Astrocytes critically regulate states of consciousness, yet their molecular profiles across wake, sleep, and general anesthesia remain unclear. This study conducted proteomic and phosphoproteomic analyses of rat cortical astrocytes across these states using sevoflurane. Data quality was validated using principal component analysis (PCA) and Pearson correlation coefficient (PCC). Proteomics...
Frontiers in PsychologyFebruary 25, 2026Natalie L. Dyer, Meredith Sprengel, Ivo V. Stuldreher et al.
Background: The human body radiates multiple biological fields which can be measured with sensors directly on or off the body. These electromagnetic fields are hypothesized to be altered by mind and body practices. The primary goal of the current study was to evaluate the feasibility of continuous multi-sensor monitoring during meditation and breathwork practices. It also explored methods to...
ReligionsFebruary 24, 2026Junhui Chen, Xinfeng Kong
The article examines the religio-ecological framework articulated in Ming–Qing morality books 勸善書, focusing on how animals, Ledgers of merit 功過格, and karmic 業報 are integrated into a system of moral causality. Within this framework, actions such as killing or saving animals are directly linked to karmic reward and punishment, generating a dual mechanism that combines moral technology with an...
Meditation is a practice that involves focusing the mind to achieve a calm and peaceful state. It helps people calm down, feel less stressed, and learn more about themselves. Meditation is becoming more famous around the world because it is good for mental, emotional, and spiritual health. The study aims to compare the different meditation techniques toward the psychological well-being (PWB),...
The scientific study of artificial consciousness has long been polarized between ontologically ambitioustheories that resist empirical test and purely instrumental architectures that sidestep questions of self-modeling, accountability, and interpretability. This paper presents a proposed modular cognitivearchitecture—the Symbiotic Triadic Architecture (STA)—designed to instantiate functional...
This article examines the theoretical and practical frameworks surrounding liminal states of consciousness—specifically lucid dreaming and out-of-body experiences (OBEs)—within Indian religious and philosophical traditions. Through a comparative analysis of Vedāntic, Yogic, Buddhist, and Jain systems, the article argues that these states are not merely anomalous psychological events but...
Mentalizing, or the ability to understand the mental states underlying oneself and others' overt behaviors, is crucial in parenting due to its association with favorable child development outcomes. This study introduces a new tool, the Mindfulness-Based Mentalizing Training Program for Parents (MBMP), and investigates its potential to enhance parental mentalizing through qualitative analysis....
This paper develops a relational ontology of awareness grounded in the concept of epistemic enclosure. It argues that awareness does not exist as a property of either the subject or the object, but as the relational field within which both co-emerge and become intelligible. The apparent independence of the ego and of objects arises from epistemic enclosure, a structural stabilization mechanism...
The article examines dreams as a primordial, non-verbal mode of communication within the framework of contemporary Psychology of Religion. Dreaming—especially in the REM phase—predates articulated speech by hundreds of millions of years (around 500 million years), is observable across both vertebrate and invertebrate species, and operates as a psychosomatic interface linking conscious and...
Shel Silverstein’s The Giving Tree (1964) has long been read as a simple parable of unconditional giving and human desire. This comprehensive analysis proposes a far deeper reading: the tree as an embodiment of the Shekhinah, the feminine aspect of divine immanence in Kabbalistic theology, whose boundless generosity mirrors the mystical dynamics between God and creation. By juxtaposing this...