Compass for the Mind - Dr. Georges€¦ · Rizzolatti and colleagues discovered that when rhesus...

COMPASS FOR THE MIND

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Compass for the Mind

Georges M. Halpern, MD, DSc with Yves P. Huin


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InhisbookTheLostSymbol(FirstAnchorBooks–RandomHouse,2009),DanBrowncontinues his series on symbols, and their supposed hidden powers. His centralplayer, famed Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon answers an unexpectedsummonstoappearattheU.S.CapitolBuilding.Hisplannedlectureisinterruptedwhenadisturbingobject—artfullyencodedwithfivesymbols—isdiscoveredinthebuilding.Langdonrecognizes in the findanancient invitation intoa lostworldofesoteric, potentially dangerous wisdom. When his mentor Peter Solomon—alongstandingMason and beloved philanthropist—is kidnapped, Langdon realizesthat theonlywaytosaveSolomon is toaccept themystical invitationandplungeheadlong into a clandestine world of Masonic secrets, hidden history, and oneinconceivable truth . . . allunder thewatchfuleyeofDanBrown'smost terrifyingvillain to date. It is a thriller first, but the heroineKatherine Solomon is aworldexpertinnoetics,andhowbeliefs,thoughtsandintentionsaffectthephysicalworld(InstituteofNoeticSciences).ThereisalongtraditiononthePowersoftheMinddatingbackmillennia.Humanswere pedestalled, but alsomany animal, plants and natural phenomena.One canconsider these beliefs are simple, simplistic superstition, but recent research indiverseareaspaintamorecomplex,diverse,andoftenexciting,changinglandscape.


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The Theory of Mind Myth Robert Burton is a neurologist, author and the former associate director of thedepartmentofneurosciencesattheUniversityofCalifornia,SanFranciscoMedicalCenteratMountZion.ThefollowingessaywaspublishedonJuly27thinAEONon-line.

‘Idon’tunderstandwhatyouthinkthatI’msaying.’(Maritalargument,overheardatalocaldiner.)

“Followingamassshooting,thegunman’snext-doorneighborsarestunned,andtellreporters that he was a good, kind man. Meanwhile, former classmates and co-workers describe him as a ticking time bomb. Pundits attribute Donald Trump’slatest Twitter tirade to unbridled narcissism, early dementia, a bullying father,Machiavellianshrewdness–oramanwithaheartfeltmissiontomakeAmericagreatagain… Showus any humanbehavior, andwe’ll drumup half a dozen seeminglycommon-sense explanations. The underlying assumption: we can know with areasonable degree of accuracy what is going on in another’s mind. Labelled bypsychologistsastheoryofthemind(abbreviatedasToM),thisabilitytounderstandthatothershaveseparatemindscontainingpotentiallydifferentbeliefs,desiresandintentionsisoftensaidtobeoneofourpre-eminentcognitiveskillsdistinguishingusfromothercreatures.

“Thatwehaveafolkpsychologytheoryofothermindsisn’tsurprising.Bynature,wearecharacteranalysts,behavioralpolicemen,admirersandhaters.“Weembracelikemindsandgo towaragainst contrarians.Mind-reading isoursocialglue,guidingvirtuallyallourdailyinterpersonalinteractions.Whentryingtodecidewhetherornot a potential gun owner is prone to violence, amental patient is suicidal, or apresidentialcandidateistruthful,weareatthemercyofourthoughtsaboutothers.

“Thefateofdemocracydependsonourabilitytograspandacceptdifferingmindsets–yettheseeminglynear-universalabsenceofreasonablepublicdiscoursesuggeststhatthisrarelyoccurs.Weaccusethosewithconflictingopinionsofhavingcharacterdefects,subliminalprejudices,faultyeducation,culturalbrainwashingandamyriadofother ‘ifonlytheyknewbetter’ flawsofreasoning.Butthere’samorebasicandfrighteningpossibility.Whatifwereallyaren’tcapableofasophisticatedreadingof


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otherminds?Forstarters,let’spretendtheimpossible–thatwecanstepoutsideourmindsandseehowToMmightwork.Apsychologistpresentsachildwithtwohandpuppets–Sally(whohasabasket)andAnne(whohasabox).Sallyputsamarbleinherbasketandleavestheroom.WhileSallyisaway,Annetakesthemarblefromthebasket,andhides it inherbox.Finally,Sallyreturns to theroom,and thechild isasked where Sally will look for her marble. By around age four, most childrenrecognizethatSallywilllookinherbasket(whereshelasthadthemarble),notinAnne’sbox.Absentneurodevelopmentalabnormalitiessuchasautism,thisuniversalabilityofyoungchildrentopassvariousversionsoftheSally-Annetestisfrequentlycitedbycognitivescientistsasunequivocalevidencethatwecanknowthemindsofothers.

