Psychology Archives - Knowing Neurons

Honoreé Brewton March 8, 2023March 8, 2023 deja vu, Epilepsy, Experience, Memory, Psychology

Have I Read this Before? The Brain Regions Involved in Déjà Vu

By Honoreé Brewton There are conflicting sources regarding the first usage of the term déjà vu, a French term meaning “already seen” (Merriam-Webster), but it can be traced back to… Read More

Big Ideas Brain Books

Martina Nonni December 20, 2022December 20, 2022 animal models, Behavior, Book Review, brain states, Emotions, fMRI, Psychology

Book Review: The Neuroscience of Emotion: A New Synthesis

By Martina Nonni Emotions are important aspects of our lives and everyday experiences. While scientists agree that they do exist, they don’t seem to agree on much else. Researchers are… Read More

Big Ideas Consciousness Did You Know?Evolution of Cognition Joel's Pick Neuro News Philosophy

Joel Frohlich June 8, 2021June 8, 2021 Anxiety, Awareness, Brain Awareness, brain imaging, Cognition, Consciousness, Default mode network, fMRI, Psychology

How Floating in Darkness Takes the Body off the Mind

What happens when your mind disconnects from all outside sensations? First, you undress, put in earplugs, and step into a floatation tank, the water warmed to the temperature of your… Read More

Brain Books by Knowing Neurons. The Case Against Reality by Donald Hoffman. Illustrated by McCall Sarrett & Jooyeun Lee.

Brain Books Big Ideas Consciousness Evolution of Cognition Sensation and Perception

Joel Frohlich December 6, 2019December 7, 2019 Brain Books, Cognition, Color, Consciousness, Evolution, Evolutionary Game Theory, Hallucination, hard problem of consciousness, Illusion, Interface Theory of Perception, mathematics, Motion, Necker Cube, Occam's Razor, Orientation, Perception, Physicalism, Psychology, Quantum mechanics

Book Review and Author Interview: The Case Against Reality by Donald Hoffman

A full interview with Donald Hoffman follows this book review Does the moon still exist when you’re not looking at it? In a provocative new book titled The Case Against… Read More

A cartoon image of a sun in the sky with golden rays extending outwards, with cannabis leaves on either side of the sun. Illustrated by McCall Sarrett.

Culture Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders

Grace Browne April 18, 2019April 18, 2019 Amygdala, Anxiety, Anxiolytic, Autism, Cannabidiol, Cannabis, CBD, Cingulate Cortex, DEA, dementia, Dextromethorphan, Drug, EFSA, Epilepsy, FDA, fMRI, Marijuana, Neurotransmitters, Paranoia, Phytocannabinoids, Psychology, serotonin, Society, THC

Does Cannabidiol (CBD) Actually Help Anxiety?

Cannabidiol (CBD), a non-intoxicating compound of the Cannabis plant, has exploded in popularity in recent times, touted as a medical “cure-all”. Retailers promise their products will heal cancer, stop dementia… Read More

Illustration by Michal Roessler, next to book cover image of "Remembering" by Donald G. MacKay

Brain Books Learning and Memory

Sean Noah April 10, 2019April 9, 2019 Amnesia, Book Review, Brain Books, Donald G MacKay, Epilepsy, Frederic Bartlett, Henry Molaison, Hippocampus, Medial temporal lobe, Memory, Patient HM, Psychology, synaptic

Book Review: Remembering

In the early 20th century, Cambridge psychologist Frederic Bartlett radically reformulated the concept of memory. Until then the classical view, the earliest form of which could be traced back to… Read More

Image of synaptic cleft in the background with a large cupcake on the right, topped with sprinkles in the shape of pills. Illustrated by McCall Sarrett.

Culture Big Ideas Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders Sensation and Perception

Shaun Khoo April 4, 2019April 7, 2019 Addiction, Basolateral Amygdala, Classical Conditioning, Cocaine, Dopamine, glutamate, Neurotransmitters, Nucleus Accumbens Core, obesity, Operant Conditioning, Pavlov, Psychology, Relapse, Sugar, Tolerance, Withdrawal

Are Foods Addictive or Just Delicious?

We are surrounded by an abundance of delicious food. Throughout the developed world, cooking shows saturate our televisions and streaming video feeds advertise greasy burgers and decadent chocolates. Our addiction… Read More

Big Ideas Consciousness Philosophy

DanielToker August 1, 2018August 1, 2018 Brain, Claude Shannon, Communication, Consciousness, David Chalmers, Entropy, Giulio Tononi, Information, Information theory, Integrated Information Theory, Neuroscience, philosophy, Psychology, Research, Science, Sensory experience

Measuring Consciousness in Bits

Consciousness is an ambiguous concept. It can mean a lot of different things, depending on the context. For example, I can say that I am conscious of something, as in, “I am… Read More

Big Ideas Culture Neuro News

Roland Imhoff May 29, 2018May 29, 2018 Behavior, conspiracy theories, Culture, Experiment, new world order, Psychology, reptilian, Research

Want to Feel Unique? Believe in the Reptile People

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he internet is full of wild-eyed insinuation. Seemingly accidental events are not actually accidental. A few powerful people have hatched plots to bring about certain outcomes, usually with the goal… Read More

Big Ideas Neuro SciFi

DanielToker January 3, 2018December 29, 2017 Astrobiology, Cognitive, Cognitive Astrobiology, Diana Reiss, ET, Evolution, Extraterrestrial Intelligence, Intelligence, Jellyfish, NASA, Psychology, SETI, Space, Spaceflight

Cognitive Astrobiology

[dropcap]S[/dropcap]o here’s a cool combination of fields: neuroscience and astrobiology. Let’s call it “cognitive astrobiology.”… Read More

Science Policy Big Ideas

Kate Fehlhaber February 6, 2017October 8, 2017 Alternative Facts, Darwin, Dunning-Kruger effect, Einstein, Fact, Facts, illusion of confidence, illusory superiority, Instructor, Knowledge, Lemon, McArthur Wheeler, Politics, Psychology, SciComm, Socratic, Student, Stupid, Teacher, Trump, Veritasium, Vsauce

The Consequences of Illusory Superiority

On January 6, 1995, a large five-foot-six 270-pound middle-aged man robbed two Pittsburgh banks in broad daylight. He didn’t wear a mask or any sort of disguise. And he smiled… Read More