Lifeboat Foundation

Philip Goff believes that everything, even tiny particles like electrons, has a little bit of consciousness. This idea is called panpsychism. He explains that this might help us understand why we have feelings and thoughts.

Philip discuss another idea called cosmopsychism, which is a theory that suggests the entire universe is a single conscious entity. Instead of individual minds (like human minds) being separate and independent, they are seen as parts of the universe’s larger, unified consciousness. In simpler terms, it means that the universe itself has a mind, and our individual consciousnesses are just small parts of this greater, universal mind.

Continue reading “Could the universe be conscious?” »

Musk’s comment comes at a time when Neuralink is making significant strides in brain chip technology. After working with a 29-year-old named Noland Arbaugh, Neuralink recently announced that it is now accepting applications for a second participant in its trials.

This study explored spatiotemporal progression patterns of striatal dopamine availability and regional brain volume based on cognitive status among patients with Parkinson disease:

Background and Objectives.

Is our brain responsible for how we react to people who are different from us? Why can’t people with autism tell lies? How does the brain produce empathy? Why is imitation a fundamental trait of any social interaction? What are the secret advantages of teamwork? How does the social environment influence the brain? Why is laughter different from any other emotion?

This course is aimed at deepening our understanding of how the brain shapes and is shaped by social behavior, exploring a variety of topics such as the neural mechanisms behind social interactions, social cognition, theory of mind, empathy, imitation, mirror neurons, interacting minds, and the science of laughter.

Continue reading “Exploring Social Neuroscience — Serious Science” »

Brain imaging identifies six subtypes of depression.

Personalized brain circuit measures quantified using a new imaging technology in 801 patients with depression and anxiety identify six biotypes with unique symptoms, behaviors and responses to different types of treatment.

As we sleep, the brain rids itself of waste built up throughout the day. But how?

Researchers found that mice can sense sugar even if they lack taste receptors.

The evolutionarily ancient part of the brain that controls breathing and heart rate also regulates the immune system — a discovery about the brain-body axis made by experts on taste.

Our willingness to help others is governed by a specific brain region pinpointed by researchers in a study of patients with brain damage to that region.

Learning about where in the brain “helping” decisions are made is important for understanding how people might be motivated to tackle large global challenges, such as climate change, infectious disease and international conflict. It is also essential for finding new approaches to treating disorders of social interactions.

The study, published in Nature Human Behaviour, was carried out by researchers at the University of Birmingham and the University of Oxford, and shows for the first time how a region called the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) has a critical role in helping, or “prosocial” behaviors.

In the future, getting help for depression might involve a quick brain scan to find the most effective treatment for you.

An analysis of brain activity during rest and while undertaking specific tasks among a large group of people with depression and anxiety has identified six distinct types of brain activity patterns, symptoms, and responses to treatment.

The team from the US and Australia who conducted the study also determined treatments that are more likely to work for some of these categories. This means doctors could potentially match patients with the best therapies based on how their brains function.