Review of "Gut Feelings" (BSP 19)

Show Notes forBrain Science Podcast #19: Gut Feelings

This episode is a discussion of Gut Feelings: The Intelligence of the Unconscious (2007), by Gerd Gigerenzer.

Dr. Gigerenzer argues that unconscious decision-making or intuition is actually based on the use of heuristics(rules of thumb) that can be explored, and even brought into awareness.  In this episode, I discuss his basic arguments with an emphasis on the differences between intuitive reasoning and formal logic.  Then we explore some examples including the application of these ideas to more controversial areas like morality and social instincts.

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References

• Gut Feelings: The Intelligence of the Unconscious (2007), by Gerd Gigerenzer.

• Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking (2005), by Malcolm Gladwell.

• See also Brain Science Podcast #13: Unconscious Decision Making.

Links of Interest:

• Gerd Gigerenzer: Wikipedia.

• Gerd Gigerenzer:  Home page at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development.

• Jonathan Haidt:  Social psychologist mentioned  in this episode.

Interview with Elkhonon Goldberg, PhD (BSP 18)

Episode 18 of the Brain Science Podcast is an interview with Dr. Elkhonon Goldberg, PhD.

Show Notes:

• I apologize for the uneven sound quality of this episode.  If any one out there has any suggestions, please drop me an email.

• Dr. Goldberg shared a little bit about the breadth of his work as a neuropsychologist.

• We talked about his rather unique perspective on the difference between the right and left brain hemispheres.  He explained why he feels that as we get older we move from reliance on the right hemisphere, which he feels is the novelty hemisphere, to a reliance on the left hemisphere, where our lifetime store of patterns enables us to use pattern recognition as a short cut in problem solving.

• We talked about the importance of constant mental challenge, and Dr. Goldberg gives his advice about how we can keep our brains healthy through out our lives.

Links:

The following are two companies that Dr. Goldberg is working with to provide information to the public and also tools for cognitive enhancement:

• SharpBrains:  This is a clearing house for information, and they evaluate many of the products currently being offered.

• HeadStrong Cognitive Fitness:  This Australian company offers a net-based program for cognitive enhancement based on Dr. Goldberg's research.  I am hoping to test their products in the near future.

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The Wisdom of the Aging Brain (BSP 17)

This week we discuss another book by Elkonon Goldberg, Ph.D.  I highly recommend this book to everyone, because it is an excellent review of many of the topics we have discussed over the last several months including memory, emotion, and neuroplasticity.   In this episode, we continue our discussion of the role of the pre-frontal lobes in intelligence, as well as what happens to our brain as we age.

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Show Notes

I want to thank Matthew Lofton for pointing out to me that there is evidence that elephants can recognize themselves in a mirror.  This means I was wrong when I said (in #16) that only humans and some primates can do this. He referred us to "I, Elephant," by Kaspar Mossmanin in the February 2007 issue of Scientific American Mind.  The original article was "Self-recognition in an Asian elephant," by:Plotnik, Joshua M.; de Waal, Frans B. M.; Reiss, Diana. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 11/7/2006, Vol. 103 Issue 45, p17053-17057.  He posted this information as a comment, but I wanted to bring this to everyone's attention.

Episodes that are referred to in this episode:

• BSP #10: Neuroplasticity.

• BSP #11: Emotion.

• BSP #12: Memory.

• BSP #16: The Frontal Lobes.

Note: You should have no problem listening to Episode #17 first, but I have provided these references for those who want to review or go back for more details.

Definitions used in this episode:

• Attractor: a cognitive template that enables pattern recognition. An attractor is thought to be a concise set of neurons with strong interactions among themselves. A unique and important quality of attractors is that a broad range of inputs activate the same set of neurons. This is thought to be the mechanism of pattern recognition.

• Cognitive competence: the ability to relate the old to the new so as to recognize the similarities between a new problem and one that has been previously solved.

• Cognitive wisdom: an enhanced capacity for problem solving

• Generic memory: memory for patterns

Brief list of topics discussed in this episode:

• Review of important ideas about the prefrontal lobes from #16.

• An hypothesis about the differing roles of the right and left hemispheres.

• How the brain changes in normal aging.

• Mechanisms that protect the brain from degenerative changes:

  • Generic memory-why this type of memory is more robust.

  • Pattern expansion-how parts of the cortex expand with use.

  • Effortless experts-why familiar tasks are less demanding.

  • Why vigorous mental activity is important throughout life.

For more links related to Dr. Goldberg's work see the show notes for Episode 16.

