Tag: neuroscience

Opening a window into the movies in our minds

In research, that brings to mind the movie Minority Report, a group of neuroscientists have found a way to see through another person’s eyes.

By reconstructing YouTube videos from viewers’ brain activity, researchers from UC Berkeley, have, in the words of Professor Jack Gallant, opened ” a window into the movies in our minds.”

Gallant’s coauthors of the study,  published in Current Biology, watched YouTube videos inside a magnetic resonance imaging machine for several hours at a time. The team then used the brain imaging data to develop a computer model that matched features of the videos — like colors, shapes and movements — with patterns of brain activity. Subtle changes in blood flow to visual areas of the brain, measured by functional MRI, predicted what was on the screen at the time.

Lead author, Shinji Nishimoto, said the results of the study shed light on how the brain understands and processes visual experiences. The next line of research is to investigate if the technology could one day allow people who are paralyzed to control their environment by imagining sequences of movements.

 

 

 

 

 

Is the mind modular?

Mind – n. the human consciousness that originates in the brain and is manifested especially in thought, perception, emotion, will, memory, and imagination. 

Architecture of the human mind

No robot can solve a crossword, or engage in a conversation, with anything like the facility the average human being can. Somehow or other we humans are capable of performing complex cognitive tasks with minimal effort. Trying to understand how this could be is the central explanatory problem of the discipline known as cognitive psychology. There is an old but ongoing debate among cognitive psychologists concerning the architecture of the human mind. 

The ‘general-purpose problem-solver’ mind

According to one view the human mind is a’ general-purpose problem-solver’. This means that the mind contains a general set of problem-solving skills or ‘general intelligence’ which it applies to an infinitely large number of different tasks. So the same set of cognitive capacities is employed, whether you are trying to count marbles, deciding what movie to see, or learning a foreign language – these tasks represent different applications of the human’s general intelligence.

The modular mind

A rival view argues that the human mind contains a number of subsystems or modules – each of which is designed to perform a very limited number of tasks and cannot do anything else. This is known as the modularity of mind hypothesis. So for example it is widely believed that there is special module for learning a language – a view deriving from the linguist Noam Chomsky. Chomsky insisted that a child does not learn to speak by overhearing adult conversation and then using ‘general intelligence’ to figure out the rules of the language being spoken; rather there is a distinct neuronal circuit – a module – which specialises in language acquisition in every human child which operates automatically and whose sole function is to enable that child to learn a language, given appropriate prompting. The fact that even those with very low ‘general intelligence’ can often learn to speak perfectly well strengthens this view.

Clues from the broken brain

Some of the most compelling evidence for the modularity of mind hypothesis comes from studies of patients with brain damage. If the human mind were a general all-purpose problem-solver we would expect damage to the brain to affect all cognitive capacities more or less equally. But this is not what we find. On the contrary, brain damage often impairs some cognitive capacities but leaves other untouched. A good example of this is damage to a part of the brain known as Wernicke’s area – following injury or viral infection – which leaves a patient unable to understand speech although they are still able to produce fluent, grammatical sentences. This strongly suggests that there are separate modules for sentence production and comprehension. Other brain-damaged patients lose their long-term memory (amnesia) but their short-term memory and their ability to speak and understand are entirely unimpaired.

Modular or ‘general purpose problem-solver’ …or both?

The evidence for a modular mind is compelling and the philosopher Jerry Fodor published a book in 1983 titled The Modularity of Mind  which explained exactly what a module is. However the modular view is controversial and is not endorsed by all philosophers. Opponents argue that even in a general purpose problem-solver brain it is still possible that distinct cognitive capacities might be differently affected by brain damage. Fodor himself even admits that the answer may not be all that clear cut and suggests that while perception and language are modular, thinking and reasoning are almost certainly not – we solve some cognitive tasks using specialised modules and others using our ‘general intelligence’. However not all psychologists agree with this. 

Is the mind scientifically inexplicable?

Exactly how many modules there are and precisely what they do, are questions that cannot be answered given the current state of brain research. Most neuroscientists equate mind and brain as one and the same thing and predict that in the not-too-distant future neuroscience will deliver a radically different type of brain science, with radically different explanatory techniques what will explain the architecture of the human mind.

 

When love is the drug

Photos: James Duncan Davidson / TED. Photo editor: Mike Femia

Dr Paul Zak, a neuroeconomist, investigates the neurophysiology of economic decisions. His research at the Center for Neuroeconomics Studies  draws on economic theory, experimental economics, neuroscience, endocrinology, and psychology to develop a comprehensive understanding of human decisions.

Dr Zak also studies why we humans like and trust each other. And the answer, he’s found, is the compound oxytocin. In this photo above, Zak has brought a syringe loaded with oxytocin onstage, to create a striking visual aid by atomizing it into the air (now that’s what I call a prop!)