“Toofferfurtherinsight, inrecentyears,neuroscientistshavecomeupwithsometemptingtheoriesofhowourbrainmightaccomplishthisfeat.Thefirstpromisingneuralmechanismwasdescribedin1992whentheItalianneuroscientistGiacomoRizzolattiandcolleaguesdiscoveredthatwhenrhesusmacaquemonkeysreachforfoodsuchaspeanuts,individualcellsfireintheprefrontalmotorcortex.Thesamecellsalsofirewhenthemonkeysobservearesearcherreachingoutforapeanut–aslongasthemonkeybelievesthatthegestureisintentionalandthattheexperimenterplanned to eat the peanut. Since the same cells fire both when initiating andobserving an action, they have been labelled ‘mirror neurons’; collectively, thenetwork is called the ‘mirror neuron system’. Because the macaques could tellwhetheragesturewasmadetoeatapeanutortoplaywithit,researcherspostulatedthatthemirrorneuronsystemcoulddetectintention–andthatthemonkeyspossessatheoryofmind.Duringthedecadefollowingtheirdiscovery,infact,mirrorneuronswerefrequentlytoutedastheneuralbasisforempathy,complexsocialinteractions,evolutionoflanguageandculturaladvancescharacteristicofthemodernhuman.

ThebehavioralneurologistV.S.Ramachandranevenwentsofarastoassertthatmirrorneuronswould‘doforpsychologywhatDNAdidforbiology…Withknowledgeoftheseneurons,youhavethebasisforunderstandingahostofveryenigmaticaspectsof the human mind: “mind-reading” empathy, imitation learning, and even theevolutionoflanguage.’

“Ultimately, cooler heads prevailed, and skeptics downgraded the hyperbolicattributions.MarcoIacoboni,aneuroscientistattheUniversityofCaliforniainLos


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Angelesandapioneerinthemirrorneuronwork,saidthesystemoperatedatthebasiclevelofrecognizingsimpleintentionsandactions–muchlikewhatwemightdoinahigh-stakespokergame.Youareabouttomakeabetwhenyounoticethattheplayertoyourleftisgettingreadytopushforwardastackofhischips.Hemightbemakingthisgesturetodistractyoufromanotheraspectofthegame.Perhapsheistryingtodistractyoufromhisundercoverpartner,aplayertotheright.Hemightbetryingtocreateafake‘tell’touseagainstyouinthefuture.Adiversityofmentalstatescangeneratethesamemotoraction.Understandingthatyouropponentwillsoonpushhischipsforwardtellsyounothingaboutthepurposebehindthemotion.

“That hardly stopped scientists from trying to prove a theory of mind.With thecollapseofthemirrorneurontheory,otherbrainregionsemergedasreplacementcandidates.Inherwildlypopular2009TEDlecture,thecognitivescientistRebeccaSaxe atMIT argues that the right tempora-parietal junction (rTPJ) –the regionofbrain just behind your right ear– ‘is almost completely specialized. It does almostnothingelseexceptthinkaboutotherpeople’sthoughts.Differencesinthisbrainregioncanexplaindifferencesinadultsinhowwethinkaboutandjudgeotherpeople.’Butwealso know that the rTPJ coordinates incoming sensory inputs to create a stablephysical sense of self in the environment. Transcranialmagnetic stimulation canalter rTPJ function to produce the classic out-of-body experiences. Damaging theregionviastrokeorbraintumorcanresultindisorderedself-awareness,evenlackofrecognitionofparalysis.Despitethis,accordingtoJeanDecety,acognitivescientistat theUniversityofChicago,aproperlyoperating rTPJ isalsonecessary forus todistinguishourselvesfromothers.

