In this podcast, I am joined by Matthew Cobb, Professor of Zoology at the University of Manchester where he studies the neurobiology of the sense of smell, to discuss the different concepts of the brain that have emerged over the centuries.
Matthew Cobb explores current and historical metaphors of the brain, from the machine and the mill to the battery and the computer. Matthew also flavours his history with gripping anecdotes, from Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.
And he draws lessons from such giants of science, from Galvani and Volta to Steno and Francis Crick.
Matthew is also a non-professional historian, and his other books include Life’s Greatest Secret, and The Genetic Age. He is currently completing a biography of Francis Crick.