Do Psychedelics Expand the Mind by Reducing Brain Activity? What would you see if you could look inside a hallucinating brain? Despite decades of scientific investigation, we still lack a clear understanding of how hallucinogenic drugs such as LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide), mescaline, and psilocybin (the main active ingredient in magic mushrooms) work in the brain. Modern science has demonstrated that hallucinogens activate receptors for serotonin, one of the brain’s key chemical messengers. Specifically, of the 15 different serotonin receptors, the 2A subtype (5-HT2A), seems to be the one that produces profound alterations of thought and perception. It is uncertain, however, why activation of the 5-HT2A receptor by hallucinogens produces psychedelic effects, but many scientists believe that the effects are linked to increases in brain activity.
The study in question was conducted by Dr. Robin Carhart-Harris in conjunction with Professor David Nutt, a psychiatrist who was formerly a scientific advisor to the UK government on drugs policy. Is the brain the centre of your universe? The Observer has a fantastic debate between neuroscientists David Eagleman and Raymond Tallis about how much brain science tells us about free will and the unconscious. It’s a wonderful pairing as Eagleman is a broad-thinking wonderboy of neuroscience while Tallis is a veteran street-fighter of brain debates. The main point of contention revlves around whether we can understand the brain as the source of human nature or whether we have to look beyond the individual to make sense of our experience and behaviour.
Eagleman: It is clear at this point that we are irrevocably tied to the 3lb of strange computational material found within our skulls. The brain is utterly alien to us, and yet our personalities, hopes, fears and aspirations all depend on the integrity of this biological tissue. How do we know this? As an accompaniment to the piece, I also wrote a ‘brief guide to neuroscience’ that you can also read online.
Link to debate ‘The brain… it makes you think. What Part of Your Brain Falls in Love With Art? LOS ANGELES — If you’re reading this, you probably know the feeling. You’ve just fell in love with a work of art. A real work of art. It might be a painting, a sculpture. You stare and stare and you feel your heart pound and maybe even your eyes well up. And then a friend next to you says … “Huh?” The way art touches us remains a mystery, but some studies are pointing to what might be going on underneath our noggins.
Volunteers — who were selected for varying level of experience in art and art history — answered the question “How strongly does this painting move you?” Here’s what Futurity.org had to say: However, for paintings receiving a “4” — indicating a piece truly moved a subject — fMRI results showed the engagement of an additional neurological process. What on earth is self-referential mentation? Image: From Discovery Education’s Clip Art Gallery and created by illustrator Mark A. Tagged as: brain, science of art. The Science and History of Treating Depression. Changing Brains for the Better: Article Documents Benefits of Multiple Practices -- Science of the Spirit. Practices like physical exercise, certain forms of psychological counseling and meditation can all change brains for the better, and these changes can be measured with the tools of modern neuroscience, according to a review article now online at Nature Neuroscience.
The study reflects a major transition in the focus of neuroscience from disease to well being, says first author Richard Davidson, professor of psychology at University of Wisconsin-Madison. The brain is constantly changing in response to environmental factors, he says, and the article "reflects one of the first efforts to apply this conceptual framework to techniques to enhance qualities that we have not thought of as skills, like well-being.
Modern neuroscience research leads to the inevitable conclusion that we can actually enhance well-being by training that induces neuroplastic changes in the brain. " Brains change all the time, Davidson emphasizes. "You cannot learn or retain information without a change in the brain. Debunking the Right-Brain Creativity Myth. What's the Latest Development? The idea that creative people are somehow 'right-brained' is a myth, according to recent research completed at the University of Southern California. In a study, a group of subjects were given a creative task—rearranging a circle, a C and an 8 to create a new image—and non-creative task—mentally fitting together geometric shapes to form a square or rectangle. The later task, which requires spatial processing but not necessarily creativity, stimulated tissue in the brain's left hemisphere while the creative task involved the entire brain.
What's the Big Idea? While the left hemisphere of your brain is typically thought to control mathematical and logical processes, it is essential to solving creative problems, as well. 'We need both hemispheres for creative processing,' said Lisa Aziz-Zadeh, assistant professor of neuroscience at USC. The study goes to show that high-level human functioning rarely fits into neat boxes or binary divisions.
