About 15 years ago, a friend got me started on reading about the human brain. The first book Lynn and I read together was "The Brain that Changes Itself" by Doidge. It was surprising and informative. Since then, we have followed up with several memorable and informative books. For me, the best reminder that my fingers typing away right now make quite a few movements without me consciously telling them what to do are the books "Incognito" and "Seven and a Half Lessons about the Brain". Doidge and David Eagleman and Lisa Feldman Barrett and Michael Merzenich have all emphasized that large sections of us are not accessed by our conscious minds but that our brains are flexible. Brains continually restructure themselves to accommodate our activities and goals. The restructuring of the brain is often called "neuroplasticity".
You probably know that human brains are more open to learning a language and learning to read in our childhood years. So, if you can understand a language when it is spoken to you, and if you can read writing or print and understand it, thank your clever and hard-working ancestors, adults you grew up with, and your teachers. Many older people express fear of losing their mental powers but all sources emphasize that using the brain increases its ability to do what it is called on to accomplish.
Speaking and listening, writing and reading are all brain-driven activities. The more we understand what we are do when doing those very human things, the more complex and awesome language skills show themselves to be. Two books that delve into the actual processes involved in reading are Proust and the Squid and Reader, Come Home, both by Maryanne Wolf. Considering the complexity of what we do every day can increase respect for the value of human communication in ourselves and others.