It’sastrangeloop:weareaskingthesameareaofbraintobothgenerateacoherentsenseofself,andsimultaneouslystepoutsidethisframeofreferencetogetafresh,unbiasedperspectiveonanother’sthoughts.Talkaboutrunninguphillagainstbasicphysiology!Despite the inadequacyof these leadingneuroscienceexplanationsofToM,itremainshardtoshakethebeliefthatwecanstepinsideanother’smind.SaxebeginsherTEDlecturewiththequestion:‘Howisitsoeasytoknowotherminds?’Toillustrateherpoint,sheshowstwophotos.Thefirstisamothergazingatheryoungchild;thesecondisofateenagerjumpingoffahighcliffintotheoceanbelow.‘Youneedalmostnoinformation,onesnapshotofastranger,toguesswhatthiswomanisthinking,orwhatthismanis.’Ilookatthemotherandseeacombinationofloveand


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awe.Butwithamoment’s reflection, I realize that Ihavegathered togethersomegeneralassumptionsaboutwhathumanshaveincommonanddroppedthemintohermind.Ihavenowayofknowingifsheisalsoworryingthatherhusbandmightfeelneglectedbyhersingle-mindeddevotiontoherchild,wonderingwhentoenrollherchildinpreschool,ortryingtocementintomemorythefeelingofunconditionallove that she anticipates will be challenged when her newborn morphs into arebelliousteenager.Bydrawingoninnateandacquiredbeliefsabouthumannature,Icanimaginehermindatthemostuniversalandgeneric,butnotattheparticular.Thephotooftheboydivingoffthecliffraisesfurtherquestions.

SinceI’munawareofanyneuroscienceliteratureonthementalstatesofcliff-divers,letmesubstituteastudyontheworld’smostfamousfree-soloingmountainclimber,Alex Honnold. Justwatch Honnold climb 3,000 feet (900meters) straight up theverticalfaceofaYosemitepeakwithouttheuseofanysafetyequipment–noropes,netsorharnesses.Askyourself: isHonnoldexperiencingagreatdegreeofanxietyandfearwhenhelooksdownatthe“Yosemitefloorthousandsoffeetbelow–oramoderateamount?Ornone?Also,askyourselfhowsureyouareofyouranswer,andhow you’d know if you are right. In 2016, the neuroscientist Jane Joseph at theMedicalUniversityofSouthCarolinacomparedHonnold’sbraintothatofanotherveteranmountainclimber.WhileinanfMRIscanner,bothwereshownasuccessionof200supposedlyhigh-anxiety-generatingphotos–gruesomeburntanddisfiguredcorpses,mangledaccidentvictims,aswellasseveralhigh-riskmountain-climbingroutes.Theclimberservingasacontroldemonstratedhigh-levelactivationofhisamygdala–theareaofbrain that typically fireswhenone is fearful, frightenedoranxious.

Bycontrast,JosephtoldNautilusmagazine,Honnold’samygdalaremainedentirelysilent.Whenaskedaboutthephotos,Honnoldwaspuzzled.‘Ican’tsayforsure,butIwas like,whatever,’ he said. Even the ‘gruesome burning children and stuff’photographs seemed to him dated and jaded. ‘It’s like looking through a curiomuseum.’Tryingtoimagineamentalstateyou’veneverhadisliketryingtoconjurewhatanorgasmfeelslikebeforeyou’veeverhadone.JosephbelievesthatHonnold’sfMRIreflectstheabsenceofthenormalprimarythreatresponse,asthoughhisfearswitchhasbeenturnedoff.Evenso,Honnolddoesnotconsiderhimselffearless.Herecallsincidentsbothrelatedandunrelatedtomountain-climbingthathecallsscary.


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“Andnowwe run into a secondproblem–the superimpositionof languageon tomentalstates.Honnoldisquiteconscientiousandmakesmeticuloussurveysofhisclimbingroutes.Hereadilyacknowledgesthatafallmeansdeathanddescribesthispossibilityasscary.Whetherthisrepresentsacognitiveunderstandingofdangerora feltemotion is impossible tosay.Givenhisnon-firingamygdala,Alex’s ‘scary’ isunlikelytobelikethetypeoffearothermortalsgetwhenstandingneartheledgeofahigh-risewindow,letaloneahighcliff.WonderingwhatHonnoldmightexperiencewhilesoloclimbingremindsmeofthephilosopherThomasNagel’sunanswerablequestion:‘Whatisitliketobeabat?’

