Title: Dexterity and its development /
Authors: Latash, Mark L., 1953-; Turvey, Michael T.; Bernshteĭn, N. A. 1896-1966.; Bernshteĭn, N. A. 1896-1966.
Publisher: L. Erlbaum Assoc.,
Year: 1996
Subjects: Motor ability.; Motor Skills
Abstract: Very few scientific works remain interesting 50 years after their initial publication. One notable exception to this observation is On Dexterity and Its Development, by Nicholai A. Bernstein, one of the premier minds in movement science. Included here in a translation from the original Russian, this work presents Bernstein's major ideas on the development and control of voluntary movement in general and the notion of dexterity in particular. Originally written in the 1940s, and published in 1991 in the Russian, the ideas in this book are anything but obsolete; in fact, we are just beginning to understand the depth and breadth of Bernstein's thinking. Included in addition to Bernstein's classic text are seven chapters written by contemporary scientists working in disciplines related to human movement. Written in a reader-friendly style similar to Bernstein's, the contributions are intended to illuminate and build on Bernstein's original work, as well as to be understandable and interesting to a wide audience, including scholars in psychology and movement science. The combination of the accessible style and the state of the art account of the processes underlying human voluntary movements, particularly dexterous ones, makes this book unique.
Contents: pt. 1. On Dexterity and Its Development / N.A. Bernstein. Essay 1. What Is Dexterity? Essay 2. On Motor Control. Essay 3. On the Origin of Movements. Essay 4. On the Construction of Movements. Essay 5. Levels of Construction of Movements. Essay 6. On Exercise and Motor Skill. Essay 7. Dexterity and Its Features -- pt. II. Commentaries. N.A. Bernstein: The Reformer of Neuroscience / I.M. Feigenberg and L.P. Latash. The Bernstein Problem: How Does the Central Nervous System Make Its Choices? / Mark L. Latash. On the Biomechanical Basis of Dexterity / Gerrit Jan van Ingen Schenau and Arthur J. van Soest. Dynamics of Bernstein's Level of Synergies / Michael T. Turvey and Claudia Carello. Dexterity in Cascade Juggling / Peter J. Beek and A. (Tony) A.M. van Santvoord. Change in Movement and Skill: Learning, Retention, and Transfer / Karl M. Newell. The Primacy of Action in Development / Edward S. Reed and Blandine Bril.