Anil Seth: Your brain hallucinates your conscious reality

How the smartphone affected an entire generation of kids As someone who researches generational differences, I find one of the most frequent questions I’m asked is “What generation am I in?” If you were born before 1980, that’s a relatively easy question to answer: the Silent Generation was born between 1925 and 1945; baby boomers were born between 1946 and 1964; Gen X followed (born between 1965 and 1979). Next come millennials, born after 1980. But where do millennials end, and when does the next generation begin? Until recently, I (and many others) thought the last millennial birth year would be 1999 – today’s 18-year-olds. However, that changed a few years ago, when I started to notice big shifts in teens’ behavior and attitudes in the yearly surveys of 11 million young people that I analyze for my research.

Geizeer Portable Air Conditioner When the summertime temperatures climb to Mercury-like levels, you might feel inclined to sit in front of your eyesore of an air conditioning unit. Well, now you can get the cool without the ugly, thanks to this portable air conditioning box that'll fit in at your office, the subway, or wherever you sweat your ass off. The "Geizeer," featured on Kickstarter in May, is a mini, eco-friendly, and portable air conditioning box that'll keep you cool for hours and can be charged with a USB.

Jerusalem syndrome The best known, although not the most prevalent, manifestation of Jerusalem syndrome is the phenomenon whereby a person who seems previously balanced and devoid of any signs of psychopathology becomes psychotic after arriving in Jerusalem.[citation needed] The psychosis is characterised by an intense religious theme and typically resolves to full recovery after a few weeks or after being removed from the area. The religious focus of Jerusalem syndrome distinguishes it from other phenomena, such as Stendhal syndrome in Florence or Paris syndrome for Japanese tourists. In a 2000 article in the British Journal of Psychiatry, Bar-El et al. claim to have identified and described a specific syndrome which emerges in tourists with no previous psychiatric history.[1] However, this claim has been disputed by M. Kalian and E.

Mind molding psychedelic drugs could treat depression, and other mental illnesses My research group has been studying the effects of psychedelics on neuronal structure and function, and we found that these compounds cause neurons to grow. A lot. Many of these compounds are well-known and include lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), psilocin (from magic mushrooms), N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT, from ayahuasca) and 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, aka ecstasy). These are among the most powerful drugs known to affect brain function, and our research shows that they can alter the structure of the brain as well. Changes in neuronal structure are important because they can impact how the brain is wired, and consequently, how we feel, think and behave.

Why predicting suicide is a difficult and complex challenge Who is going to die by suicide? This terrible mystery of human behavior takes on particular poignance in the wake of suicides by high-profile and much-beloved celebrities Kate Spade and Anthony Bourdain. It is only natural that people want to know why such tragedies occur. 4 simple exercises to strengthen attention and reduce distractibility Mengxin Li “I think, therefore I am distracted.” If Descartes were writing today, this is what his famous aphorism might have become. We’re living in an age of distraction, battered by our own customized waterfall of notifications, alerts, texts, videos, bingeable TV, and more. It’s not surprising our minds often feel like a jumble. But it turns out we’re not at the mercy of our runaway minds.

Arenas and zoos can be overwhelming for children with autism Jared Oriel Like many kids his age, six-year-old Abram Maha was fascinated by mummies. So one summer day in 2014, his parents, physicians Julian Maha and Michele Kong, took him to one of his favorite places: the mummy exhibit at a museum in their hometown of Birmingham, Alabama. It was busy that day, the lobby was packed, and the place was a barrage of noises, smells and sounds. For many children with autism, including Abram, this kind of environment results in full-on sensory overload. To deal with it, he starts “stimming” — performing repetitive behaviors such as bouncing, hand flapping, jumping and shouting.

Tantalized by Train Wreck Reality Television Glitz, snits, and ditsy-ness make for high drama and even higher ratings, but are these the real reasons people tune into reality shows like Toddlers & Tiaras and Here Comes Honey Boo Boo? These programs regularly attract millions of viewers but the oft-asked question is why. Query any viewer and most will tell you they are both repulsed and fascinated at the same time; they simply can’t turn away. Just like a freeway car accident or train wreck, we rubberneck toward disaster. The science of laughter – and why it also has a dark side When you hear someone laugh behind you, you probably picture them on the phone or with a friend – smiling and experiencing a warm, fuzzy feeling inside. Chances are just the sound of the laughter could make you smile or even laugh along. But imagine that the person laughing is just walking around alone in the street, or sitting behind you at a funeral.

'Screen time' is about more than setting limits In today’s media-rich world (or media-saturated, depending on your view), one rarely has to look far to find parents concerned about the ways that kids engage with technology. Recently, managing “screen time” seems to be on everyone’s mind – particularly during these summer months when kids find themselves with more time on their hands. As someone who has spent the majority of my career studying kids and safety online, I get a lot of questions from parents about screen time. My response? There’s a lot more to digital media consumption than expert advice about hourly limits.

Brains keep temporary molecular records before making a lasting memory The first dance at my wedding lasted exactly four minutes and 52 seconds, but I’ll probably remember it for decades. Neuroscientists still don’t entirely understand this: How was my brain able to translate this less-than-five-minute experience into a lifelong memory? Part of the puzzle is that there’s a gap between experience and memory: our experiences are fleeting, but it takes hours to form a long-term memory. In recent work published in the journal Neuron, my colleagues and I figured out how the brain keeps temporary molecular records of transient experiences.