Before #MeToo, there was silence. Let's talk about that silence. The Anatomy of Silence is a collection of voices speaking out loud - often for the first time - about what it means to stay silent, to be silenced, and to break the silence that surrounds sexual violence. About how we are all complicit in creating that silence. It offers an unflinching account of how a culture of shame perpetuates a culture of violence against our bodies--and reflects on what it would take to create a world in which that silence -- once broken -- stays broken.

poetry

Poetry. Art. Asian & Asian American Studies. 2014 Kore Press First Book Winner, selected by Joy Harjo. SILENT ANATOMIES is a poetic-visual hybrid that traverses the body's terrain, examining the phenomena of cultural silences. Whether it is shame obscuring the female body, the social stigma shrouding certain illnesses, or the cryptic stories of her ancestors, Monica Ong interrogates the agency of the daughter, who must decide whether or not to speak out. What happens to stories that go underreported, un-translated, or are completely erased?

Drawing on a dazzlingly wide array of disciplines--physiology, neurology, psychology, anthropology, linguistics, and philosophy--Ian Glynn explains virtually every aspect of the workings of the brain, unlocking the mysteries of the mind. Here are the mechanics of nerve messages; the functioning of sensory receptors; the processes by which the brain sees, tastes, and smells; the seats of language, memory, and emotions. Glynn writes with exceptional clarity and offers telling examples: to help explain vision, for instance, he discusses optical illusions as well as cases of patients who suffer disordered seeing through healthy eyes (such as the loss of the ability to recognize familiar faces). The breadth of Glynn's erudition is astonishing, as he ranges from parallel processing in computers to the specialization of different regions of the brain (illustrated with fascinating instances of the bizarre effects of localized brain damage). He explains the different types of memory (episodic and semantic, as well as short-term and implicit memory), traces the path through the brain of information leading to emotional responses, and engages in a discussion of language that takes in Noam Chomsky and Hawaiian pidgin. Moreover, for every subject Glynn addresses, he offers a thorough-going scientific history. For example, before discussing the evolution of the brain, he provides an account of the theory of evolution itself, from the writing and success of The Origin of Species to recent work on the fossil record, DNA, and RNA. No other single volume has captured the full expanse of our knowledge of consciousness and the brain. A work of unequaled authority and eloquence, An Anatomy of Thought promises to be a new landmark of scientific writing.