Magnetic manipulation of the sense of morality : Neurophilosophy WHEN making moral judgements, we rely on our ability to make inferences about the beliefs and intentions of others. With this so-called “theory of mind”, we can meaningfully interpret their behaviour, and decide whether it is right or wrong. The legal system also places great emphasis on one’s intentions: a “guilty act” only produces criminal liability when it is proven to have been performed in combination with a “guilty mind”, and this, too, depends on the ability to make reasoned moral judgements. MIT researchers now show that this moral compass can be very easily skewed. Liane Lee Young of MIT’s Department of Brain and Cognitive Science and her colleagues asked participants to make moral judgements about different variations of a number of scenarios. These scenarios differ in the beliefs underlying Grace’s actions and in their outcome. Whether or not these findings extend to real world judgements remains to be seen. Young, L., et al. (2010). Saxe, R. & Kanwisher, N. (2003).
Increased Interstitial White Matter Neuron Density in the Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex of People with Schizophrenia To view the full text, please login as a subscribed user or purchase a subscription. Click here to view the full text on ScienceDirect. Figure 1 Neuronal nuclear antigen (NeuN)–positive neurons (A) below grey matter (grey matter/white matter border represented by dotted line). Figure 2 Density of neuronal nuclear antigen + immunopositive interstitial white matter (neurons/mm2) in (A) superficial white matter and (B) deep white matter in control subjects (squares) and schizophrenic cases (triangles). Figure 3 Superficial neuronal nuclear antigen immunopositive interstitial white matter neuron (IWMN) density (neurons/mm2) negatively correlates with gray matter somatostatin (SST) expression in control subjects and schizophrenia cases (control, squares; schizophrenia, triangles). qPCR, quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Figure 4 Representative in situ hybridization images showing somatostatin (SST) mRNA signals in control (A, C) and schizophrenia (B, D) subjects. Figure 5 Figure 6 Background
brainSCANr Phantoms in the Brain The writings of Oliver Sacks and others have shown us that we can learn much about ourselves by looking closely at the deficits shown by people with neurological problems. V.S. Ramachandran has seen countless patients suffering from anosognosia, phantom limb pain, blindsight, and other disorders, and he brings a remarkable mixture of clinical intuition and research savvy to bear on their problems. He is one of the few scientists who are able and willing to explore the personal, subjective ramifications of his work; he rehumanizes an often too-sterile field and captures the spirit of wonder so essential for true discovery. Phantoms in the Brain is equal parts medical mystery, scientific adventure, and philosophical speculation. Watch the full documentary now (playlist - 1 hour, 39 minutes)
How Alcohol Affects the Brain General Effects of Alcohol on the Brain Alcohol can affect several parts of the brain, but in general, alcohol contracts brain tissue and depresses the central nervous system. Also, alcohol destroys brain cells and unlike many other types of cells in the body, brain cells do not regenerate. Excessive drinking over a prolonged period of time can cause serious problems with cognition and memory. When alcohol reaches the brain, it interferes with communication between nerve cells, by interacting with the receptors on some cells. Chemical Effects of Alcohol on the Brain To understand how alcohol interferes with brain function, it is necessary to know a little bit about normal brain function. The gap between cells where neurotransmitters are active is called the synapse. When alcohol is introduced to the synapse, the normal neurotransmission may be affected. Effects of Alcohol on Brain Parts Alcohol affects different parts of the brain in different ways. The cerebral cortex and alcohol
Subliminal Stimuli Explained Subliminal Articles There is a lot of misunderstanding about the term subliminal and how subliminal messages, especially those found a subliminal CDs, work. Subliminal messages are not just verbal commands. They can take the form of a single hidden word, entire sentences or even images which elicit an emotional response at a subconscious level. The word "subliminal" is used to refer to anything that is registered by the brain but is only offered to the senses below the threshold of conscious perception. Subliminal stimuli refers to anything that stimulations the brain and senses at a subliminal level. For example an image may be shown so quickly to an individual that all he or she is consciously aware of is a flash of light or imperceptible image. Likewise a verbal message may also be hidden, or "masked", behind other sounds so that the words being spoken are imperceptible. So how does a subliminal stimulus affect the brain and behaviour of those that are exposed to them?
BrainMind.net Lecture 3 The Left Hemisphere From: Neuropsychiatry, Neuropsychology, Clinical Neuroscience by Rhawn Joseph, Ph.D. (Academic Press, New York, 2000) Language, Consciousness, Handedness, Aphasia, Apraxia, Alexia Agraphia, Depression, Schizophrenia, Ego-Centric Speech & The Origin of Thought Handeded and Hemispheric Functional Laterality The left half of the brain controls the right hand. Among 80-90% of right handers, and over 50-80% of those who are left handed, the left cerebral hemisphere provides the neural foundation and mediates most aspects of expressive and receptive linguistic functioning (Frost et al., 1999; Pujol, et al., 1999). As demonstrated with functional imaging and blood flow studies, when reading, speaking, and naming, the left hemisphere becomes highly active (Buchel et al., 1998; Evers et al., 1999; Frost et al., 1999; Peterson et al., 1988, 1990; Price, 1997; Pujol, et al., 1999). The Language Axis "Gnosis" means to "know" Agnosia means, not to know.