A review of "The Executive Brain" (BSP 16)

Brain Science Podcast #16 is a discussion of The Executive Brain: Frontal Lobes and the Civilized Mind (2002), by Elkhonon Goldberg.

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Show Notes

This episode is an introduction to the role of the pre-frontal lobes in decision-making, and the other "executive" functions of our brain.  The functions of the pre-frontal lobes are not only the keys to what makes us human, but also the keys to our individual personality.

In this episode, using Dr. Goldberg's book, we discuss how the frontal lobes relate to the other structures of the brain.  We also, discuss some ideas about why the left and right sides of the brain differ, as well as several important ways in which the cortex, and especially the pre-frontal lobes differ from some of the older parts of the brain.

We discuss briefly the vulnerability of the frontal lobes to damage and disease, and we consider the implications of frontal lobe dysfunction.  Questions are introduced that will be considered in more detail in future podcasts.

Links:

• Phineas Gage-constructor worker who suffered severe frontal lobe injury in 1848.

• Herbert Simon-won 1978 Nobel Prize in economics (short autobiography) He did pioneering work on decision-making.

• Dr. Elkhonon Goldberg:

• His website.

  1. On YouTube.com

  2. Interview from Sharp Brains

"Why Choose this Book?" with Read Montague (BSP 15)

Show Notes

Episode #15 of the Brain Science Podcast is an interview with Dr. Read Montague of the Baylor School of Medicine.  We discuss his recent book, Why Choose this Book? How we Make Decisions (2006).

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Here are some of the questions we discussed:

• What is computational neuroscience?

• What is the computational theory of the mind (CTOM)?

• How isthe objection that the CTOM doesn't account for meaning answered ?

• What about choice and responsibility?

• Is there room for free will in this model?

Listen in your Favorite Audio app: Audible, Amazon music, Pandora, Spotify, YouTube and many more.

Brain Science Podcast's First Six Months (BSP 14)

Although the first full episode of the Brain Science Podcast appeared on December 15, 2006, I went live with an introductory podcast around December 1, 2006.  (I have deleted episode 0 from the feed).  At any rate, I decided it was time to look back over the first six months and reflect on some of the topics we have covered.

This is one of the shorter episodes, but I hope it will bring some of the key ideas back to mind (and encourage new listeners to go back and get the older episodes).  It will also give you a glimpse of what we will be discussing in the next few months.

As always, I welcome comments and suggestions.

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• Transcripts: BSP 1-14

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Unconscious Decisions! (BSP 13)

Show Notes

The Brain Science Podcast usually focuses on a single book devoted to neuroscience, but Episode 13 begins with a discussion of Malcolm Gladwell's bestseller, Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking, and then explores the ideas from several other sources. The key idea is that we do make some decisions without conscious thought and that neuroscience is discovering how this works.

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• Transcripts: BSP 1-14

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References:

Consciousness: An Introduction (2003), by Susan Blackmore:  Experiments from pages 38-43, 57-63, and 127-132.
Consciousness Explained  (1992), by Daniel C. Dennett
Freedom Evolves (2003) by Daniel C. Dennett: Quote in episode is from page 223
On Intelligence (2005) by Jeff Hawkins

Other Links for this episode:

Vic Braden
Antonio Damasio

The new Brain Science Podcast Community group on Flickr.com:  Please post your pictures here!

"Memory: From Mind to Molecules" (BSP 12)

This episode of the Brain Science Podcast is a discussion of memory based on the book, Memory: From Mind to Molecules (2000), by Larry R. Squire, and Eric R. Kandel.

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Show Notes

I highly recommend that you get this book for yourself if you want to read the details of the experiments.  The book contains excellent illustrations.

Some of the experimental animals mentioned in this episode include Aplysia (giant sea snails), drosophila (fruit flies), and mice.

Mechanisms of memory formation and storage seem to be shared from the simplest non-vertebrates up through humans.

Types of Memory:  declarative and non-declarative. Non-declarative memory is generally NOT subject to conscious awareness or control.

There are many different types of non-declarative memory including:

• motor skills

• habituation and sensitization

• classical and operant conditioning

• priming

• perceptual skills

Declarative memory, which seems to be unique to animals that have a hippocampus and cerebral cortex, includes short-term (immediate and working memory) and long-term memory.  Much research has been devoted to discovering how and where long-term memory occurs.  The answer may surprise you.

This episode includes a discussion of some of the unanswered questions in memory research.

