People with depression often feel like their thoughts are downward escalators from which they can't get off. Join me this week with guest Jonathan Downar as we talk about possible interventions like transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). eagleman.com/podcast/165

Why is biological insight so useful for the legal system? I wrote this article in the Atlantic over a decade ago; this is the first reading in my neurolaw course at Stanford. www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...

The Brain on Trial

Advances in brain science are calling into question the volition behind many criminal acts. A leading neuroscientist describes how the foundations of our criminal-justice system are beginning to…

theatlantic.com

Have you ever woken up at 2 in the morning with washing-machine brain, where your thoughts are going round and round in a loop? Join Inner Cosmos this week with guest Jonathan Downar, psychiatrist and neuroscientist, as we talk about doom loops & how we might escape them. eagleman.com/podcast/165

What are doom loops & how can we escape them? Have you ever spent hours with a thought cycling around in your head? Where does the feeling of being “done” come from? Join me with guest Jonathan Downar to explore depression, OCD, anxiety & more. eagleman.com/podcast/165

"In the countless chambers of the brain, our thoughts are linked by many a hidden chain; awake but one, and in what myriads rise!" - Alexander Pope

Why does building social trust between people matter? Join me this week to sit down with social psychologist Claude Steele to explore the hidden psychological forces that shape who we become under the gaze of others. eagleman.com/podcast/164

How do leaders use group dynamics to create a political constituency? Join me this week with social psychologist Claude Steele as we explore the brain science & psychology of ingroups, outgroups, prejudice, and how we can build better. eagleman.com/podcast/164

Why are races started with a gunshot rather a flash of light? There's a good reason… www.realclearscience.com/blog/2016/08...

How can individuals connect & accept as opposed to focusing on concerns about prejudice? Join me this week with psychologist Claude Steele as we explore the brain science & psychology of ingroups, outgroups, and trust. eagleman.com/podcast/164

The exact number of computers needed to simulate the human brain is almost inconceivable. -- via @bigthink bigthink.com/videos/david...

The Exact Number of Computers Needed to Simulate the Human Brain is Almost Inconceivable

Yes, conceivably. And if/when we achieve the levels of technology necessary for simulation, the universe will become our playground.

bigthink.com

It may be tough to overcome prejudices... but building trust may be easier. Join us this week as we explore the brain science & psychology of ingroups, outgroups, prejudice, what goes wrong when everyone calls everyone a racist, and how we can build better. eagleman.com/podcast/164

Why is social uncertainty so hard on the brain? Join me this week to sit down with social psychologist Claude Steele to explore the hidden psychological forces that shape who we become under the gaze of others. eagleman.com/podcast/164

"Where does personality end and brain damage begin?" - Doug Coupland

Francis Crick, one of the greats of 20th century biology, died on this day in 2004. He was a mentor and friend in my postdoctoral years at the Salk Institute, and I feel infinitely lucky to have overlapped with him. "Remembering a trail blazer" eagleman.com/latest/remem...

Remembering a trail blazer – Francis Crick

Francis Crick, one of the premier biologists of the 20th century, passed away July 28, 2004, in San Diego. On his 88th birthday, I brought him chocolates and spent the day with …

eagleman.com

What happens when people are in "churn", feeling aware of the stereotypes they might be under? Join me this week with social psychologist Claude Steele to explore the hidden forces that shape who we become when we worry how we're seen by others. eagleman.com/podcast/164

Does your identity change in different situations? Join me this week with Stanford social psychologist Claude Steele to explore the hidden psychological forces that shape who we become whenever we're in the gaze of others. eagleman.com/podcast/164

Ever wondered whether open offices are here to last? And what they tell us about companies and creativity? behavioralscientist.org/open-offices...

Why Open Offices Are the Answer...But Only for Now - Behavioral Scientist

In 1958 a German consulting group came up with an idea to break down barriers to innovation and productivity: the “landscaped office.”

behavioralscientist.org

How do we know whether modern AI is actually intelligent (or merely memorizes)? What new thing will artificial general intelligence (AGI) bring to the table? Join me this week with Ben Goertzel to examine the future just around the corner. eagleman.com/podcast/163

Why does Ray Kurzweil think we'll hit the AI singularity in 2029? And how did he come up with that prescient date back in 2005? Join me on Inner Cosmos this week with guest Ben Goertzel as we look at the big changes we're about to see. eagleman.com/podcast/163

Cognitive flexibility is paramount in navigating our fast-changing world, and companies are clamoring for innovators. But when the cultivation of creativity becomes limited to those with economic privilege, society stalls its own engines. www.edweek.org/ew/articles/...

What to Do About a Generation of 'Lost Einsteins' (Opinion)

Creativity is too often the domain of the elite. Schools can help, write composer Anthony Brandt and neuroscientist David Eagleman.

edweek.org

Does modern AI recombine on a shallow level? Could it ever invent Duke Ellington? Join me and guest Ben Goertzel as we discuss whether/when AI creativity will equal human creativity. eagleman.com/podcast/163

What's special about the human brain compared to our neighbors in the animal kingdom? Join me on Inner Cosmos this week with guest Ben Goertzel to examine the near future of AGI. eagleman.com/podcast/163

Are you doing research at the intersection of science and the criminal justice system? Publish in one of the top journals in the field, the Journal of Science and Law. We're open for submissions for our next edition. jscilaw.org

The Journal of Science and Law (JSciLaw)

The Journal of Science and Law is an interdisciplinary journal bridging scientific research and legal policy with open-access, peer-reviewed articles.

jscilaw.org

What will we do with our time once artificial general intelligence (AGI) surpasses humankind? Join me on Inner Cosmos this week with Ben Goertzel to examine the future just around the corner. eagleman.com/podcast/163

When we reach artificial superintelligence (ASI) will our computers hate humanity or be indifferent to us? Join me to explore the future possibilities with Ben Goertzel this week on Inner Cosmos. eagleman.com/podcast/163

"Uncertainty is an uncomfortable position. But certainty is an absurd one." - Voltaire #possibilianism

Why do we dream? Why do we experience a fraction of our lives inside an internal, delusory picture show? My former student @DrDonVaughn and I have built a new framework to answer these old questions. Read the summary in Time Magazine. time.com/5925206/why-...

Why Do We Dream? A New Theory on How It Protects Our Brains

"Dreams are primarily visual precisely because this is the only sense that is disadvantaged by darkness."

time.com

New ep of Inner Cosmos drops at now-o'clock. What is artificial general intelligence (AGI) & how quickly does it become smarter than all of humanity? Join this week with Ben Goertzel as we dive into the fast-approaching future of AI. eagleman.com/podcast/163

What's the right way to put stem cells back into humans? Join Inner Cosmos this week with stem cell pioneer Jeanne Loring to discover what medicine will look like in 5 years. eagleman.com/podcast/162

A crucial fact about the brain is missing from our public discussion about violence - via @bigthink bigthink.com/videos/david...

A Crucial Fact about the Brain Is Missing When We Address the Problem of Violence

Many people are quite sure of what's needed after a tragedy, yet there is a lot of disagreement. How can this be? It's all about how the brain can form widely different opinions inside different…

bigthink.com