Oxytocin – the cuddle chemical – is a hormone made in the hypothalamus – a structure at the base of the brain involved in regulating strong emotions. Research has shown that behaviours necessary for developing long-term relationships such as hugging, kissing and skin-to-skin contact – trigger the release of this hormone into the blood and as the romantic attachment increases so does the amount of oxytocin circulating in the body.  In fact, it is suggested that this hormone ‘primes’ the brain to fall in love by acting on the brain to increase trust and reduce fear, increase empathy and generosity and increase attachment and bonding. For this reason oxytocin is sometimes called the cuddle chemical.  Some drug companies have considered putting oxytocin into perfumes and sprays  – to help attract a mate.

Yes folks …it’s official… love is a drug!

Weekly Round Up

Latest study shows buddhist meditation promotes rational thinking

Studies looking at the brains of people playing a fairness game found very different responses between Buddhist meditators and other participants.

It’s possible that depression could be cured by reducing mild swelling in your brain.

New York University neuroscientists have identified the parts of the brain we use to remember the timing of events within an episode. The study, which appears in the latest issue of the journal Science, enhances our understanding of how memories are processed and provides a potential roadmap for addressing memory-related afflictions.

A leading University of Chicago researcher on empathy is launching a project to understand psychopathy by studying criminals in prisons.

A new study at the University of California at Davis has made progress in determining the factors that affect brain degeneration and why our brains shrink with age and a new drug to prevent the development of Alzheimer’s disease could be tested on patients within six years according to researchers at Lancaster University.

Is the search for the cause of autism a hall of mirrors?

The ‘broken mirror’ theory is a popular theory in autism research but it seems that all is not as it appears as  a high-profile paper in Neuron reports that people with autism do not have trouble understanding others’ actions or intentions or even imitating those actions1.

Monkey see, monkey do.

Mirror neurons were discovered by neuroscientists in the 90’s while recording the activity of nerve cells or neurons in the brains of monkeys where it was noticed that certain neurons remain silent when the monkeys observe other monkeys performing the same action2 – hence the name mirror neuron.

Scientists have extended this finding in the human brain to show that nerve activity in mirror neurons also remain silent when observing another person performing an action and/or expressing an emotion3 and this silence is not observed in people with autism – hence the ‘broken mirror’ theory of autism.

Getting it “write”

However in a 2007 study 25 children with autism were compared with non-autistic ‘controls’ on several goal-directed imitation (mirror) tasks shown to activate regions of the brain believed to contain mirror neurons4. In one experiment, the children sat at a table and were asked to copy an adult as she touched a pattern of dots on the tabletop. The study showed that normal healthy children make typical errors on this task – for instance copying the adult’s goal but using the wrong hand. The children with autism made exactly the same error, meaning that they selectively imitate the goal of the action and both groups show the same pattern of brain activity in brain regions believed to contain mirror neurons. These findings suggest that there is nothing wrong with basic mirror systems in people with autism.

Hall of mirrors

Part of the problem may be that the ‘broken mirror’ theory relies on several unsupported assumptions: that the mirror system is responsible for understanding goals and imitation, that goal understanding and imitation are abnormal in autism, and that these deficits cause the social difficulties seen in autism.

It’s all about connections

One possible explanation is that the mirror neuron system itself could be normal in autism, but its projections, or the brain regions it is projecting to, could be abnormal instead.  Also, the mixed findings could be due to the broad spread of the autism spectrum disorders.

References:

  1. Dinstein, I.et al. Neuron 13, 461-469 (2010) PubMed
  2. Rizolatti G. et al. Brain Res. Cogn. Brain Res. 3, 131-141 (1996) PubMed
  3. CochinS. et al. Electroencephalogr. Clin. Neurophysiol. 107, 287-295 (1998) PubMed
  4. HamiltonA. F. et al. Neuropsychologia 45, 1859-1868 (2007) PubMed

Weekly Round Up

Pathways within the brain can be strengthened by reading and language exposure

 Recent research shows that reading  boosts brain pathways and can actually affect understanding in nearly all school subjects – a great reason to encourage the reading habit in your children.

Scientists at the University of Michigan Health System have demonstrated how memory circuits in the brain refine themselves in a living organism through two distinct types of competition between cells. Their results, published  in Neuron, mark a step forward in the search for the causes of neurological disorders associated with abnormal brain circuits, such as Alzheimer’s disease, autism and schizophrenia.

The left and right halves of the brain have separate stores for working memory, the information we actively keep in mind, suggests a study published online yesterday by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Over time, and with enough Internet usage, the structure of our brains can actually physically change, according to a new study.

Bringing the real world into the brain scanner, researchers at The University of Western Ontario from The Centre for Brain and Mind can now determine the action a person was planning, mere moments before that action is actually executed.

And finally good news at last for coffee addicts.For years we’ve been told that caffeinated coffee was bad for us. It’s unhealthy and addictive, doctors warned. But as vindication for all who stuck by their energizing elixir, a new study published early online in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease,  shows that guzzling caffeinated coffee may actually be good for our brains. In fact, it may help keep Alzheimer’s at bay.  So enjoy that cuppa joe!

Weekly Round Up

Are teenage brains wired to predict the next big music hit?

The brain is constantly changing as it perceives the outside world, processing and learning about everything it encounters. In a new study, which will be published in an upcoming issue of Psychological Science, scientists find a surprising connection between two types of perception: If you’re looking at a group of objects and getting a general sense of them, it’s difficult for your brain to learn relationships between the objects.