Yoga Fans Sexual Flames and, Predictably, Plenty of Scandal. I Am Not My Brain - Jerry DeNuccio. My patience, always a dwindling and, I’ve come to think, nonrenewable resource, has, at long last, been thoroughly tried—tried and convicted of aggravated aggravation with skepticism aforethought. What was it that shanghaied my forbearance and drove me to this illicit state? A book. Yes, a book, the very thing that typically flash freezes my patience, preserves it, makes it a cryonic fugitive unpinned from tick-tock sweep-handedness of time.
And what was this offending book? None other than David J. Linden’s The Compass of Pleasure: How Our Brains Make Fatty Food, Orgasm, Exercise, Marijuana, Generosity, Vodka, Learning, and Gambling Feel So Good. Linden, a neuroscientist at Johns Hopkins, asserts that certain experiences “activate an anatomically and biochemically defined pleasure circuit in the brain.” Linden effectually reduces human beings to brain biochemistry, to neural substrates whose components fire in response to external experiences. Hack Your Brain to Use Cravings To Your Advantage. Depression Is Linked to Hyperconnectivity of Brain Regions, a New Study Shows. Paralympian Oscar Pistorius broke down in court once again during his turn on the witness stand, as he remembered the night that he shot his model girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp. The public has waited for over five weeks for a glimpse into the mind of South African Paralympian Oscar Pistorius, who is currently in the witness box in Pretoria’s North Gauteng High Court to provide evidence and defend himself in the murder trial of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, whom he shot and killed on Valentine’s Day last year.
The six-time gold medalist was scheduled to be sworn in at the beginning of March, but the trial was postponed due to the illness of one of the judge’s assessors. The moment everything changed Sobbing uncontrollably after hours of exhaustive testimony on Tuesday, Pistorius detailed the events proceeding the moment that he put four bullets through his bathroom door, killing his 29-year-old girlfriend. “She rolled over to me and said ‘Can't you sleep, my baba?’” ‘Besotted’ with Reeva. Teaching Self-Control, the American Way. Michael Taft: Hardwired for the Mystical? The gap between atheists and the religious seems at times to be an impossible divide, almost as if believers and non-believers come from different species.
What separates the secular from the sacred? An "Ask the Brains" question on the Scientific American site recently inquired as to any differences between the brain of an atheist and the brain of a religious person. Andrew Newberg, the director of research at the Myrna Brind Center of Integrative Medicine at Thomas Jefferson University and Hospital in Philadelphia, responded that, yes, in fact, there are some small but perceptible differences between the brains of believers and non-believers. Newberg is a pioneer in the field of "neurotheology," the study of how the brain approaches faith. For example, the frontal lobe of the brain governs reward, attention and motivation. In past studies, those who meditate or pray regularly seem to have more active frontal lobes on average than those who do not. For more by Michael Taft, click here. Rewiring Your Brain for Healthy Empathy: Acquiring a Voltmeter. In the scheme of "rewiring your brain for love," one of the benefits of mindfulness practice when it comes to relationships could be thought of as acquiring a voltmeter -- that quality of empathy that allows you the ability to accurately read the voltage between you and your partner.
Unfortunately, many people don't "do" empathy in a way that supports a healthy relationship. I've posted below an introduction to different levels of empathy, and how they can serve or undermine your relationships, which I hope you'll find useful. Acquiring a Voltmeter: Empathy (Excerpt from Chapter 8 of ) Insight into your own inner workings, and having a coherent narrative about how you came to be you, are incredibly important for healthy relationships -- and when you put those together with being empathic?
