Overview
This book sets a new standard as the leading state-of-the-art account on motor control by using a Bernsteinian integration of information from different fields of study.
It features sixteen chapters by internationally known researchers, including four authors from the ex-USSR who worked directly with Nikolai Bernstein, the first scientist working in the area now defined as motor control. Each chapter addresses urgent problems of motor control across a spectrum of topics.
Written in a reader-friendly style, this volume summarizes the latest motor control issues, research, and theories, and identifies problems in pressing need of investigation. This unique forum features 106 pieces of art and 7 tables to reflect the different fields of study related to the organization of voluntary movements and improve interdisciplinary communication.
Prominent motor control scientists integrate information across different fields of study and provide a contemporary reflection of Bernstein's legacy in the nineties in this first volume of Progress in Motor Control.
The book contains black-and-white illustrations.
This book sets a new standard as the leading state-of-the-art account on motor control by using a Bernstein integration of information from different fields of study. It features 16 chapters by internationally known researchers, including four authors from the ex-USSR who worked directly with Nikolai Bernstein, the first scientist woriking in the area now defined as motor control. Each chapter addresses urgent problems of motor control across a spectrum of topics.
Editorials
From The Critics
Reviewer: Debra J. Rose, BED, MS, PhD(California State University, Fullerton)Description: In this book the scientific contributions of Nikolai Bernstein to the field of motor control are reviewed by distinguished scholars within the context of contemporary research findings. A discussion of issues yet to be resolved are also a feature of each chapter.
Purpose: According to the editor, the purpose is twofold: to start a tradition of integrating scientific information that is relevant to the field of motor control, and to address urgent problems of motor control through a series of review articles written by scholars in the field. Through its integrative approach, this book provides an important theoretical bridge between multiple disciplines and provides a more eclectic approach to the study of motor control. It clearly fulfills the first purpose as evidenced by the choice of contributors. The result is a collection of papers that provide greater insight into the many variables that shape the emerging motor behavior. The second purpose is not as clearly fulfilled.
Audience: This book is intended as a reference volume for both academic faculty specializing in motor control and graduate students in movement studies. It is also appropriate for academic faculty in related fields interested in acquiring contemporary knowledge in motor control (e.g., biomechanics, physical therapy, motor development). The editor, a notable authority in motor control, has assembled an impressive list of contributing authors.
Features: The importance of historical perspective in providing fundamental insights into how humans achieve coordinated actions in response to various task goals and environmental demands is beautifully demonstrated in this book. The contributors demonstrate how Bernstein's earlier scientific writings have shaped our current knowledge about the organization of human action. A number of unresolved issues relative to human motor control are also identified and future research directions discussed.
Assessment: This edited book provides a much needed volume for the professional who wishes to remain abreast of the different theoretical frameworks and research paradigms being used to advance our knowledge of human motor control. Unlike other edited books recently published [(e.g., Piek's Motor Behavior and Human Skill: A Multidisciplinary Approach (Human Kinetics, Inc, 1998) and Heuer and Keele's Handbook of Perception & Action: Motor Skills (Academic Press, Inc, 1996)] this book more strongly acknowledges the contribution of past to present research and the value of a multidisciplinary approach to motor control. The adoption of an historical perspective, in particular, has yielded a more cohesive and informative set of chapters.
Debra J. Rose
In this book the scientific contributions of Nikolai Bernstein to the field of motor control are reviewed by distinguished scholars within the context of contemporary research findings. A discussion of issues yet to be resolved are also a feature of each chapter. According to the editor, the purpose is twofold: to start a tradition of integrating scientific information that is relevant to the field of motor control, and to address urgent problems of motor control through a series of review articles written by scholars in the field. Through its integrative approach, this book provides an important theoretical bridge between multiple disciplines and provides a more eclectic approach to the study of motor control. It clearly fulfills the first purpose as evidenced by the choice of contributors. The result is a collection of papers that provide greater insight into the many variables that shape the emerging motor behavior. The second purpose is not as clearly fulfilled. This book is intended as a reference volume for both academic faculty specializing in motor control and graduate students in movement studies. It is also appropriate for academic faculty in related fields interested in acquiring contemporary knowledge in motor control (e.g., biomechanics, physical therapy, motor development). The editor, a notable authority in motor control, has assembled an impressive list of contributing authors. The importance of historical perspective in providing fundamental insights into how humans achieve coordinated actions in response to various task goals and environmental demands is beautifully demonstrated in this book. The contributors demonstrate how Bernstein's earlier scientificwritings have shaped our current knowledge about the organization of human action. A number of unresolved issues relative to human motor control are also identified and future research directions discussed. This edited book provides a much needed volume for the professional who wishes to remain abreast of the different theoretical frameworks and research paradigms being used to advance our knowledge of human motor control. Unlike other edited books recently published [(e.g., Piek's Motor Behavior and Human Skill: A Multidisciplinary Approach (Human Kinetics, Inc, 1998) and Heuer and Keele's Handbook of Perception & Action: Motor Skills (Academic Press, Inc, 1996)] this book more strongly acknowledges the contribution of past to present research and the value of a multidisciplinary approach to motor control. The adoption of an historical perspective, in particular, has yielded a more cohesive and informative set of chapters.Booknews
Contributors of the 16 papers were charged with reviewing urgent problems of motor control rather than reporting on their own research, in order to produce a broad reference for professionals and graduate students in the field. Four of them worked directly with Nikolai Berstein (1896-1966), the Russian scientist who first worked in the field and whose approaches still weigh heavily in it. The series is projected to produce a new volume every few years summarizing developments. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.3 Stars from Doody