientific discoveries, cute dogs, parts that made me guffaw, and parts that made me cry. I was skeptical at first, but it turned out to be a fantastic book that I could not put down - I had to read it all in one day. And best of all now I know my dog's caudate is lighting up when she looks at me with those beautiful brown eyes of hers cuz she has mad feelings for me.
duparker's review against another edition
3.0
A good friend of mine loaned this to me, knowing I am a dog person. It was an interesting read. The first part explains the set up on why a neuroscientist wants to explore the brain of a living dog. This portion is both scientific(to learn about dogs), and personal (a reaction to the death of a dog).
The second part of the book is the experiment and growth of the project. Not surprisingly the first portion reads a bit faster than the latter part. I was into the book, a lot and was really invested in it. Once the experiment occurs, there is a slight adrenaline let down. Unlike many set up and release type books, this one holds the reader very well. I found the weaving of the science into the narrative to work and to be thoughtfully completed.
There is a twist at the end, which I didn't see coming, and didn't expect from a non-fiction book. Overall 3.5 stars.
The second part of the book is the experiment and growth of the project. Not surprisingly the first portion reads a bit faster than the latter part. I was into the book, a lot and was really invested in it. Once the experiment occurs, there is a slight adrenaline let down. Unlike many set up and release type books, this one holds the reader very well. I found the weaving of the science into the narrative to work and to be thoughtfully completed.
There is a twist at the end, which I didn't see coming, and didn't expect from a non-fiction book. Overall 3.5 stars.
mariannec's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
3.75
devoe1se's review against another edition
5.0
I listened to the audiobook on a long drive. Very interesting to listen to, and I loved the personal anecdotes. Great for anyone who is a dog lover or interested in dog neurobiology!
divapitbull's review against another edition
2.0
I think I would have been happier just reading the scientific paper; there really wasn't enough material here to justify writing a book. The conclusions that the research reached were gratifying in that they substantiated what any "dog person" already knows; but they were also superfluous in that a real "dog person" doesn't need research to tell them what in their minds is plainly evident.
The book spends allot of time, attention and detail discussing the process by which the dogs were trained to undergo an MRI. I would have been happy with one sentence "we used positive reinforcement to gradually shape the needed behavior for the dog to enter and hold still in the MRI and to acclimate to a pair of earmuffs to protect their sensitive hearing during the scanning process". End of story. Anyone who is really a "dog person" has a basic idea as to how the training was accomplished. Anyone who really isn't a "dog person" probably isn't all that interested.
The first experiment concluded that while the caudate activation in the dogs' brains shows that they transfer the meaning of a hand signal to something rewarding like hotdogs, the other brain regions activating point toward a theory of mind. Even if dogs have only a rudimentary theory of mind that would mean they might have about the same level of consciousness as a young child. It's nice to have this validated by science, but it's also something that the real "dog person" simply inherently knows (and will not accept otherwise).
The second experiment looked at how dogs responded to familiar and unfamiliar scents of humans and dogs. It concluded that only one type of smell activated the caudate (same as the signal for hotdogs did) and that is the scent of a familiar human. This suggests that dogs have a sense of permanence for the people in their households. They know who their family is and remember them, even when they aren't physically there - and the remembrance is a positive one - or at least in this case it was (perhaps the canine version of love). The "dog person" in me needs to point out that this also falls under the umbrella of "as plain as the nose on your face"; and the positive remembrance only goes so far in that it is deserved. Dogs don't like people who treat them badly.
In summary I thought the book contained too little actual research and too much attention to tedious detail. The anecdotal and personal information shared wasn't riveting enough to warrant it's inclusion. I really wanted to like this book more than I did, but truth is I found it more that a little boring.
The book spends allot of time, attention and detail discussing the process by which the dogs were trained to undergo an MRI. I would have been happy with one sentence "we used positive reinforcement to gradually shape the needed behavior for the dog to enter and hold still in the MRI and to acclimate to a pair of earmuffs to protect their sensitive hearing during the scanning process". End of story. Anyone who is really a "dog person" has a basic idea as to how the training was accomplished. Anyone who really isn't a "dog person" probably isn't all that interested.
The first experiment concluded that while the caudate activation in the dogs' brains shows that they transfer the meaning of a hand signal to something rewarding like hotdogs, the other brain regions activating point toward a theory of mind. Even if dogs have only a rudimentary theory of mind that would mean they might have about the same level of consciousness as a young child. It's nice to have this validated by science, but it's also something that the real "dog person" simply inherently knows (and will not accept otherwise).
The second experiment looked at how dogs responded to familiar and unfamiliar scents of humans and dogs. It concluded that only one type of smell activated the caudate (same as the signal for hotdogs did) and that is the scent of a familiar human. This suggests that dogs have a sense of permanence for the people in their households. They know who their family is and remember them, even when they aren't physically there - and the remembrance is a positive one - or at least in this case it was (perhaps the canine version of love). The "dog person" in me needs to point out that this also falls under the umbrella of "as plain as the nose on your face"; and the positive remembrance only goes so far in that it is deserved. Dogs don't like people who treat them badly.
In summary I thought the book contained too little actual research and too much attention to tedious detail. The anecdotal and personal information shared wasn't riveting enough to warrant it's inclusion. I really wanted to like this book more than I did, but truth is I found it more that a little boring.
rbogue's review against another edition
5.0
It’s no secret that I love dogs. I’ve spent most of my adult life with one or more canine companions. For the last 13 years, I’ve owned my own company, and the dogs have their own airlock doggie door system to get into the office. My love for our dogs and the dogs of our friends isn’t a secret. However, Gregory Berns was able to answer a different question. Do dogs love us? How Dogs Love Us: A Neuroscientist and His Adopted Dog Decode the Canine Brain walks us through the journey that Berns walked to answer that question.
Click here to read the full review
Click here to read the full review
mariapatrickwrites's review against another edition
3.0
very interesting look into the minds of dogs from the perspective of MRI and dog training. definitely made me rethink how I interact with my own dogs. not too much medical jargon to lose the average readers interest but enough to thoroughly explain the procedures and testing.