“Thisisnottosaythatwehavenoideaofwhatgoesoninanother’smind.Thebrainisasuperbpattern-recognizer;weroutinelycorrectlyanticipatethatotherswillfeelgriefatafuneral,joyatachild’sfirstbirthdayparty,andangerwhencutoffonthefreeway.Wearerightoftenenoughtotrustourbeliefthatothersgenerallywillfeelaswedo.ListentotheTEDaudiencewincewhenshownthephotoofthecliffdiverasthoughpersonallysensingthefearhemustbeexperiencing.Andyet,ifthecliff-diver has the same non-firing amygdala as Honnold, such impressions will becompletelyoff-base.Theinsurmountableproblemisthatweareupagainstthelimitsoftryingtoimagineamentalstatethatwe’veneverhad.(Whichisnodifferentthantryingtoconjurewhatanorgasmfeelslikebeforeyou’vehadone…)

“PerhapsI’mdeadwrongandmytheoreticalobjectionsdon’tdoToMjustice.MaybethereiscompellingdailylifeevidenceforToM’scentralclaimthatwecanknowthebeliefs,desiresandintentionsofanother.

“Let’sstartwiththeeasiestwaytostudyToMexperimentally–liedetection.Ifwearegoodatmind-reading,surely,weshouldbesuperbliedetectors.Buta2006reviewin theJournal ofPersonalityandSocialPsychologyshowed that volunteer subjectswerebarelybetterthanchanceatdetectingwhenanactorwaslyingortellingthetruth(54percent).Adecadelater,despitevariouseffortstoimprovelie-detectionperformance,theMonitoronPsychologyreportedthat‘people’sabilitytodetectliesisnomoreaccuratethanchanceorflippingacoin.Thisfindingholdsacrossalltypesofpeople – students, psychologists, judges, job interviewers and law-enforcementpersonnel.’ If we’re not so good at lie detection, perhaps we can do better atpredicting violent behavior. In 1984,TheAmerican Journal of Psychiatry reportedthatpsychiatristsandpsychologistswerevastlyoverratedaspredictorsofviolence.


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Even in the best of circumstances –with lengthymultidisciplinary evaluations ofpersonswhohadalreadymanifestedtheirviolentproclivitiesonseveraloccasions–psychiatristsandpsychologistsseemedtobewrongatleasttwiceasoftenastheywere rightwhen theypredictedviolence.Nevertheless, the article suggested thatnewmethodologiesmightimprovepredictionrates.

“No such luck. Thirty years later, a review article in The British Medical Journalconcludedthat:‘Evenafter30yearsofdevelopment,theviewthatviolence,sexualorcriminalriskcanbepredictedinmostcasesisnotevidence-based.’Despitebeingtheco-developer of a widely-used evaluation tool for violence risk-assessment, thepsychologist Stephen D Hart at Simon Fraser University in Canada is equallypessimistic. ‘There is no instrument that is specifically useful or validated foridentifyingpotentialschoolshootersormassmurderers.Therearemanythingsinlifewherewehaveaninadequateevidencebase,andthisisoneofthem.’

“Suicideprediction?Samestory.Accordingtotworecentmeta-analyses:‘Therehasbeennoimprovementintheaccuracyofsuiciderisk-assessmentoverthelast40years.’The UK National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has advised that‘assessmenttoolsandscalesdesignedtogiveacrudeindicationofthelevelofriskofsuicide’shouldnotbeused.

“Allgoodtheoriesarepredictive.Soonerorlater,theyneedsupportingevidence.Ifexpertscannottelluswhowillbeviolent,orcommitsuicide,orislying,isn’tittimeforustoreconsiderwhethertherearerealandpracticallimitstoourbeliefinToM?NowonderFacebookhasintroduceditsownAIsystemtodetectthoseatincreasedriskofsuicide

“Earlier, Ibroughtup themirrorneuroncontroversy toemphasize that thereareseverallow-levelbrainprocessesthatmightappearlikehigher-levelfunctions–butarenot.IsuspectthattheSally-AnneandotherToMtestsareanalogousexamples.Yes, we know that other people have minds, desires and intentions that arepotentiallydifferenttoourown.Butputtingourselvesinanother’ssituationisnotevenremotelycomparabletoactuallyfeelingandthinkingasanother.ImightbeabletofitintoHonnold’sclimbingshoes,butIcannotcrawlinsidehismind.

“As Iwrite thisessay, I amreluctant toentirelyaccept theevidence that I’ve justpresented.Icannotshakethegutfeelingthatthere’smoreto liedetectionthanis


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revealedinthestudies.Ontheotherhand,asaninveteratepokerplayer,Iadmittobeing shaky at detecting bluffs, so try to basemy decisions upon player bettingpatterns. I’m not alone. Given the predictive failures of ToM, psychologists areincreasinglylookingatbigdataratherthanindividualminds.

