Background
Stephen Braun was born on February 13, 1957, in Wilmington, Delaware, United States. He is the son of Robert A. Braun, an organic chemist and counselor, and Janet (Laird) Braun.
(Alcohol and caffeine are deeply woven into the fabric of ...)
Alcohol and caffeine are deeply woven into the fabric of life for most of the world's population, as close and as comfortable as a cup of coffee or a can of beer. Yet for most people they remain as mysterious and unpredictable as the spirits they were once thought to be. Now, in Buzz, Stephen Braun takes us on a myth-shattering tour of these two popular substances, one that blends fascinating science with colorful lore, and that includes cameo appearances by Shakespeare and Balzac, Buddhist monks and Arabian goat herders, even Mikhail Gorbachev and David Letterman (who once quipped, "If it weren't for the coffee, I'd have no identifiable personality whatsoever"). Much of what Braun reveals directly contradicts conventional wisdom about alcohol and caffeine. Braun shows, for instance, that alcohol is not simply a depressant as popularly believed, but is instead "a pharmacy in a bottle"--mimicking the action of drugs such as cocaine, amphetamine, valium, and opium. At low doses, it increases electrical activity in the same brain systems affected by stimulants, influences the same circuits targeted by valium, and causes the release of morphine-like compounds known as endorphins--all at the same time. This explains why alcohol can produce a range of reactions, from boisterous euphoria to dark, brooding hopelessness. Braun also shatters the myth that alcohol kills brain cells, reveals why wood alcohol or methanol causes blindness, and explains the biological reason behind the one-drink-per-hour sobriety rule (that's how long it takes the liver, working full tilt, to disable the 200 quintillion ethanol molecules found in a typical drink). The author then turns to caffeine and shows it to be no less remarkable. We discover that more than 100 plant species produce caffeine molecules in their seeds, leaves, or bark, a truly amazing distribution throughout nature (nicotine, in comparison, is found only in tobacco; opium only in the poppy). It's not surprising then that caffeine is far and away the most widely used mind altering substance on the planet, found in tea, coffee, cocoa, chocolate, soft drinks, and more than 2,000 non-prescription drugs. (Tea is the most popular drink on earth, with coffee a close second.) Braun also explores the role of caffeine in creativity: Johann Sebastian Bach, for one, loved coffee so much he wrote a Coffee Cantata (as Braun notes, no music captures the caffeinated experience better than one of Bachs frenetic fugues), Balzac would work for 12 hours non-stop, drinking coffee all the while, and Kant, Rousseau, and Voltaire all loved coffee. And throughout the book, Braun takes us on many engaging factual sidetrips--we learn, for instance, that Theodore Roosevelt coined the phrase "Good to the last drop" used by Maxwell House ever since; that distances between Tibetan villages are sometimes reckoned by the number of cups of tea needed to sustain a person (three cups being roughly 8 kilometers); and that John Pemberton's original recipe for Coca-Cola included not only kola extract, but also cocaine. Whether you are a sophisticated consumer of cabernet sauvignon and Kenya AA or just someone who needs a cup of joe in the morning and a cold one after work, you will find Buzz to be an eye-opening, informative, and often amusing look at two substances at once utterly familiar and deeply mysterious.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0195092899/?tag=2022091-20
1996
(How should we define happiness? How happy are we supposed...)
How should we define happiness? How happy are we supposed to be? Or can we be? Does each of us have a genetically determined "normal" level of happiness? Will a new breed of drugs allow us to fine-tune our moods so that we are happy most of the time? If so, are there any dangers to this kind of long-term mood alteration? Fascinating research in a range of fields is providing provocative answers to these and many more questions about what makes us happy and how we can control our moods. We are in the midst of a revolution in the understanding of how our brains work and the neural circuitry of our moods and general temperament. At the same time, we have entered a bold new age of pharmacology?the science of drugs?which is allowing drug-makers to craft molecules that are exquisitely tailored to produce desired mood-altering effects. In a lively and stimulating narrative, acclaimed science writer Stephen Braun takes readers to the frontlines of discovery in these areas and explores how this "brave new world" of mood manipulation will impact our lives. Based on extensive interviews with scientists at the forefront of research, as well as the compelling stories of many individuals and their personal experiences, The Science of Happiness presents an accessible, engaging, and balanced account of what we need to know as we enter this new era. Braun introduces us to the scientists and companies who are racing to create the next generation of Prozac-like drugs, exploring the controversy surrounding so-called "designer drugs" and why such drugs are likely to be even more widely used. He presents the idea of the happiness "set point"?the average level of happiness around which our daily mood fluctuates?and the respective roles played by our genes, our upbringing, and our daily life choices and experiences in determining our happiness profile. Introducing the provocative new field of Darwinian psychology, he explains why depression and anxiety can at times be necessary evils, providing important incentives for us to make changes in our lives that will improve our Darwinian fitness. Braun also offers a stimulating and insightful consideration of how the alteration of our moods affects the "self" inside us. When we alter the mechanics of our moods, do we also fundamentally change ourselves? Or can we find a way to tailor our emotional lives while retaining what we consider to be the essence of who we are? The Science of Happiness is an important and thoroughly engaging exploration of one of the most pressing issues facing society. "Entertaining and Thorough."?Philadelphia Enquirer "Braun has a knack for interpreting the findings of medical researchers and applying them to daily life."?Library Journal "Braun manages to take abstract concepts and mold them into something highly readable. Science novices should find this book as enjoyable and well-written as those who have spent their lives working with biology or chemistry."?Publishers Weekly
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0471243779/?tag=2022091-20
Stephen Braun was born on February 13, 1957, in Wilmington, Delaware, United States. He is the son of Robert A. Braun, an organic chemist and counselor, and Janet (Laird) Braun.
Braun graduated from the St. John Fisher College with Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism.
Braun worked as an executive producer at New England Research Institutes in Boston, from 1994.
During that time, Braun was making researches to his book.
He chose a subject—or rather two subjects—of almost universal interest for his 1996 book, Buzz: The Science and Lore of Alcohol and Caffeine. Those two legal drugs have been used in cultures around the world from ancient times to modern, and their role in history provides a glimpse of continuities and differences from era to era and country to country. Medical and mental health professionals have traditionally found both help and harm in these substances, and Braun illuminates the positive and negative aspects of caffeine and alcohol by relating some of his own experiences “under the influence” during the writing of his book. (According to Entertainment Weekly, Braun credits caffeine as an “invaluable tool” for his own writing.) Braun also includes in his book considerable information about the chemistry and physiological effects of alcohol and caffeine.
(How should we define happiness? How happy are we supposed...)
(Alcohol and caffeine are deeply woven into the fabric of ...)
1996Braun is regarded as a member of American Medical Writers Association and National Science Writers Association.
Braun married Susan Redditt on September 19, 1987, they have 2 children: Isa R. and Aurora R. Braun.