Emotion (BSP 11)

Emotion: The Science of Sentiment, by Dylan Evans, is the featured book for this episode of the Brain Science Podcast.  Thanks to Kate from the UK for suggesting this book.

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• Transcripts: BSP 1-14

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Show Notes

This episode is a short introduction to the idea that our emotions are an essential part of our intelligence.

• We discuss the basic emotions, based on the work of anthropologist Paul Eckman.

• We learn about culturally-learned emotions, such as "being a wild pig," which is observed among the Gurumba people of New Guinea.

• Paul Griffiths introduced the idea of "higher cognitive emotions."

• Emotions seem to exist on a continuum from the highly innate basic emotions to the culturally specific emotions.

• The work of Joseph Ledoux and Antonio Damasio reveal that our emotions are an important element of normal intelligence.

• We consider how fear actually follows two pathways in the brain.

• We consider the role of the limbic system including the amygdala.

• We consider the relationship between emotions and mood.

• We consider how mood affects memory and decision making.

• This includes Robert Zajonc's discovery of the "mere exposure" effect.

• We briefly consider the question of whether computers could ever display emotions.

Further Reading:

The Feeling of What Happens: Body and Emotion in the Making of Consciousness (2000), by Antonio Damasio.

Neuroplasticity: A Review of its Discovery (BSP 10)

In this episode of the Brain Science Podcast we explore the recent research that has established, contrary to long-standing dogma, that our brains our able to change throughout our lives, based on our experience.

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• Premium Subscribers now have unlimited access to all old episodes and transcripts.

• Buy BSP 1-10 (zip file of mp3 files)

• Transcripts: BSP 1-14

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Listen in your Favorite Audio app: Audible, Amazon music, Pandora, Spotify, YouTube and many more.

Show Notes

The reference for this episode is Train Your Mind, Change Your Brain: How a New Science Reveals Our Extraordinary Potential to Transform Ourselves, by Sharon Begley.  This book describes the 2004 meeting between the Dalai Llama and several leading neuroscientists.  To learn more about these meetings, go to the Mind and Life Institute website.  All the studies that I mention in the podcast are referenced in the back of the book.

List of the some of the scientists and their work:

• Michael Meany- McGill University: He has shown that the way that a mother rat treats her babies determine which genes in the baby's brain are turned on and which are turned off.

• Fred Gage- the Salk Institute:  His work with lab animals showed that adult brains do change.  (more from Google)

• Helen Neville-University of Oregon: She has shown that the auditory and visual cortices are rewired in people who are born blind or deaf.

• Phillip Shaver-UC-Davis: He is a pioneer in attachment theory: how people's sense of emotional security, acquired in childhood, affects their adult behavior, including their response to other ethnic groups and their willingness to help others.

• Richard Davidson-Wisconsin:  He has done studies showing how the brain is changed by meditation.

• Edward Taub- University of Alabama in Birmingham:  He helped develop a revolutionary treatment for stroke victims.

• Jeffery Schwartz-UCLA:  He has used mindfulness meditation to treat obsessive compulsive disorder, showing that meditation can change the brain in beneficial ways.

• Jon Kabat-Zinn- University of Massachusetts:  He has done many years of work using mindfulness meditation to treat stress related diseases.

• Michael Merzenich:  Pioneer researcher who also founded FastForward™ and Posit Science™.

More Links of Interest:

• Fast Forword™ Treatment for Dsylexia.

• Imposed Constraint Treatment for Stroke.

• Auto CITE at the VA.

  1. Stroke Registry Clinical Trials.

  2. Taub Therapy at UAB.

• Treatment of anxiety disorders with Mindfulness Meditation.

• Dr. Jeffery Schwartz.

• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Depression.

• Brain Changes are different from those caused by medications.

  1. more Google links on how the brain changes.

I am sure this list is incomplete.  If you have a question or comment about a topic mentioned on the show, leave a comment below, or send me email at brainsciencepodcast@gmail.com.

Review: "The Future of the Brain" (BSP 9)

Show Notes for Episode 9

This episode is a discussion of The Future of the Brain: The Promise and Perils of Tomorrow's Neuroscience, by British neuroscientist, Steven Rose.  Unlike most episodes of the Brain Science Podcast, the emphasis of this episode is on asking what kind of ethical dilemmas might be posed by our increased knowledge of how the brain works.

Topics discussed:

• Why the mind is more than the brain.

• Why the mind is more than genetics and biochemistry.

• How we still have a long way to go before we can fully understand how the brain-body generates the mind.

