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The Perpetual Now: A Story of Amnesia, Memory, and Love
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Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group 2017
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Description
In the aftermath of a shattering illness, Lonni Sue Johnson lives in a "perpetual now," where she has almost no memories of the past and a nearly complete inability to form new ones. The Perpetual Now is the moving story of this exceptional woman, and the groundbreaking revelations about memory, learning, and consciousness her unique case has uncovered.
Lonni Sue Johnson was a renowned artist who regularly produced covers for The New Yorker, a gifted musician, a skilled amateur pilot, and a joyful presence to all who knew her. But in late 2007, she contracted encephalitis. The disease burned through her hippocampus like wildfire, leaving her severely amnesic, living in a present that rarely progresses beyond ten to fifteen minutes.
     Remarkably, she still retains much of the intellect and artistic skills from her previous life, but it's not at all clear how closely her consciousness resembles yours or mine. As such, Lonni Sue's story has become part of a much larger scientific narrative—one that is currently challenging traditional wisdom about how human memory and awareness are stored in the brain.
     In this probing, compassionate, and illuminating book, award-winning science journalist Michael D. Lemonick uses the unique drama of Lonni Sue Johnson's day-to-day life to give us a nuanced and intimate understanding of the science that lies at the very heart of human nature.
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Format:
Adobe EPUB eBook, Kindle Book, OverDrive Read
Street Date:
02/07/2017
Language:
English
ISBN:
9780385539678
ASIN:
B01FPGY5W2
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Citations
APA Citation (style guide)

Michael D. Lemonick. (2017). The Perpetual Now: A Story of Amnesia, Memory, and Love. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group.

Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation (style guide)

Michael D. Lemonick. 2017. The Perpetual Now: A Story of Amnesia, Memory, and Love. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group.

Chicago / Turabian - Humanities Citation (style guide)

Michael D. Lemonick, The Perpetual Now: A Story of Amnesia, Memory, and Love. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 2017.

MLA Citation (style guide)

Michael D. Lemonick. The Perpetual Now: A Story of Amnesia, Memory, and Love. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 2017.

Note! Citation formats are based on standards as of July 2022. Citations contain only title, author, edition, publisher, and year published. Citations should be used as a guideline and should be double checked for accuracy.
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Date Updated:
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      • bioText: MICHAEL D. LEMONICK is the Opinion Editor at Scientific American. He has written more than 50 Time magazine cover stories on science, and has written for National Geographic, The New Yorker and other publications. This is his seventh book.
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title
The Perpetual Now
fullDescription
In the aftermath of a shattering illness, Lonni Sue Johnson lives in a "perpetual now," where she has almost no memories of the past and a nearly complete inability to form new ones. The Perpetual Now is the moving story of this exceptional woman, and the groundbreaking revelations about memory, learning, and consciousness her unique case has uncovered.
Lonni Sue Johnson was a renowned artist who regularly produced covers for The New Yorker, a gifted musician, a skilled amateur pilot, and a joyful presence to all who knew her. But in late 2007, she contracted encephalitis. The disease burned through her hippocampus like wildfire, leaving her severely amnesic, living in a present that rarely progresses beyond ten to fifteen minutes.
     Remarkably, she still retains much of the intellect and artistic skills from her previous life, but it's not at all clear how closely her consciousness resembles yours or mine. As such, Lonni Sue's story has become part of a much larger scientific narrative—one that is currently challenging traditional wisdom about how human memory and awareness are stored in the brain.
     In this probing, compassionate, and illuminating book, award-winning science journalist Michael D. Lemonick uses the unique drama of Lonni Sue Johnson's day-to-day life to give us a nuanced and intimate understanding of the science that lies at the very heart of human nature.
reviews
      • premium: True
      • source: Publisher's Weekly
      • content:

        December 19, 2016
        Lemonick (Mirror Earth), opinion editor at Scientific American, recounts the curious medical case of Lonni Sue Johnson, whose 2007 bout of encephalitis destroyed her hippocampus and left her with dense amnesia that affected both her past episodic memories and her ability to retain new information for longer than a few minutes. It’s a life-affirming exploration that combines a sympathetic biography of Johnson with the history of Henry Molaison, a notable case study of amnesia who for years was known only as “H.M.” Lemonick illuminates what these patients have taught researchers about the creation and storage of memories. Johnson’s retention of some skills and information from her past as a violist, an illustrator for the New Yorker, and a pilot has allowed researchers to do detailed experiments on where in the brain skilled procedural memories reside. Lemonick’s prior connection to the Johnson family adds an extra dimension to his discussions with Johnson’s mother, sister, and colleagues. That history, combined with Lemonick’s personal delight at Johnson’s optimism and obsession with word puzzles and spontaneous bouts of song, bridges the gap between his interest in Johnson as a research topic and his affection for her as a human being. Fans of the late Oliver Sacks will appreciate the blend of heart and science in Lemonick’s account.

