Neuroscience
Insights into the biological foundations of consciousness and the human experience.
Level 1
Virtual avatars rewire body perception and ease trauma through brain plasticity
When people use virtual reality (VR) to embody avatars, such as taller, younger, or more muscular versions of themselves, their…
We create a false self in early life to meet external expectations and cope with childhood experiences – James Hollis
James Hollis explores the psychological and spiritual upheaval of midlife as a necessary and meaningful rite of passage. Drawing from…
Learning a second language early strengthens brain connections and efficiency
Learning a second language is linked to a more efficient brain network. A research team reports that people who speak…
Psychological abuse leaves real trauma effects
Psychological abuse and coercive control are linked to PTSD, depression, and measurable trauma-related brain changes. The evidence is strong, but it does not show identical or permanent damage in every survivor.
Learning multiple new skills can produce test scores comparable to adults 30 years younger
Older adults who learn multiple new skills simultaneously can achieve cognitive performance similar to adults 30 years younger. A UC Riverside study found that 3 months of intensive learning improved memory, attention, and cognitive control, with gains maintained up to one year later.
Level 2
Five simple brain habits can help leaders unlearn bias and lower conflict
Leaders often carry unconscious bias, meaning fast, automatic judgments about people that operate outside awareness. The Inc. piece distills five…
Pausing five seconds before reacting can prevent most relationship fights
Recent psychological research demonstrates that taking just a five-second pause during tense moments in a relationship can significantly reduce aggression…
Our sense of now is a best guess the brain builds from the recent past
Our experience of the present is not a direct readout of the world. Signals from the eyes and other senses…
Bilingual brains show structural changes, and multilingual teams may innovate more
Research in brain imaging links bilingual experience to changes in brain structure. Studies using MRI report denser grey matter in…
Chronic stress alters the brain, but recovery is possible
Chronic stress can alter memory, fear, mood, and sleep circuits in the brain. That matters because these changes can raise anxiety and cognitive strain, but the evidence does not show permanent damage in everyone.
AI unveils how the brain predicts thoughts and processes information
Researchers at FAU have used AI to analyze brain activity, uncovering that spontaneous brain signals (local field potentials) help predict…
Level 3
Japanese teams show MRI can decode simple dream content
For years, headlines said that Japanese scientists built an MRI dream machine. The research is real, but the claim is…
Your brain automatically sorts people into “us” and “them”, but deliberate contact can override it
Our brains come with an ancient, automatic setting that divides the world into insiders and outsiders. Within milliseconds of seeing…
Scientists slow aging in mice by restoring a brain protein called “menin” that declines with age
Scientists have pinpointed a single protein in the ventromedial hypothalamus, menin, that appears to act as a brake on the…
Sam Harris & Waking up meditation guide
Sam Harris, an American neuroscientist and philosopher, created the Waking Up mobile app to offer a secular path to meditation…
Scientific theory suggests the universe may have consciousness
The “Orch OR” theory: quantum processes as the basis for consciousness in the universe (study) The “Orch OR” theory proposes…