• Problems and dangers of reductionism.

• Implications for freedom and personal responsibility.

• Examples from the history of science that demonstrate why these concerns are valid.

• The "Paradox of Memory."

• Some email from listeners.

One issue I only mention briefly on the podcast is Rose's attack on evolutionary psychology.  If you are interested in learning more about this, you might want to read the transcript of a debate between Steven Rose and Stephen Pinker, which was held in 1998.  It is on the Edge website, which is an interesting website even though it lacks an RSS feed.

How to get this episode:

• Premium Subscribers now have unlimited access to all old episodes and transcripts.

• Buy BSP 1-10 (zip file of mp3 files)

• Transcripts: BSP 1-14

• New episodes of the Brain Science Podcast are always FREE.  All episodes posted after January 1, 2013, are free.  See the individual show notes for links the audio files.

Listen in your Favorite Audio app: Audible, Amazon music, Pandora, Spotify, YouTube and many more.

How Neurons Communicate: A Detailed Introduction (BSP 8)

When I started preparing for this week's episode I realized that before I could discuss neurotransmitters (brain chemicals) I would need to discuss some basic information about how neurons work. Thus this episode is rather long and technical, but hopefully understandable to those who are new to the field. I am including more detailed show notes than I usually do, along with the approximate times for the main sections, in case there is a particular topic you want to go back and review.

How to get this episode:

• Premium Subscribers now have unlimited access to all old episodes and transcripts.

• Buy BSP 1-10 (zip file of mp3 files)

• Transcripts: BSP 1-14

• New episodes of the Brain Science Podcast are always FREE.  All episodes posted after January 1, 2013, are free.  See the individual show notes for links the audio files.

Listen in your Favorite Audio app: Audible, Amazon music, Pandora, Spotify, YouTube and many more.

The main source for this episode was the textbook, From Neuron to Brain: A Cellular and Molecular Approach to the Function of the Nervous System, Fourth Edition (2001)

Topic Outline:

2:39-11:33 Neuronal signaling-the basics of electrical and chemical signaling types of signaling-electrical and chemical introducing the synapse the importance of membrane proteins

11:55 - 13:03   A bried discussion of how the brain differs from a  digital computer

13:3 3-13:50   Definition of neurotransmitters-

13:56 -22:10   How neurotransmitters interact with receptors in the synapse

-direct and indirect  chemical synapses-why they are important

-neuromuscular junction-an example of a direct chemical synapse

-the importance of synaptic delay

-the role of second messengers in indirect chemical synapses

-release and recycling of neurotransmitters

22:25 -29:42 Types of Neurotransmitters and how they work-with examples

-how neuropeptides differ from low molecular weight neurotransmitters

-a little about how drugs work

29:58 - 41:54  How Neurotransmitters function in the Central Nervous System-with examples

-Glutamate is the key excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain

-an aside about Nutrasweet™ (30:33)

-glycine and GABA are inhibitatory

-acetycholine (33:32-34:34)

-discussion of Molecules of Emotion by Candace Pert (35:30-36:55)

-serotonin

-histamine

-dopamine and Parkinson's disease

42:07 - 43:36  Closing Summary

Consciousness: A Brief Introduction to Philosophy of Mind (BSP 5)

Show Notes for BSP 5

Until the last few decades the question of consciousness fascinated philosophers, but was considered off-limits to science; but the discoveries of the last few decades have brought consciousness into the realm of neuroscience.  Scientists such as Nobel Prize Winner, Francis Crick, have proposed that the brain has “neural correlates of consciousness.”  (Francis Crick,  Astonishing Hypothesis, 1994.)  This episode is an introduction to the topic.

After considering the definition of consciousness, I introduce some of the classical questions of the philosophy of the mind:

• The "hard problem" (proposed by David Chalmers):  How does the physical brain create subjective experience.
• Dualism: Is there some aspect of mind that is not physical?
• Free will: If the brain creates consciousness, can we still have free will?

I also introduce several famous thought experiments:

• Mary the color scientist (Frank Jackson,1982).  Chalmers has argued that the subjective qualities of experience, which he calls qualia, can not be explained by what the brain does.
• What is it like to be a bat?    (Thomas Nagel)  Do qualia exist?
• The philosopher’s zombie:  Chalmers argues that a robot could exist that looks and acts just like us but that is “dark inside.”
• John Searle’s Chinese Room:  An argument against what he calls “strong” artificial intelligence."  Listen to John Searle argue against dualism onThe Philosopher's Zone.