BrainMind.net It has now been well established that the right cerebral hemisphere is dominant over the left in regard to the perception, expression and mediation of almost all aspects of social and emotional functioning (e.g. Borod, 1992; Cancelliere & Kertesz, 1990; Freeman & Traugott, 1993; Heilman & Bowers 1995; Heilman et al. 1985; Joseph 1988a; Tucker & Frederick, 1989; see below), including the recall of emotional memories (Cimino et al., 1991; Rauch et al., 1996; Shin et al., 1997). This emotional dominance extends to bilateral control over the autonomic nervous system, including heart rate, blood pressure regulation, galvanic skin conductance and the secretion of cortisol in emotionally upsetting or exciting situations (Rosen et al. 1982; Wittling, 1990; Wittling & Pfluger, 1990; Yamour et al. 1980; Zamarini et al. 1990). However, this dominance does not appear to extend to the immune system (Meador et al., 1999). Aphasia & Depression Wernicke's Area
BrainMind.net When hallucinations follow depth electrode or cortical stimulation, much of the material experienced is very dream-like (Gloor 1990, 1992; Halgren et al., 1978; Malh et al., 1964; Penfield & Perot 1963) and consists of recent perceptions, ideas, feelings, and other emotions which are similarly illusionary and dream-like. Indeed, the right amygdala, hippocampus, and the right hemisphere in general (Broughton, 1982; Goldstein et al., 1972; Hodoba, 1986; Humphrey & Zangwill, 1961; Kerr & Foulkes, 1978; Meyer et al. 1987) also appear to be involved in the production of deam imagery as well as REM sleep (chapter 10). For example stimulation of the amygdala triggers and increases ponto-geniculo-occipital paradoxical activity during sleep (Calvo, et al. 1987), which in turn is associated with REM and dreaming. The Right Hemisphere & Dreams. Forgotten Dreams. Most individuals, however, have difficulty recalling their dreams.
The Dark Side of Oxytocin, the Hormone of Love - Ethnocentrism Yes, you knew there had to be a catch. As oxytocin comes into sharper focus, its social radius of action turns out to have definite limits. The love and trust it promotes are not toward the world in general, just toward a person’s in-group. A principal author of the new take on oxytocin is Carsten K. In a report published last year in Science, based on experiments in which subjects distributed money, he and colleagues showed that doses of oxytocin made people more likely to favor the in-group at the expense of an out-group. These nationalities were chosen because of a 2005 poll that showed that 51 percent of Dutch citizens held unfavorable opinions about Muslims, and other surveys that Germans, although seen by the Dutch as less threatening, were nevertheless regarded as “aggressive, arrogant and cold.” Well-socialized Dutch students might be unlikely to say anything derogatory about other groups. What is measured is the length of time a subject takes to press a key. In Dr. Dr. Dr.
Chapter 12: Attention and Consciousness Attention involves top-down (voluntary) goal-directed processes and bottom-up (reflexive), stimulus-driven mechanisms. They influence the way information is processed in the brain and can occur early during sensory processing. Balint's syndrome is a visual attention and awareness deficit. Someone who has this syndrome can only perceive one object at a time. Theoretical Models of AttentionAttention is defined as the ability to attend to somethings while ignoring others. There are three principle goals:To understand how attention enables and influences the detection, perception and encoding of stimulus events as well as the generation of actions based on the stimuli.To describe the computational processes and mechanisms that enable these effects.To uncover how these mechanisms are implemented in the brain's neuronal circuits and neural systems. Herman von Helmholt He did an experiment that looked at covert attention. E.C. Donald Broadbent Michael Posner Reflexive Attention Anne Tresiman
Targeting nicotine receptors to treat cognitive impairments in schizophrenia Smoking is a common problem for patients with schizophrenia. The increased tendency of patients diagnosed with this disorder is to not only smoke, but to do so more heavily than the general public. This raises the possibility that nicotine may be acting as a treatment for some symptoms of schizophrenia. Nicotine acts through two general classes of brain receptors, those with high and low affinity for nicotine. The low affinity class of nicotinic receptors contains the alpha-7 subunit, which is present in reduced numbers in people with schizophrenia. Two papers published in the January 1st issue of Biological Psychiatry suggest that drugs that stimulate these alpha-7 subunit-containing nicotinic receptors might enhance cortical function and treat cognitive impairments associated with schizophrenia. This influence on cortical function has been exemplified by the work of Jason Tregellas and colleagues. Dr.