"mirror box" research

I first learned about the "mirror box" (described in Sandy & Anna's story) from this wonderful book:

Phantoms in the Brain: probing the mysteries of the human mind
by VS Ramachandran & Sandra Blakelee
William Morrow, 1998.

This book examines how sensation—vision, smell, proprioception—is distributed among many parts of the brain. Technical enough to feel like I learned something; explains enough that I stuck around for the ride.

Disability angle: it's not just a metaphor; body image is rapidly remapped to include any functional prosthesis—touching my chair is touching my body. And yet again it is up the impaired to teach doctors about the operation of the "typical" mind.

Bonus points: The doc half of the writing duo doesn't take himself too seriously, and the writing half knows how to be didactic without patronizing.

At the intersection of disability, slash &

science fiction, here's a Battlestar Galactica fanfic:

Mirror Box by anna_bird and sasha_feather

Don't worry if you're not up-to-date with the fandom--the Battlestar Wiki provides just-in-time data. Skim Felix Gaeta and Samuel Anders for the requisite background.

It's worth the investment. "Mirror Box" pokes at the borders between self and not-self, between assistive and hostile technologies, as well as between jock and nerd. The writing is lovely, it made me think, and it even made me want to start watching BSG again (no matter the world of NOES! all over my flist).