Wow. Now you got it goin' . Like lots of other people, for too many years I had empathy all wrong. Mostly, I thought being empathic was about tuning in to others, getting what they were feeling. Group settings can diminish expressions of intelligence, especially among women, study finds. Research has found that small-group dynamics -- such as jury deliberations, collective bargaining sessions, and cocktail parties -- can alter the expression of IQ in some susceptible people. In the classic film "12 Angry Men," Henry Fonda's character sways a jury with his quiet, persistent intelligence. But would he have succeeded if he had allowed himself to fall sway to the social dynamics of that jury? Research led by scientists at the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute found that small-group dynamics -- such as jury deliberations, collective bargaining sessions, and cocktail parties -- can alter the expression of IQ in some susceptible people.
"You may joke about how committee meetings make you feel brain dead, but our findings suggest that they may make you act brain dead as well," said Read Montague, director of the Human Neuroimaging Laboratory and Computational Psychiatry Unit at the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, who led the study. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Your Brain On Psilocybin Might Be Less Depressed : Shots - Health Blog. Hide captionThis could be your forest on psilocybin. Baxterclaus/Flickr This could be your forest on psilocybin. Magic mushrooms are said to blow your mind, but the hallucinogenic chemical psilocybin, the active ingredient, actually reins in key parts of the brain, according to two new studies.
The memorably vivid emotional experiences reported by mushroom users may flourish because the parts of the brain suppressed by psilocybin usually keep our world view tidy and rational. And since the brain area affected by psilocybin can also be out of whack in mental health problems such as depression, the researchers speculate that the drug may turn out to be useful in treating mental illness. "The brain's doing a lot to keep our experiences of the world orderly and constrained," says Robin Carhart-Harris, a post-doc in neuroscience at Imperial College London, and lead author of the studies. The studies are among the first to use brain imaging to take a peek at the brain on psilocybin. Political Divisions Between Conservatives, Liberals Mirror Reactions To Negative Stimuli.
This Is Your Brain During Orgasm | Experts' Corner. Train Your Brain to Focus - Paul Hammerness, MD, and Margaret Moore. Broken arm? Brain shifts quickly when using a sling or cast. Using a sling or cast after injuring an arm may cause your brain to shift quickly to adjust, according to a study published in the January 17, 2012, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The study found increases in the size of brain areas that were compensating for the injured side, and decreases in areas that were not being used due to the cast or sling. "These results are especially interesting for rehabilitation therapy for people who've had strokes or other issues," said study author Nicolas Langer, MSc, with the University of Zurich in Switzerland.
"One type of therapy restrains the unaffected, or "good," arm to strengthen the affected arm and help the brain learn new pathways. This study shows that there are both positive and negative effects of this type of treatment. " For the study, researchers examined 10 right-handed people with an injury of the upper right arm that required a sling for at least 14 days. Your Storytelling Brain | Think Tank. Christmas brain lectures available worldwide. This year’s Royal Institution Christmas Lectures were a fantastic trip through neuroscience and the brain – and you can now watch them online from anywhere in the world.
The Christmas Lectures are a traditional event where a leading scientist is chosen to present the latest developments in a fun and engaging way to a lecture theatre full of slightly posh kids. They’re televised in the UK but they’ve now been made available online and you can watch all three streamed over the net. And I really recommend you do as they’re fantastic. They’re presented by psychologist Bruce Hood and they’re packed with excellent demonstrations that use everything from cutting edge neuroscience technology to stuff you could find in your house. Enormously enjoyable whether your a fan or a profesional (or both). Link to excellent online Christmas lectures. Meditation found to increase brain size. Kris Snibbe/Harvard News Office Sara Lazar (center) talks to research assistant Michael Treadway and technologist Shruthi Chakrapami about the results of experiments showing that meditation can increase brain size.
People who meditate grow bigger brains than those who don’t. Researchers at Harvard, Yale, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have found the first evidence that meditation can alter the physical structure of our brains. Brain scans they conducted reveal that experienced meditators boasted increased thickness in parts of the brain that deal with attention and processing sensory input. In one area of gray matter, the thickening turns out to be more pronounced in older than in younger people. “Our data suggest that meditation practice can promote cortical plasticity in adults in areas important for cognitive and emotional processing and well-being,” says Sara Lazar, leader of the study and a psychologist at Harvard Medical School. Controlling random thoughts. Neuroconservation: Your Brain on Ocean. Roaring Ocean, Oregon Coast. Photo by Charles Seaborn.
