I often feel that life is about to begin, only to realize it is almost over.

I am now face to face with dying. But I am not finished with living.

I often feel that life is about to begin, only to realize it is almost over.

It really is a very odd business that all of us, to varying degrees, have music in our heads.

Scheele, it was said, never forgot anything if it had to do with chemistry. He never forgot the look, the feel, the smell of a substance, or the way it was transformed in chemical reactions, never forgot anything he read, or was told, about the phenomena of chemistry. He seemed indifferent, or inattentive, to most things else, being wholly dedicated to his single passion, chemistry. It was this pure and passionate absorption in phenomena-noticing everything, forgetting nothing-that constituted Scheele's special strength.

The power of music and the plasticity of the brain go together very strikingly, especially in young people.

The rhythm of music is very, very important for people with Parkinson's. But it's also very important with other sorts of patients, such as patients with Tourette's syndrome. Music helps them bring their impulses and tics under control. There is even a whole percussion orchestra made up exclusively of Tourette's patients.