Yoga and meditation have long been recognized for their profound impact on mental health, emotional regulation, and cognitive performance. However, understanding the underlying neural mechanisms that govern these altered states of consciousness remains a key research challenge. This chapter proposes an EEG-based Brain Computer Interface (BCI) framework for human brain activity recognition...
Physiological, pharmacological, and pathological alterations of consciousness provide critical windows into its neural substrates. Given the inherent complexity and multidimensionality of consciousness, defining quantitative, dynamic signatures of neural activity, and translating them into clinically applicable tools remains challenge. This study aimed to build an electroencephalography...
Dance is an activity intimately connected to music and sound, typically performed outdoors. It has a social significance that extends well beyond mere entertainment, although does not exclude it. In this article, we aim to focus on dance in the archaeological record of southern Africa. We specifically exploring dance scenes depicted at the rock art sites of the Zimbabwean plateau, focusing on...
Abstract Ayahuasca profoundly alters conscious experience, yet robust, time-resolved EEG markers of its network-level effects remain limited. We combined machine learning with complex-network analysis to quantify how functional connectivity reorganizes across time and hemispheres in resting-state EEG from a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial including three 5-min sessions:...
Abstract Classic serotonergic psychedelics are potent modulators of conscious awareness, yet the principles governing their effects on the temporal dynamics of brain activity remain unclear. Dominant theories propose that psychedelics increase the signal diversity and metastability of neural states, but whether this reflects a simple randomization of activity or a more structured reorganization...
Purpose/Background: The therapeutic effects of psilocybin treatment are thought to be influenced by the subjective dose-dependent psychedelic experience, as well as the individual participant’s mindset and the treatment environment. However, the relative contribution of an individual’s pretreatment clinical characteristics and their subjective psychedelic experience remains unclear. We examined...
Neuroentropy (understood as the complexity or diversity of brain activity) has emerged as a possible quantitative marker of consciousness. This meta-analytic review synthesizes evidence from EEG, MEG, fMRI, intracranial recordings, and perturbation-based approaches (e.g., Perturbational Complexity Index) across 2013–2023. Findings show higher entropy during wakefulness, REM sleep, and...
Background: Psychedelics induce profound changes in perception and thinking; however, little is known about the neural mechanisms and prediction of these effects. Aims: Investigating ayahuasca-induced experiences, mind-wandering, and electroencephalogram (EEG) oscillations, beyond the prediction of subjective experiences by baseline EEG. Methods: In a randomised, double-blind,...
We assess St. Paul's account of kenōsis in Philippians 2:5–8 from a neurophenomenological horizon. We argue that kenōsis is not primarily a unique event but belongs to a class of experiences that could be called kenotic and are, at least in principle, to some degree accessible to all human beings. These experiences can be well analyzed, making use of both a phenomenological approach and the...
The study of altered conscious states in Alzheimer's disease (AD) often relies on hierarchical models that categorize these states into discrete levels, typically based on unidimensional markers of arousal or awareness complexity. However, these models fail to capture the dynamic, multifaceted nature of consciousness, particularly the global state of consciousness (GSC). A novel construct in...