Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
June 1, 2026
Raquel Aparicio-Terrés, Samantha López-Mochales, Margarita Díaz-Andreu et al.
A widely observed phenomenon across cultures involves the use of rhythmic auditory stimulation in intricate rituals to achieve dissociative mental states. While several physiological mechanisms link repetitive auditory stimuli to nonordinary states of consciousness (NSCs), entrainment-the brainwave synchronization through periodic external stimuli-has received particular attention. However,...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
May 1, 2026
Ran Mo, Chang Liu, Junyi Hao
Resilience-the capacity to adapt, recover, and engage dynamically with adversity-has emerged as a central construct for understanding psychological health. Although meditation offers a promising route for cultivating resilience, current scholarship rarely differentiates between the mechanisms of focused attention meditation (FAM) and open monitoring meditation (OMM), thereby obscuring their...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
February 1, 2026
Shashank Ghai, Pawel Odyniec, Ishan Ghai
The global mental health crisis has escalated to unprecedented levels, with stress, anxiety, and depression posing major public health concerns. Conventional interventions have shown limited success in addressing these multifaceted issues, prompting researchers to explore alternative solutions. Yoga Nidra (YN), a meditative practice, has gained momentum over the past decade as a potential...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
September 1, 2025
Lena Darakjian, Harley Glassman, Chi Yhun Lo et al.
Cannabis use has long been associated with enhanced music experiences, yet scientific research on its effects on auditory perception remains limited. This convergent mixed-methods self-report study investigated how recreational cannabis users experience auditory stimulation and music in particular. A total of 104 participants completed an online questionnaire, 15 of which were selected to...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
July 21, 2025
Marcel Socoró-garrigosa, Yonatan Sanz Perl, Morten L. Kringelbach et al.
3 citations
Abstract Determining the scale of neural representations is a central challenge in neuroscience. While localized representations have traditionally dominated, evidence suggests information is also encoded in distributed, hierarchical networks. Recent research indicates that the hierarchy of causal influences shaping functional patterns serves as a signature of distinct brain states, with...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
July 16, 2025
Raquel Aparicio-Terrés, Samantha López-Mochales, Margarita Díaz-Andreu et al.
4 citations
Humans have long sought to alter their mental states through various cultural practices, with rhythmic sounds emerging as a prominent and enduring method. However, altered states of consciousness induced by rhythmic auditory stimulation have not been comprehensively addressed in academic research, and the associated cognitive and neural underpinnings remain enigmatic. This narrative review...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
July 2, 2025
Neil W. Bailey, Aron T. Hill, Kate Godfrey et al.
4 citations
Mindfulness meditation involves training attention, commonly toward sensory experiences, with nonjudgmental awareness. Theoretical perspectives propose that meditation increases the precision of sensory processing and reduces the generation/elaboration of top-down expectations. Research suggests forward traveling cortical alpha waves may reflect bottom-up inhibition to enhance signal-to-noise...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
May 1, 2025
Tania Singer
8 citations
Over the past two decades, the fields of social and contemplative neurosciences have made significant strides. Initial research utilizing fMRI identified neuronal networks involved in empathy, mentalizing, and compassion, as well as complex interactions among these networks. Subsequent studies shifted to testing the plasticity of these social skills via different types of mindfulness- or...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
September 23, 2024
Jerome Sarris, Andreas Halman, Anna Urokohara et al.
6 citations
Artificial intelligence (AI) and psychedelic medicines are among the most high-profile evolving disruptive innovations within mental healthcare in recent years. Although AI and psychedelics may not have historically shared any common ground, there exists the potential for these subjects to combine in generating innovative mental health treatment approaches. In order to inform our perspective,...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
March 1, 2024
Ruichen Hu, Shuo Li, Peijun Yuan et al.
1 citation
The relationship between integration and awareness is central to contemporary theories and research on consciousness. Here, we investigated whether and how information integration over time, by incorporating the underlying regularities, contributes to our awareness of the dynamic world. Using binocular rivalry, we demonstrated that structured visual streams, constituted by shape, motion, or...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
November 20, 2023
Katarina Jerotic, Peter Vuust, Morten L. Kringelbach
19 citations
Abstract Music and psychedelics have been intertwined throughout the existence of Homo sapiens , from the early shamanic rituals of the Americas and Africa to the modern use of psychedelic‐assisted therapy for a variety of mental health conditions. Across such settings, music has been highly prized for its ability to guide the psychedelic experience. Here, we examine the interplay between music...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
August 26, 2022
Charlotte Martial, Olivia Gosseries, Héléna Cassol et al.
