This fascinating book is unique, tracing Melbourne's growth decade by decade. A succinct introduction to each decade by an expert historian of Melbourne forms the prelude to some iconic images depicting the city as it was in that period. Melbourne emerges into a great city as the book unfolds to the reader..

Gold-fuelled Melbourne was booming, but dwelling in the fault lines of the proud young colony was an alarming fact – Victoria had the highest rate of insanity in the world. Was it the antipodean sun, gold mania, excessive masturbation, the heady pace of modern life? The true story of colonial Victoria’s quest to cure insanity unfolds through the lives of three English newcomers – a gifted artist, exiled from his homeland for his madness; an ambitious doctor, bringing enlightened treatment ideals to his post in charge of the overflowing asylum; and a mysterious undercover journalist, who sensationally exposed the lunatics’ plight in Melbourne’s press. Amid the clamour of fraught endeavours and maddened minds, the story reveals unexpected hope, creativity and ennobling humanity – and surprising contemporary relevance as we continue to grapple with this ancient human malady. Jill Giese is a clinical psychologist and writer, whose extensive career in mental health encompasses many years of clinical practice and executive roles in policy and advocacy.

This study examines the effects of town planning on the shape and structure of the Melbourne metropolitan area since 1945.

The discovery that mammalian brains contain neural stem cells which perform adult neurogenesis - the production and integration of new neurons into mature neural circuits - has provided a fully new vision of neural plasticity. On a theoretical basis, this achievement opened new perspectives for therapeutic approaches in restorative and regenerative neurology. Nevertheless, in spite of striking advancement concerning the molecular and cellular mechanisms which allow and regulate the neurogenic process, its exploitation in mammals for brain repair strategies remains unsolved. In non-mammalian vertebrates, adult neurogenesis also contributes to brain repair/regeneration. In mammals, neural stem cells do respond to pathological conditions in the so called "reactive neurogenesis", yet without substantial regenerative outcome. Why, even in the presence of stem cells in the brain, we lack an effective reparative outcome in terms of regenerative neurology, and which factors hamper the attainment of this goal? Essentially, what remains unanswered is the question whether (and how) physiological functions of adult neurogenesis in mammals can be exploited for brain repair purposes.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1843.