Introduction:<br >The Enchanted Loom<br > very cell of the human body is ruled by<br > the brain. Its commanding presence orders<br > sensation， movement， thought， a lifetime<br >of memory and dream. What makes this so is the<br >central nervous system， a maze of nerve fibers<br >linking all areas of the body to cells in the fabric<br >of the brain. Within that "enchanted loom，" ro-<br >manticized physiologist Sir Charles Sherrington，<br >"millions of flashing shuttles weave a dissolving<br >pattern， always a meaningful pattern， though<br >never an abiding one."<br > Object of mystery and superstition through<br >most of history， mankind s brain has revealed it-<br >self only in recent centuries. Ancient Greeks rea-<br >soned that thought was "the soul s walk abroad."<br >Thinking about the brain， seeking ways to un-<br >ravel its infinite mysteries， inspired the minds of<br >great men--St. Augustine， Leonardo da Vinci，<br >Descartes， Freud.<br > Anthropologist Loren Eiseley noted that both<br >gorilla and human have "appealingly similar"<br >brains at birth. But the human s triples in size the<br >first year， growing "unlike anything else we<br >know in the animal world." Problem solving，<br >language， creating works of art--all bear wit-<br >ness to humankind s unique birthright.<br > Seeds of thought lie in furrows of dark tissue<br >that cover the brain like a layer of fertile topsoil.<br >From here stem conscious acts， speaking one s<br >mind -- and changing it. Within the brain s lobes<br >echo sounds， awakening imaginations. Impulses<br >of sight， rocketing through these spaces， stir<br >memories. Deeper in the brain s core are rooted<br >the origins of feelings， our pleasures and sorrows.<br >Among the emotions twine tendrils of smell，<br >sensing nostalgia s past.<br > We may see， through the eyes of science， ever<br >more of the enchanted loom. To unveil what is<br >known about the brain -- and what is not -- is to<br >stretch the limits of imagination. Future discov-<br >eries will propel man to new thresholds of awe.<br >