Psychedelics including psilocybin, dimethyltryptamine, and lysergic acid diethylamide are known to disrupt the normal flow of time perception, for example, producing time dilation, compression, and loss of time. These temporal anomalies provide interesting clues about how the brain processes time, what consciousness is, and what produces the sense of self. This opinion article discusses the...
The frontal cortex plays a key role in many functions considered to be relevant for consciousness. Furthermore, altered consciousness appears to exist in those with disorders that disrupt or damage frontal areas and/or networks. This article reviews recent research discussing the impact of frontal disorders on consciousness. Many theories of consciousness have been developed over the last...
This article presents a neuroscientific interpretation of Carl Jung's theory of archetypes and their experience in altered states of consciousness. We begin by rehearsing the Free Energy Principle and Predictive Processing as foundational frameworks that subserve and inform the thesis that follows. The following sections examine three aspects of archetypes: the affective core rooted in...
This paper examines the dilemmas of moral autonomy in the context of the transfer of human consciousness to AI, focusing on the transhumanist archetype Homo Evolutus. Through comparative analysis, the study explores two distinct paradigms: the secular approach, rooted in Kantian philosophy, which considers that moral autonomy can be preserved through transfer; and the religious perspective...
In Ian Stevenson’s time, little was known about the formation of pigmented birthmarks. Today, this is no longer true due in part to advances made to understand better and combat melanoma, an aggressive form of skin cancer that forms from melanocyte cells (which give the skin pigment and form pigmented birthmarks). Here, we summarize what is now known about the circumstances surrounding the...
Psychotic processes remain poorly understood mental states. This review aims to examine the spiritual challenges and discrepancies surrounding psychosis, and the role cultural backgrounds and beliefs play in determining whether a psychotic episode is considered a pathological condition. The article explores mediumship, shamanism, and mystical experiences, examining their similarities and...
Psychedelic compounds have the ability to generate altered states of consciousness and profoundly distort perception, often resulting in visual hallucinations. While psychedelics have recently regained attention for their potential cognitive and therapeutic effects, how these drugs affect visual processing to generate visual distortions and hallucinations is not as well characterized....
Abstract Timelessness in music is a contentious topic, given the prevailing tendency to view music as the temporal art par excellence. Yet the term “timelessness” and its related metaphors appear frequently in both analytical discourse and listener accounts of musical experiences. Chapter 7 examines two distinct approaches to musical timelessness: the perception of timelessness, wherein...
Psychiatric illness, particularly stress-related disorders including depression, anxiety and posttraumatic stress disorder, presents a considerable health burden worldwide with high prevalence, disabling symptoms, and scant efficacy of available treatments. Chronic stress is a major contributor to the origin and development of these conditions, to the detriment of both individual and, by...
The resting primate brain is traversed by spontaneous functional connectivity patterns that show striking differences between conscious and unconscious states. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), a non-invasive neuromodulatory technique, can improve signs of consciousness in disorders of consciousness (DOCs); however, can it influence both conscious and unconscious dynamic...