John Medina

John J. Medina is a developmental molecular biologist with special research interests in the isolation and characterization of genes involved in human brain development and the genetics of psychiatric disorders. Medina has spent most of his professional life as an analytical research consultant, working primarily in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries on research issues related to mental health.

He was founding director of the Talaris Research Institute, which supports researchers such as Patricia Kuhl and John Gottman. He directed Talaris until 2006, and now is the director of the Brain Center for Applied Learning Research at Seattle Pacific University, which has worked on creating learning environments at Woodland Park Zoo. He is also an affiliate professor of Bioengineering at the University of Washington School of Medicine.

Dr. Medina writes the column "Molecules of the Mind" for Psychiatric Times.

Education

Dr. Medina earned his doctorate in molecular biology from Washington State University and is a national faculty fellow of Continuing Medical Education, Inc., of Irvine, CA. In 2004, he was appointed to the rank of affiliate scholar at the National Academy of Engineering.

Brain Rules

Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School was written by John Medina, a developmental molecular biologist and research consultant. Brain Rules consists of 12 chapters which try to demonstrate how our brains work. Each chapter demonstrates things scientists already know about the brain, and things we as people do that can affect how our brain will develop. In this book the reader will also discover amazing facts about the brain — such as the brain's need for physical activity for it to work at its maximum potential.

Chapter Summaries

Chapter 1 - Exercise

Survival of the fittest talks about evolution and how someone becomes fit. Our food supply and our inability to physically adapt to our surroundings has had an impact on how we lived and live today. Living from one area to the next labelled us wanderers. So our cognitive ability as a result is tied in with our physical fitness. Jim wasn’t active and his brain weathered away as Frank stayed sharp and healthy.

John Denver

Henry John Deutschendorf, Jr. (December 31, 1943 – October 12, 1997), known professionally as John Denver, was an American singer-songwriter, actor, activist and humanitarian, whose greatest commercial success was as a solo singer, starting in the 1970s. He was one of the most popular acoustic artists of the decade and one of its best-selling artists. By 1974, he was firmly established as America's best-selling performer, and AllMusic has described Denver as "among the most beloved entertainers of his era". After traveling and living in numerous locations while growing up in his military family, Denver began his music career in folk music groups in the late 1960s. Throughout his life, Denver recorded and released approximately 300 songs, about 200 of which he composed, with total sales of over 33 million.

He recorded and performed primarily with an acoustic guitar and sang about his joy in nature, his enthusiasm for music, and his relationship trials. Denver's music appeared on a variety of charts, including country and western, the Billboard Hot 100, and adult contemporary, in all earning him twelve gold and four platinum albums with his signature songs "Take Me Home, Country Roads", "Annie's Song", "Rocky Mountain High", "Thank God I'm a Country Boy", and "Sunshine on My Shoulders".