Neuroscience

Neuroscience

A slot machine displays various icons, including brains, cherries, a clover, and the number seven—an homage to Anne-Laure Le Cunff’s work—with two brains and a seven visible in the central row.
Stuck on a hamster wheel of mindless social media scrolling? Neuroscientist Anne-Laure Le Cunff explains how to consciously redirect your reward system.
A woman in ancient armor holds out a small statue to a seated, bearded man, while another figure—symbolizing the evolution of wisdom—stands with their back turned near a tree and a cave.
Evolution may have built our brains, but it didn't build them to find truth.
A woman with a transparent, cloud-filled silhouette sits in profile on a wooden chair against a cloudy sky background, capturing the quiet wonders of daydreaming.
Neuroscience supports the notion that mindfulness and meditation should become essential assets in our workspaces.
Collage with a steam locomotive, a globe with a syringe, and train tracks sparks curiosity, overlaid by the text "The Nightcrawler" on a dark grid background.
Welcome to The Nightcrawler — a weekly newsletter from Eric Markowitz covering tech, innovation, and long-term thinking.
A digital illustration of a brain, composed of circuit-like lines, appears against a black background filled with white dots resembling stars.
"Nobody expects a computer simulation of a hurricane to generate real wind and real rain," writes neuroscientist Anil Seth.
Abstract illustration of a figure reaching for a yellow sphere on the left, with colored overlapping circles and concentric arcs—evoking themes of physics and consciousness—set against a vibrant multicolored gradient background.
Many, from neuroscientists to philosophers to anesthesiologists, have claimed to understand consciousness. Do physicists? Does anyone?
A white brain model is wrapped in colorful electrical cables, set against a plain blue background.
Curiosity is often considered a personality quirk. Neuroscience paints a different picture.
A stylized collage featuring an X-ray of human lungs above and a dandelion dispersing seeds below, set against green and beige backgrounds, evokes the easy, slack flow of breath and gentle change.
In nature, business, and life, survival doesn’t belong to the optimized — it belongs to those with a built-in buffer.
Illustration of a person walking inside a brain silhouette, overlaid on a close-up of closed eyes.
Locked inside their minds, thousands await a cure. Neuroscientist Daniel Toker is racing to find it.
Illustration of a clock showing 10:10 with zoomed-in views highlighting both '10' markings, on an orange background.
Surprisingly, multimodal large language models struggle to read time on analog clocks.
Abstract image featuring a luminous, symmetrical pattern of blue and white swirling lines against a dark background, resembling a cosmic or nebula-like formation.
A look inside Mindstate Design Labs' effort to design drugs that reliably produce specific states of mind.
A person sits in darkness, frowning, partially obscured by a large yellow smiley face sticker covering part of their face.
Our brains cling to the bad. This method could help balance the scales.
An orange fruit hangs from a branch, accompanied by a small white flower with pink details, set against a background of green leaves.
A powerful psychedelic long used in African rituals shows surprising promise for treating traumatic brain injury and PTSD.
Illustration of two connected neurons with green and orange bodies, featuring detailed blue nuclei, against a black grid background.
A fresh view of intelligence — spanning living systems from bacteria to human civilization — challenges the idea that it’s merely problem-solving.
A man in business attire lies relaxed on a cloud against a clear blue sky, embodying inner stillness.
The nature of “the mind” is always vast and clear no matter how swamped by information we feel — and leaders can learn to embrace this space.
A colorful butterfly with vivid patterns hangs near an empty cocoon on a twig against a soft, gradient background.
"Personality isn't based on what we say we'll do. It's rooted in what we actually do, which becomes what we think about."
Two faceless busts face each other. One, representing AI, has digital lines on its face, while the other exudes cognitive meaning with flowers and leaves emerging from its surface.
Cognitive neuroscientist and AI researcher Christopher Summerfield explores the differences, and similarities, of how AI and humans make meaning of the world.
Large white text reading “maybe” in quotation marks, with a purple scribble behind it, is shown on a black background.
When plans fall apart, adaptability can build something better.
Man peering through a glass container with measurement markings, focused expression, blurred foreground.
“Can we push these cells to do something other than what they normally do?" asks developmental biologist Michael Levin. "Can they build something completely different?”
A person with long dark hair beams with creativity, wearing a tiger print jacket, set against a vibrant blue background.
Neuroscientist and author Anne-Laure Le Cunff discusses the lasting benefits of uncertainty, curiosity, and the experimental mindset.
Abstract image with intertwined black and white wispy lines forming a chaotic, web-like pattern on a dark background.
Delirium is one of the most perplexing deathbed phenomena, exposing the gap between our cultural ideals of dying words and the reality of a disoriented mind.
A silhouette of a head brimming with green grass and tiny flowers forms a brain-like shape, embodying sentience against a yellow textured background.
Could AI develop true intelligence without sentience? Philosopher Jonathan Birch explores the boundaries of artificial and evolved minds.
Abstract black and white image of two figures embracing, with swirling line patterns and contrasting shadows evoking a textured effect that subtly hints at negative emotions.
Ethan Kross, psychologist and author of "Shift," explains how negative emotions help us live safely and well.
Person sleeping with EEG cap and sensors on face, covered with a purple blanket.
"The amount of interest is enormous," says anesthesiologist Boris Heifets. "People are dropping in and coming out of the woodwork, trying to understand how to do this."
Black and white close-up of a woman savoring a burger wrapped in paper, her eyes reflecting her elevated taste expectations.
New research is uncovering why we eat first with our expectations.
Blurred image of a thrilling football game in action under the night sky, with enthusiastic spectators on bleachers watching one of America's most exciting and sometimes dangerous sports.
"I think it's about time we stop allowing every male generation bang their frontal lobe through its most developmental stages."