17 posts tagged “brain”
Episode 47 of the Brain Science Podcast is a discussion of Principles of Brain Evolution
by Georg F. Striedter. My goal is to highlight the main ideas of this
complicated, and often controversial subject. Understanding the
principles of brain evolution is an important element in our
multidisciplinary attempt to understand how our brains make us who we
are.
Listen to Episode 47 of the Brain Science Podcast
In Episode 44 of the Brain Science Podcast I talk with Daniel Siegel, MD about meditation and the brain. Dr. Siegel is the author of several books including The Mindful Brain: Reflection and Attunement in the Cultivation of Well-Being. In this interview we review the scientific evidence about how mindfulness meditation changes the brain, both in terms of short term activity and in terms of long-term structural changes. The evidence is convincing that a regular mindfulness practice can be an important element of brain health.
Listen to Episode 44 of the Brain Science Podcast
Click here for detailed show notes and links
Episode 39 of the Brain Science Podcast is an interview with Dr. Michael Arbib
from the University of Southern California. Dr. Arbib's work with
functional brain imaging has established the presence of mirror neurons
in the human brain. In our interview we focused on the role of mirror
neurons in imitation and language. In particular I questioned Dr. Arbib
about the Mirror System Hypothesis (MSH) of Language Evolution that he
proposed in 1998 with Giacomo Rizzolatti. We also explored how this hypothesis diverges from the universal grammar proposed by Noam Chomsky.
Dr. Arbib also shared his enthusiasm for future research and we talked
about the special challenges caused by the interdisciplinary nature of
modern neuroscience.
Listen to the Brain Science Podcast
Related Episodes:
- Brain Science Podcast #7: A discussion of bonobos with Stuart Shanker, PhD
- Brain Science Podcast #30: a discussion of language evolution including my thoughts on Chomsky
- Brain Science Podcast #35: a detailed discussion of Mirrors in the Brain by Giacomo Rizzolatti
Click here for detailed show notes including links and references
Episode 38 of the Brain Science Podcast is an interview with Jeff Hawkins, author of On Intelligence.
Hawkins is well-known for founding Palm Computing and Handspring. He
invented the Grafitti handwriting recognition system and helped develop
the Palm Trio SmartPhone. Since he published his bestseller On Intelligence, he has devoted his work to his passion for neuroscience. His current company Numenta
is developing software that models the hierarchal structure of the
neocortex. In this interview we talk about the ideas in Hawkins book
and how he is applying them to develop a computer model of cortical
function. This is a follow-up to Episode 2, which first aired in December of 2006.
Listen to my interview Jeff Hawkins.
Click here for detailed show notes including links and references.
Yesterday I posted a bad link for the enhanced version of Brain Science Podcast #32. Here is a link that actually works!
http://docartemis.com/AAC/32-AAC-brainscience-anatomy.m4a
If you are using Windows make sure that you have the latest version of Quicktime™. Otherwise it may not play properly.
Episode 32 of the Brain Science Podcast was a whirlwind tour of brain anatomy based on Beyond the Zonules of Zinn: A Fantastic Journey Through Your Brain (2008) by David Bainbridge. The author has graciously share the illustrations from his book and I have posted a special page that is keyed to the podcast. I have also created an enhanced version (AAC) version of the podcast, which will not appear in the feed. I think the images are best viewed on the web, but I would appreciate your feedback on both the website illustrations and the enhanced podcast.
Episode 32 of the Brain Science Podcast is a whirlwind (55 minute) tour of brain anatomy. It is based on David Bainbridge's new book: Beyond the Zonules of Zinn: A Fantastic Journey Through Your Brain (2008). Within the next few days I will be expanding the show notes to include key illustrations from the book. I want to thank David for sharing these images and I encourage everyone to read the book.
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Subscribe to Brain Science Podcast with Dr. Ginger Campbell by Email
Show Notes
Dr. Wolf's book Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain, is divided into three main topics: the history of how writing and reading developed over the last few thousand years, the developmental stages involved in learning how to read, and what happens when the brain can't learn to read. My podcast concentrates on the main ideas from the first two topics.