The fate of the oceans is now in human hands, yet most of us ocean conservationists don’t know much about why people do things that harm the ocean, or how to motivate behavior that is good for the ocean. As I note in my book, Heal the Ocean, the re-connection of people to the sea will be key to pervasive conservation and intelligent resource use. But how can we do that? I recently had the opportunity to learn about how humans relate to the ocean by moderating the Blue Mind: Your Brain on Ocean panel of scientists, futurists and communicators as part of the inaugural Bay Area Science Festival. We also explored how conservationists might be able to apply the insights of neuroscience, behavioral science, and psychology to improve conservation strategies and outcomes.
BLUEMiND Graphic from Inaugural Summit, June, 2011. The panel line-up included marine biologist and research associate at the California Academy of Sciences, Dr. Dr. Dr. Dr. David Lynch: Consciousness, Creativity and the Brain. Listening To Music Lights Up The Whole Brain. For the forgetful in menopause, brain works harder to keep up. Psychopaths: Born evil or with a diseased brain? First Brain Image Of A Dream Created. Video-Game Skills Predicted by Brain Scan. As Social Network Grows, so Does the Brain | Social Networking, Brain Matter & Animal Dominance. Reading the brain: Mind-goggling. Brains of over-55s work more efficiently as experience of age beats speed of youth.
Time – and brain chemistry – heal all wounds | Science Sushi. How Successful Students Overcome Math Anxiety Revealed By Brain Study. The Divided Brain, Animated. The Neurobiology of Stress: the Human Brain and How It Responds to Stress. Facebook friend tally is associated with differences in brain structure | Science. Study Of Brain Activity In Heavy Users Of Violent Games Suggests They Are Emotionally Desensitizing. “Reading Minds” with fMRI. For Tiny Babies, Brain Growth Predicts Intelligence. Half Asleep. Brain 'rejects negative thoughts' How Your Brain Reacts to Mistakes Depends on Your Mindset.
Maker of cognitive training game seeks FDA approval - health - 26 September 2011. The Brain in Love and Lust. Creativity? Train Your Brain to be an Idea-Generating machine. The compassion instinct. Your Brain on Politics: The Cognitive Neuroscience of Liberals and Conservatives | The Intersection. Mythbusters: 5 Amazing Facts about the Brain « psychosycho. A Brain on Depression – Tribute to Trey Pennington. Effects of Alcohol on Brain Activity. Advanced Theory of Mind in patient... [Parkinsonism Relat Disord. 2011. The Brain Is Not Made Of Soup. City Life Could Change Your Brain for the Worse | Wired Science. Finding That Fear Boosts Activation Of Young, Immature Brain Cells Has Implications For PTSD. Can Brain Scans Predict Music Sales? Want to Solve a Problem? Don’t Just Use Your Brain, but Your Body Too.
Brain scans reveal why some people feel your pain - life - 27 May 2011. Brain Training as a New Treatment for Addictions. Mind-reading scan identifies simple thoughts - health - 26 May 2011. The Conversation is Over. Long Live the Conversation. - David Rock - The Conversation. The Learning Brain Gets Bigger--Then Smaller. Why Crossing Your Arms Helps Kill Pain. Eat a protein-rich breakfast to reduce food cravings, prevent overeating later, researcher finds. No Pain, Healthier Brain. Exercise and the Brain. Apple causes ‘religious’ reaction in brains of fans, say neuroscientists. This Is Your Brain on Twitter. No pain, big gain: Treatment of chronic low back pain can reverse abnormal brain activity and function. 10 Facts Every Parent Should Know about Their Teen's Brain. A-ha! The neural mechanisms of insight. Neuro-tweets: #hashtagging the brain (w/ video) The Rewards of Revenge | Wired Science Scientists Show How We Remember Dreams - But they're still not sure about the 'why' part.
How Muscle Memory Works and How It Affects Your Success. Foreign Accent Syndrome: Oregon Woman Karen Butler Wakes From Surgery With Strange Accent. Computer Network Mimics Schizophrenic Thinking.