Recent research published in the Journal of Consumer Psychology.suggests that the activity in teen brains may have some Nostradamus-like qualities when it comes to predicting the hits or misses of popular music.

Fear burns memories into our brain, and new research by University of California, Berkeley neuroscientists explains how in findings that have implications for the treatment of PTSD.

Ands speaking of memory…have you forgotten where you put your keys recently? Your brain might be in a better state to recall where you put them at some times than at others, according to new research from UC Davis.

Is the internet changing your brain?

Is the internet changing the way we think?

This Saturday, 11 June, I am looking forward to giving a talk at 3D Camp at the University of Limerick on how the internet is changing our brain. I will be exploring the question of whether our brains are being altered due to our increasing reliance on search engines, social networking sites and other digital technologies.

Using a basic understanding of brain structure (neurology) I will explain the concept of ‘brain plasticity’- the ability of the brain to constantly rewire itself – and will show how all learning changes the shape of the brain, allowing specific areas in the brain to grow or change. I will also be demonstrating how the new ‘cybertherapies’ are being used to help patients suffering from addiction and post traumatic stress disorder back to health.  I believe this new resource has the potential to dramatically improve mental health including new opportunities to learn healthy habits to lift our mood and enhance our brains longevity.

There are still places left on this themed Barcamp which looks at The Internet Beyond Web 2.0. Areas. Attendance is FREE! 

Click here to register

Where is your brain taking you?

Let me take you on a little trip..a trip to the future.

As we enter the 21st Century we need a compelling vision for the human race including our spiritual and mental evolution as understood by the evolution of our brains.  The following insights may strike you as free ranging, radical or even abstract but I believe that the question of human evolution connects perfectly with what many of us are beginning to ask of ourselves and how we might fit into a ‘bigger picture’.

Self-refection IS evolution 

Modern evolutionary theory needs to switch focus to the human mind – not just the physical brain. It is not enough to work out that we evolved from the apes – we now need to focus on how the human psyche is evolving and where it is taking us. Evidence from a branch of science called evolutionary biology shows that the size and shape of the human brain has not changed radically in thousands of years despite huge technological advances. Why is this so? Evidence is mounting that once humans learned to think in a different way by living in a state of reflectiveness our progress was inevitable. By discovering how to harness the full power of the brain – human beings did not just survive but started to enjoy an ‘ultra’ life.

The past is the key to the future

Until recently, the task of applying evolutionary science to the bigger question of human destiny has been avoided by scientists  too wary of speculation. However the emergence of the new discipline of neuroscience – the scientific study of the nervous system – is helping us to bridge this gap by providing new ways to answer old questions.  Neuroscientists have recently discovered that the same brain regions are involved in the processing of memory and in creative thought suggesting that the more we learn and remember the better we can predict the future. 

Science and true science

The great paradox of science is that while its strength is the deep analysis it uses to solve a problem – it can only really come of age when it goes beyond seeing man only in terms of the physical body. True science will see man in his wholeness and as part of a coherent picture of the world. The fact is that neither the sciences nor the humanities have yet to properly explain what it is to be human. True science will probably need to take into account all the challenges, achievements and events of human history as if they were all part of one continuum. This will require a new type of analysis – the origins of which may be seen in the new disciplines called informatics and systems analysis.

Ticket to where?

Humankind is a very young concept – only coined in the last 100 years. It is based on the recognition of unity within the human race – despite all the wars, division of wealth and racism. Contrary to what some people like to think – humankind is not the centre of the world but rather a very actively growing branch of the evolutionary tree. We are not destined to ‘lift ourselves above nature’- but rather to dramatically raise the intelligence and complexity of this thing we call ‘life’ through our intellectual and spiritual evolution. In fact, the more complex and intelligent we become the more we will free ourselves from our physical surroundings (the physical universe).

Personality equals evolution – neurolution

Just as our physical universe – space, the stars and galaxies – is expanding outwards, the same universe can – under the right conditions – also just as naturally ‘focus inwards’ from the simple to the increasingly complex and it is according to this ‘law’ that the human mind also develops.  Is there an end point to us becoming more human or the fulfilment of its potential? The evidence suggests that for us humans – personality equals evolution. 

The neuroscience of US

Every single human being on the planet is unique because they posses a uniquely complex brain. In fact, the brain is so complex that in all of human history no two brains were the same.  Furthermore this unique combination of about 100 trillion tiny connections grows and changes through life – a work in progress from conception to death. In this way we each evolve as we journey through life.

All hands on deck for human evolution

The evolution of the human race is not going to proceed by trying to transcend it – rather we will move forward as a race by making room for everyone to express their personalities to the full.  In this way the evolution of the human race has everything to do with our own personal development. Yet evolution does not happen at an even speed so don’t be alarmed when your subconscious asks you to take that leap; change job, pick a partner or just follow your dream. These great leaps of faith are part of your evolution in your journey through life and following a period of self refection just assure yourself it’s all happening for your own good (and the good of your species!) and go to the next level.

In a series of future blogs I will explore these ideas further including how mental and spiritual evolution is nourished by the network society.