History of Writing:
- the discovery of symbols
- Early writing systems- cuneiform and hieroglyphics
- why Chinese gives us a window into the past
- Importance of the Alphabet
- some claims and conclusions
- Why Socrates opposed literacy
The Stages of Becoming a Reader:
- the early pre-reader-with emphasis on language development
- the novice reader-connecting letters to the sounds of language
- the decoding reader-
- the fluent comprehending reader-learning to "read between the lines"
- the expert reader-why reading continues to change us throughout our lives
What goes wrong when the brain can't learn to read: how new findings are leading to new solutions
Links and References
- Maryann Wolf, Director of the Center for Reading and Language Research at Tufts University
- Her book Proust and the Squid contains extensive references to various scientific studies in the area
- interview of Dr. Wolf
- information for teachers
- FastForward-an successful approach to treating dyslexia
- Michael Posner-a psychologist who used PET scans to study what happens during shifts of attention (a necessary first step in reading)
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Subscribe to Brain Science Podcast with Dr. Ginger Campbell by Email
Show Notes
This episode is an interview with Sandra Blakeslee, co-author (with her son Matthew) of The Body Has a Mind of Its Own: How Body Maps Help You Do (almost) Everything Better, which we discussed in episode 21.
I asked Blakeslee to tell me a little bit of her background as a science writer. She wrote for the New York Times for many years and was the co-author of both Jeff Hawkins groundbreaking book, On Intelligence and VS Ramachandran's modern class Phantoms in the Brain (1998), which was one of the first books to explore neuroplasticity.
In this interview we explored the relationship between body maps and neuroplasticity, as well as questions from listeners about out of body experiences and other oddities once considered "paranormal." We talked about how body maps are relevant to understanding why some methods of alternative healing appear to be effective.
I asked her to tell me which scientist she met made the biggest impression. Here are a few of those she mentioned:
- Marco Iacoboni at UCLA
- Atsushi Iriki-cyberspace
- Olaf Blanke in Switzerland who has discovered how the angular gyrus is involved in out-of-body experiences
- Arthur "Bud" Craig who is the pioneer of mapping the insula
- Michael Merzenich-a pioneer in the field of neuroplasticity who also helped design the first cochlear implant
Blakeslee told me about some of the pioneering work that Merzenich is doing to apply his discoveries to help people, both those with disabilities and those who just want to combat aging. You can learn more about his work at http://www.positscience.com/.
If you would like to contact Sandra Blakeslee to give her feedback or ask her questions she has a contact form on her books website at http://www.thebodyhasamindofitsown.com/. She is going to let me know when she gets the references posted on the site.
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Click Below to Listen to Podcasts
- Interview of Sandra Blakeslee (episode 23)
- Discussion of her latest book (episode 21)
- Brief Review of On Intelligence (episode 2)
Subscribe to Brain Science Podcast with Dr. Ginger Campbell by Email
Brain Science Podcast #22 is an interview with Dr. Christof Koch of Cal Tech, one of the pioneers in the neurobiological study of consciousness. About two decades ago when Koch and Francis Crick began looking for what they called the neural correlates of consciousness (NCC), such a quest was considered controversial, but now the field is increasing in popularity. In our interview we talked a little about his book, The Quest for Consciousness, as well as his on-going research and his thoughts about what the future might bring.
Show Notes
Here is a list of some of the topics we discussed:
- Why Francis Crick was an outstanding mentor and colleague
- A Working definition of consciousness
- How consciousness relates to awareness
- What are neural correlates of consciousness
- Why vision is the focus of Koch's research
- The search for the "footprints" of consciousness
- The role of functional imaging and the use of monkeys
- Neurons-"the atoms of perception"
- Why we need a theory of consciousness
- The role of the frontal lobes in consciousness
- Is consciousness an emergent property?
- What about zombies?
- Why do we need consciousness?
- Will artificial intelligence become conscious?
- The hard problem: how does the brain generate subjective experience (qualia)
Links:
The Quest for Consciousness: A Neurobiological Approach (2004)
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