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. 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.
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. The Science and History of Treating Depression. Changing Brains for the Better: Article Documents Benefits of Multiple Practices. 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.
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.
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. 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. 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. 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.
Political Divisions Between Conservatives, Liberals Mirror Reactions To Negative Stimuli. This Is Your Brain During Orgasm. By Kayt Sukel Editor's Note: A writer by trade, Kayt Sukel volunteered to masturbate in an MRI scanner for science. The point of the study? Neuroscientist Barry Komisaruk and sex therapist Nan Wise wanted to know what exactly goes on in the brain when a woman orgasms. Could the sensory cortex be activated by thought alone, they wondered, opening doors for treatments for people unable to orgasm through genital stimulation?
This guest post is an excerpt from Sukel's just-released Dirty Minds: How Our Brains Influence Love, Sex, and Relationships. Train Your Brain to Focus - Paul Hammerness, MD, and Margaret Moore. By Paul Hammerness, MD, and Margaret Moore | 1:32 PM January 18, 2012 Next time you are sitting in a meeting, take a look around. The odds are high that you will see your colleagues checking screens, texting, and emailing while someone is talking or making a presentation. Many of us are proud of our prowess in multitasking, and wear it like a badge of honor. Wiring the Brain, Literally, to Treat Stubborn Disorders. 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. " Your Storytelling Brain. With rendition switcher Michael Gazzaniga : Some people, for instance, love the metaphors that come out of, say, literature and the arts and think that you want to leave those whole and untouched by an analysis as to why we may like those metaphors or why those metaphors seem to help our thinking or any of a number of questions.
And there’s a sense that if someone goes in and assesses that situation and gives a biologic dimension to why we do like those things that somehow it’s all diminished by that. And that’s just not true. In my early part of my career - and it continues - I studied patients who had their two brains disconnected. 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. 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. Neuroconservation: Your Brain on Ocean. 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. Around the time of menopause, many women complain of mental slippage. But, as if to inflict some perverse trick upon them, cognitive scientists have found that they actually perform no more poorly than women who do not have such complaints. Psychopaths: Born evil or with a diseased brain? 15 November 2011Last updated at 01:16 By Matthew Taylor Presenter, Brain Culture. First Brain Image Of A Dream Created. Video-Game Skills Predicted by Brain Scan. By Rick Nauert PhD Senior News Editor Reviewed by John M. Social Networking, Brain Matter & Animal Dominance. Monkey brains grow bigger with every cagemate they acquire, according to a new study showing that certain parts of the brain associated with processing social information expand in response to more complex social information. Reading the brain: Mind-goggling. Brains of over-55s work more efficiently as experience of age beats speed of youth.
By Daily Mail Reporter Updated: 07:23 GMT, 19 October 2011 It is the evidence parents have longed to arm themselves with in disputes with their children – getting older really does make you wiser. The over-55s use their brains more efficiently than their younger counterparts, as they are much more likely to shrug off mistakes, say scientists. And while they may take more time to come to a decision, they are simply conserving their energy. Time – and brain chemistry – heal all wounds.
How Successful Students Overcome Math Anxiety Revealed By Brain Study. Main Category: Anxiety / Stress Also Included In: Psychology / Psychiatry Article Date: 22 Oct 2011 - 0:00 PDT. 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. 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. 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. 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. 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. 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.