17 citations
Parnia et al. recently published suggestions for the study of death and experiences recalled in a near‐death context. We have serious reservations about the authors’ statements. In this commentary, we discuss the omissions and knowledge gaps inherent to the authors’ paper, which among others include incorrect neurological claims about brain death and misunderstandings regarding the terminology...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
June 21, 2022
R. Evrard, E. Pratte, Th. Rabeyron
13 citations
In their recent paper, Parnia and colleagues propose a new label for the near‐death experience (NDE): recalled experience of death. They claimed NDEs are “authentic” only when an objective danger is present and that authentic NDEs have a proven core phenomenology. We consider that these claims are insufficiently supported by empirical data. NDEs appear as a continuum of heterogeneous...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
March 1, 2022
Jerome Sarris
12 citations
Disruptive innovation is a cornerstone of various disciplines, particularly in the business world, where paradigm-altering approaches are often lauded. As a construct, disruptive psychiatry can be considered to embody such an approach by the pursuit of innovations within the field which test boundaries and shake up the status quo. Given the importance of addressing the current mental health...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
February 18, 2022
Sam Parnia, Stephen G. Post, Matthew T. Lee et al.
68 citations
An inadvertent consequence of advances in stem cell research, neuroscience, and resuscitation science has been to enable scientific insights regarding what happens to the human brain in relation to death. The scientific exploration of death is in large part possible due to the recognition that brain cells are more resilient to the effects of anoxia than assumed. Hence, brain cells become...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
October 1, 2021
Jennifer E Stellar
33 citations
Awe is a self-transcendent emotion that exerts a powerful impact on the self. Through diminishing the ego, awe may help cultivate interconnection, wisdom, meaning, and purpose.
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
October 1, 2021
Steve Paulson, Marcelo Gleiser, Tania Lombrozo et al.
Einstein famously claimed that "the most incomprehensible thing about the universe is that it is comprehensible." This statement suggests that no amount of scientific explanation will suffice to make sense of the bizarre situation of the human mind within the universe. So what are the actual roles of awe and wonder within the framework of contemporary science? How, for instance, do awe and...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
December 1, 2019
Steve Paulson, Donald D Hoffman, Suzanne O'Sullivan
The prevalent view in cognitive science is that we construct our perception of reality in real time. But could we be misinterpreting the content of our perceptual experiences? Does what we perceive with our brain and senses reflect the true nature of reality? Might evolution have shaped our perceptions to guide adaptive behavior, without enabling us to see reality as it actually is? In a...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
July 16, 2019
Dana van Son, M. de Rover, F. D. de Blasio et al.
The ratio between frontal resting‐state electroencephalography (EEG) theta and beta frequency power (theta/beta ratio, TBR) is negatively related to cognitive control. It is unknown which psychological processes during resting state account for this. Increased theta and reduced beta power are observed during mind wandering (MW), and MW is related to decreased connectivity in the executive...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
December 21, 2018
Heather L. Rusch, Michael Del Rosario, Lisa M. Levison et al.
496 citations
There is a growing interest in the effectiveness of mindfulness meditation for sleep disturbed populations. Our study sought to evaluate the effect of mindfulness meditation interventions on sleep quality. To assess for relative efficacy, comparator groups were restricted to specific active controls (such as evidenced-based sleep treatments) and nonspecific active controls (such as...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
November 1, 2018
Steve Paulson, Jay Lombard, Massimo Pigliucci et al.
Where can we turn to find the story of our lives-an existential roadmap that explains where we have come from, why we are here, and where we are headed? Must each of us discover meaning within the context of our individual lives, or are there universal sources of meaning that we can all access? Is there any relationship between living a meaningful life and the quality of our health and...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
October 1, 2017
Rubin Naiman
We are at least as dream deprived as we are sleep deprived. Many of the health concerns attributed to sleep loss result from a silent epidemic of REM sleep deprivation. REM/dream loss is an unrecognized public health hazard that silently wreaks havoc with our lives, contributing to illness, depression, and an erosion of consciousness. This paper compiles data about the causes and extent of...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
October 1, 2017
Kelly Bulkeley
This article describes the future prospects of scientific dream research. Three frontiers of investigation hold special promise: neuroscientific studies of the brain-mind system's activities during sleep (such as during lucid dreaming); systematic analyses of large collections of dream reports from diverse populations of people; and psychotherapeutic explorations of the multiple dimensions of...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
October 1, 2017
Steve Paulson, Siri Hustvedt, Mark Solms et al.
As science continues to explore the mysteries of the unconscious, two critical questions remain. First, can unconscious impulses, desires, and feelings be willfully raised to the level of the conscious self?, and, if so, would the unveiling of unconscious mechanisms lead to genuine self-knowledge or empowerment? Second, can we methodically tap into the unconscious to gear ourselves along more...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
October 1, 2017
Steve Paulson, Deirdre Barrett, Kelly Bulkeley et al.
Where do our dreams originate from, and what do they tell us? Is there a universal set of symbols that are common to all dreams, regardless of a person's ethnicity or culture? What does dreaming reveal about the unconscious? Why do some dreams remain etched in our memories, whereas others are almost instantly forgotten? Some scientists have adopted the position that dreams are little more than...