      • premium: True
      • source: Kirkus
      • content:

        Starred review from November 1, 2016
        A veteran science journalist uses the story of Lonni Sue Johnson, a young woman who suffered a severe infection that destroyed her hippocampus, to illuminate his journey into the murky subject of memory itself.Scientific American opinion editor Lemonick (Mirror Earth: The Search for Our Planet's Twin, 2012, etc.) skillfully employs both a personal voice--he knew the victim's sister from middle school--and a scholarly authority as he travels through the incredible life of Lonnie Sue, a successful artist (among other projects, she produced covers for the New Yorker) and writer whose life changed forever in late 2007 when the infection hit her. Her nonagenarian mother and her sister swooped in to care for her in ways that seem miraculous in today's warehouse-the-elderly and -disabled culture. Since the destruction of the region of the brain responsible for "relational processing," Lonni Sue has maintained a cheerful, friendly manner (despite her inability to remember people she has just met) and shows an astonishing capacity for word games. She can also still play her viola, can describe how to fly a plane (she had a pilot's license), and can draw--and much more. Lemonick focuses on her case and biography, but he has larger goals: to acquaint us with the history of research on memory, to review some of the most notable cases in memory loss, and to help us comprehend current theories about types of memory--and how memory works. (He even provides a bit of film criticism--Memento comes off fairly well; 50 First Dates does not.) Although there are some familiar names--Oliver Sacks, William James--most of his references are to working neuroscientists today. His great accomplishment is helping us see the "new" Lonni Sue as a most remarkable person. An absolutely memorable book.

        COPYRIGHT(2016) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

      • premium: True
      • source: Library Journal
      • content:

        November 1, 2016

        Lemonick (opinion editor, Scientific American; Mirror Earth: The Search for Our Planet's Twin) one day ran into a former classmate who asked, "Did you hear what happened to my sister?" Thus began his investigation into the life of Lonnie Sue Johnson and the science of memory. In midlife, Johnson contracted encephalitis, which destroyed her hippocampus, the brain structure that was removed from the famous amnesia patient H.M. (Henry Molaison). Johnson was an accomplished woman before her illness; not only did she have a successful career as an illustrator with several New Yorker covers to her credit, but she also was a violist and certified pilot, who lived on a farm. After illness struck, Johnson's mother and sister devoted themselves to her recovery while helping her participate in research studies, to which she made groundbreaking contributions. The story is fascinating, and Lemonick's prose is accessible and engaging. This title covers some of the same ground as Luke Dittrich's Patient H.M., devoting a chapter to what happened to H.M.'s brain after death; those who enjoyed Dittrich's work may want to seek out this volume. VERDICT Eminently approachable, this book will be attractive to lay readers curious about memory and the brain, particularly those who have followed the career of H.M.--Nancy H. Fontaine, Norwich P.L., VT

        Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

      • premium: True
      • source: Booklist
      • content:

        January 1, 2017
        What is it like to not be able to make new memories? That is the baffling question behind science writer Lemonick's (Mirror Earth, 2012) fascinating and poignant portrait of Lonni Sue Johnson, an artist who designed covers for the New Yorker, a musician, and an amateur pilot, whose life suddenly changed in 2007 when she contracted encephalitis. The virus raced through the hippocampus of her brain, leaving her in a severe state of amnesia in which she lives in the perpetual now. She has retained her artistic skills but lives in 10-to-15 -minute increments. For Johnson, every experience is the first time, over and over again. Lemonick addresses profound mysteries, such as, If we have no memories of the experiences that made us, how can we know who we are? With the consent of family members and Johnson herself, who remains relentlessly cheerful, doctors are mapping her brain, hoping to learn more about the human mind. Lemonick's compassionate look at illness, memory, and what it means to be human will appeal to Oliver Sacks fans.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)

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In the aftermath of a shattering illness, Lonni Sue Johnson lives in a "perpetual now," where she has almost no memories of the past and a nearly complete inability to form new ones. The Perpetual Now is the moving story of this exceptional woman, and the groundbreaking revelations about memory, learning, and consciousness her unique case has uncovered.
Lonni Sue Johnson was a renowned artist who regularly produced covers for The New Yorker, a gifted musician, a skilled amateur pilot, and a joyful presence to all who knew her. But in late 2007, she contracted encephalitis. The disease burned through her hippocampus like wildfire, leaving her severely amnesic, living in a present that rarely progresses beyond ten to fifteen minutes.
     Remarkably, she still retains much of the intellect and artistic skills from her previous life, but it's not at all clear how closely her consciousness resembles yours or mine. As such, Lonni Sue's...
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