Philosopher Daniel Dennett rejects the existence of both qualia and zombies, and argues that the hard problem does not exist.  To me, the interesting question is whether these arguments will be answered or made obsolete by scientific discoveries.

Perhaps the hard problem will disappear.  I consider how the discovery of neurotransmitters has changed our understanding of the role of emotions in consciousness.  We now know that neurotransmitters provide two-way signaling between our brains and the rest of our bodies, producing our experiences of emotions and feelings.  Though there is still a tendency to regard logic as superior to emotion, researchers like Antonio Damasio are showing that emotions play an essential part in decision-making and other aspects of intelligence.

Philosophers are not the only ones unwilling to let go the idea that consciousness is a mystery that can’t be explained; but those philosophers who keep up with the science can help science ask new questions.

How to get this episode:

• Premium Subscribers now have unlimited access to all old episodes and transcripts.
• Buy BSP 1-10 (zip file of mp3 files)
• Transcripts: BSP 1-14
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References:

I will continue to introduce books about consciousness on future podcasts.  Susan Blackmore writes books for general audiences, so I have listed a few of hers below.

• Consciousness: A Very Short Introduction,  by Susan Blackmore:  I haven’t read this yet, but it looks like a good first book if you want something short.
• Consciousness: An Introduction, by Susan Blackmore:  This is actually a textbook, but it was one of the first books I read.  It is a very thorough introduction, with a good mix of philosophy and science.
• Conversations on Consciousness: What the Best Minds Think about the Brain, Free Will, and What It Means to Be Human, by Susan Blackmore:  Here Blackmore interviews almost everybody in the field, including Francis Crick shortly before he died.  Here you can read a great diversity of views on the questions brought up in this episode.
• Astonishing Hypothesis: The Scientific Search for the Soul, by Francis Crick.

Review of "The Great Brain Debate" (BSP 4)

The debate about the relative contributions of nature versus nurture has probably been going on as long as humans have wondered about the origins of human behavior.  In his 2004 book, The Great Brain Debate: Is it Nature or Nurture?, Harvard neuroscientist, John E Dowling, describes how recent discoveries about brain development shed light on this controversy.  Episode 4 of the Brain Science Podcast discusses the main ideas of Dowling’s book.

How to get this episode:

• Premium Subscribers now have unlimited access to all old episodes and transcripts.

• Buy BSP 1-10 (zip file of mp3 files)

• Transcripts: BSP 1-14

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Send me feedback at brainsciencepodcast@gmail.com.

Review of Eric Kandel's "In Search of Memory" (BSP 3)

Show Notes for Episode 3:  In Search of Memory, by Eric R Kandel

Dr. Eric R. Kandel won the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 2000 for his work with the giant marine snail Aplysia.  His work helped uncovered the molecular mechanisms of short- and long-term memory.

In this episode, I talk about Dr. Kandel’s autobiography, In Search of Memory: The Emergence of a New Science of Mind.  The focus of the podcast is what has been learned about how memory works.  A key principle is that the molecular mechanisms of memory are the same in all animals, including people.

There is lots of good information on the web about Aplysia’s role in understanding learning and memory.  If you know of a particularly good website for non-specialists, please leave a comment on this page.  

How to get this episode:

• Premium Subscribers now have unlimited access to all old episodes and transcripts.

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Send me feedback at brainsciencepodcast@gmail.com.

Review of "On Intelligence" by Jeff Hawkins (BSP 2)

I first reviewed On Intelligence by Jeff Hawkins for The Sci Phi Show.  I am including that review here.  Also in this episode, I consider some of the topics I hope to discuss in future episodes.  Besides intelligence, we will be considering consciousness, emotions and feelings, the role of vision in brain research, and what we can learn from people with brain damage and memory.

Please send me email or leave comments suggesting what topics you want to here about.

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Review of "Mind Wide Open" (BSP 1)

This episode is a review of Mind Wide Open: Your Brain and the Neuroscience of Everyday Life (2005) by Steven Johnson.

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Here are some other podcasts worth listening to:

• Futures in Biotech Episode 10: Dr. Carla Shatz on the Human Brain: Interview with Dr. Carla Shatz, Department Chair and Nathan Marsh Pusey, Professor of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical School.

• Antonio Damasio, University of Southern California: “Advances on the Neurobiology of Emotion: Taking Stock”   Recorded for the Princeton University Podcasts 2006 on 11/16/2006.

Send me feedback at brainsciencepodcast@gmail.com.