Grace Kiernan, Anneke Sools, Tim Alber et al.
preprint
Objective: This study explores experiences of social adversity and changes in social functioning from the perspectives of individuals with early psychosis.Method: Interviews were conducted with N=14 individuals with early psychosis and analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis.Results: Four overarching themes reflecting varying experiences of social adversity and functioning were...
Soumyajit Karmakar
Reduced spontaneous thought during meditation is often described phenomenologically, but a mechanistic account should specify how a dynamical system can enter and persist in such a regime. Here we formulate a minimal statistical-mechanical model in which a dimensionless coordinate, q, represents a coarse-grained propensity for spontaneous-thought activity, and a slowly relaxing variable, r of...
Marsel Fazlyyyakhmatov, Vladimir Antipov
In this article, the perception of 3D attributes (depth, volume and spatial perspective) is examined from the perspective of creativity, the anticipation phenomenon and the quantum theory of consciousness. The aim of the work is to consider activation of the incubation and insight processes under the influence of flat images in the modern visual environment. It is shown that not only can people...
Minkyung Kim, UnCheol Lee
preprint
Abstract: Brain networks during unconscious states resulting from sleep, anesthesia, or traumatic injuries are associated with a limited capacity for complex responses to stimulation. Even during the conscious resting state, responsiveness to stimulus is highly dependent on spontaneous brain activities. Many empirical findings have been suggested that the brain responsiveness is determined...
Vidushani Dhanawansa, Devon Stoliker, Leonardo Novelli et al.
Background: Psilocybin is a serotonergic psychedelic that provides a pharmacological tool for examining neural activity associated with altered states of consciousness. Existing studies report reduced power (4-30 Hz) in posterior regions and altered functional connectivity (FC) at rest, but have typically involved small samples and coarse anatomical parcellations. Additionally, perceptual...
Lautaro Mundel, Vicente Medel, Christopher Timmermann et al.
Psychedelics are increasingly explored as tools to investigate consciousness and cognition, and as potential treatments for mood disorders. While neuroimaging has been central to characterizing their mechanisms of action, the interpretation of these studies may be confounded by the neurovascular effects elicited by these drugs. Here, we investigated the modulation of resting state neurovascular...
Miguel Castelo-Branco, Anna Gaidosch, Marta Teixeira et al.
preprint
Abstract Ayahuasca, an amazonian brew containing the serotonergic psychedelic substance N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT), induces distinctive visual perceptual phenomenology, yet the neural mechanisms underlying the interplay between external visual drive and internal imagery remain unknown. Using a placebo-controlled, within-subject fMRI design, the present study investigated the impact of...
Brendan Conway-Smith, Ruby M. Potash, Matthew D. Sacchet
preprint
Despite growing interest in advanced meditation, the cognitive mechanisms underlying these capacities remain poorly understood. This paper develops a cognitive account of advanced meditation as a specialized form of metacognitive skill learning. Drawing on classic accounts of skill acquisition, we propose the automatization of metacognitive control as a mechanism through which meditative skill...
Steven Gross, Jonathan Isaac Flombaum
preprint
Does perceptual consciousness require cognitive access? Ned Block argues it does not. Central to his case are visual memory experiments that employ post-stimulus cueing—in particular, Sperling’s classic partial report studies, change-detection work by Lamme and colleagues, and a recent paper by Bronfman and colleagues that exploits our perception of ‘gist’ properties. We argue contra Block that...
r/Science AMAs
I’m Dr. Adrian Owen, a professor of neuroscience, here to answer your questions about our breakthroughs in brain science. I’ve been fascinated with the human brain for more than 25 years: how it works, why it works, what happens when it doesn’t work so well. At the Owen Lab at Western University in Canada, my team studies human cognition using brain imaging, sleep labs, EEGs and functional...