Hachette India

The Strange Order Of Things

Antonio Damasio

'Damasio undertakes nothing less than a reconstruction of the natural history of the universe ... [A] brave and honest book' The New York Times Book Review

The Strange Order of Things is a pathbreaking investigation into homeostasis the condition of that regulates human physiology within the range that makes possible not only survival but also the flourishing of life.

Antonio Damasio makes clear that we descend biologically psychologically and even socially from a long lineage that begins with single living cells; that our minds and cultures are linked by an invisible thread to the ways and means of ancient unicellular existence and other primitive life-forms; and that inherent in our very chemistry is a powerful force a striving toward life maintenance that governs life in all its guises including the development of genes that help regulate and transmit life.

The Strange Order of Things is a landmark reflection that spans the biological and social sciences offering a new way of understanding the origins of life feeling and culture.

Antonio Damasio

Antonio Damasio is University Professor, David Dornsife Professor of Neuroscience, Psychology, and Philosophy, and director of the Brain and Creativity Institute at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles. He is one of the most highly cited neuroscientists of the modern era. He holds an honorary degree from the Sorbonne and has received doctorates from the Universities of Aachen, Copenhagen, Leiden, Barcelona, Coimbra, Leuven and numerous others. Dr. Damasio is a designated member of the Council of State of Portugal as well as the director and founder of the Brain and Creativity Institute at the University of Southern California, along with Hanna Damasio. He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Science, the National Academy of Medicine and the European Academy of Sciences and Arts. He sits on the jury for the Berggruen Prize for Philosophy and is past winner of the Pessoa Prize (1992), Golden Brain Award (1995), Prince of Asturias Prize (2005), Honda Prize (2010), Grawemeyer Award in Psychology (2014) and the Paul D. MacLean Award (2019). His TED Talk, 'The Quest to Understand Consciousness' has been viewed over 2.4 million times.