The brain is known as the “final frontier” of science; it is the hardest nut to crack but one that contains a vast wealth of information, a true treasure of knowledge that can enrich our understanding of human nature. One of the ways neuroscientists study the brain is through case studies of what happens when the brain doesn't work properly: what happens to make the brain work incorrectly, can we spot abnormalities, and can we relate neural abnormalities to physiological problems . In his book “Phantoms in the Brain”, VS Ramachandran targets a particular section of neural problems – phantom limbs – but explores them through the broader scope of neurobiology. In doing so, he provides a comprehensive assessment of reality – its factors, reasons and inconsistencies, providing the reader not only with an interesting case study in neurobiology but also with altered perception and a strengthened understanding of the nature of the self. Ramachandran begins by directing the reader to the source of phantom limb sensations: the brain, rather than the previous explanation of these sensations, the nerve endings. Inside the Brain, he isolates and explains the homunculus in great detail, as this is the basis for the rest of the book. The correlation between phantom limbs and the homunculus is the idea that neural remapping can occur. Ramachandran tests this theory with a neuroimaging technique known as magnetoencephalography (MEG) and uses it to image the brains of arm amputees, finding that there is significant remapping (31). The key idea advanced at the beginning of the book is that neurons can change roles - based on lesions and the actions of adjacent neurons - and comes close to studying phantom limb sense... middle of paper... . ..f extremely specific case studies show how the brain is flexible, has a perceived self-image, does everything to preserve this self-image, and is even willing to deceive itself to do so. Phantom limbs are presented as the brain's confabulation mechanism to deny the destruction of a part of the body's self-image combined with neural remapping that allows the brain to perceive sensations when there is none - a key part of the self-deception mechanism. When the body is damaged, this self-deception occurs so that the brain does not have to completely alter its existing structure, and the pain experienced by phantom limb patients is one of the brain's mechanisms for deceiving itself. Since pain is manufactured by the brain, manufacturing it along with subconscious psychological denial of the truth of the situation is what ultimately causes phantom limb sensations..