“AresearchteamledbyStephanLudwigattheUniversityofWestminsterinLondondevelopedautomated text-mining software that analysedmore than8,000emailsbidding for awards based on a company’s performance. They compared theprogram’sabilitytodetectfibsinthebidsagainstanindependentinvestigationbythecompany’saccountmanagers.Theprogramfarsurpassedtheaccountmanagers,achievinga70percentdegreeofaccuracy.Theresearchershopethattheirtechniquewilleventuallybeabletodetectdeceptionineverythingfromvisaapplicationstodating profiles. Scientists at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Tennesseegathered data on more than 5,000 patients with physical signs of self-harm orsuicidalideation.Bygatheringupreadilyavailableimpersonalhealthcaredatasuchas age, gender, zip codes, medications and prior diagnoses, but without directlyinterviewing the patients, there was 80-90 per cent accuracy when predictingwhethersomeonewouldattemptsuicidewithinthenexttwoyears,and92percentaccuracy in predicting whether someone would attempt suicide within the nextweek. When assessing the likelihood of suicide of 12,695 randomly selectedhospitalizedpatientswithnodocumentedhistoryofsuicideattempts,thegroupwasabletoachieveevenhigherratesofprediction.Withsuchresults,weshouldn’tbesurprised that Facebook has introduced its own proprietary AI system to detectthoseatincreasedriskofsuicide.

“The shortcomingsofToMhave longbeenpartofpublic lore –particularly in thecriticismofpsychiatry.Butwehavepersistedwiththebeliefthatthefault iswithpsychiatryandpsychiatrists,notwiththebasictenetthatwecanknowwhatanotheristhinkingandfeeling.Forme,thefinalstraw,themostunequivocalindictmentofToM,hasbeentheevidencefromrecentpoliticaldevelopments–fromtheinabilityto get a handle on Kim Jong-un’s mindset and nuclear intentions, to the near-universal failure of political pundits to recognize the pent-up anger, fear andresentmentsimmeringinfutureTrumpsupporters.

“I’vegottoconfess,doubtsaboutToMbeganearlyinmyneurologycareer.AyoungJamaicanwomanhadstrangledher18-month-olddaughtertodeath.Whensentto


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thepsychwardofSanFranciscoGeneralHospitalforobservation,shehadattackeda moaning, wheelchair-bound woman with dementia, breaking her neck beforenearbyguardscouldintervene(thevictimdiedofherinjuries).Thecourt-appointedpsychiatristwanted toknow if thiswoman’s episodesof violentbehaviourmighthaveaneurologicalbasis.”

“Thewomanwasn’tatalllikethepersonI’dpicturedfromreadingherchart.Withherbrightsmile,easylaughandliltingaccent,shewasutterlyengaging.Icouldn’timagineherhurting anyone, let aloneher child.As expected, thehour-longexamrevealednocluestoexplainherbehaviour.Beforeleaving,Igatheredupmynerveandaskedherifshehadanyideawhyshe’dchokedherdaughterandattackedtheoldwoman.Foralongtime,thewomansatmotionless.Shefinallyblurtedout:‘Ihatethesoundofcrying.’Shefoldedherhandsinherlapandstaredatme,shakingherhead.Eachofuswasspeechless,acutelyawareoftheunbridgeablegapbetweenus.I was shaken by the realization that whatever I thought crying triggered in thiswoman, it would be pure fiction, a story I’d dream up to give some sense ofexplanationtotheinexplicable.”

“Thiswasn’tanisolatedevent.Duringmycareer,I’vebeenbaffledenoughtimestofullyaccepthowlittleaccessIhavetotheinnerworkingsofotherminds.Whenapatientdiedofamysteriousillness,Iaskedhis30-somethingsonpermissionforanautopsy.Themanagreedon the condition thathewasallowed towatch.When Iaskedhimwhy,hissoleexplanationwas:‘He’smyfather.’”

“A middle-aged woman collapsed during the middle of the night. The CAT scanrevealedamassivebrainhemorrhage thatwouldalmost certainlybe fatalwithinhours.WhenI toldherhusband,heblinkedacoupletimes, thensaidwithoutanyapparentemotion:‘OK.IthinkI’llgohomeandtakeashower.’”

“But themost singularly illustrativedemonstrationof the limits ofToMoccurredduring thepsychiatrysegmentofmyneurologyboard-certificationoralexam.Mytestpatientwasanunkemptmanwhosmelledofmildew.

‘Howlonghaveyoubeeninthehospital?’Ibegantheinterview.‘Threemonths.’Surprisedthathehadn’tbeentidiedup,Iaskedagain.‘Acoupleyears,giveortake.Timeiselusivewhennothing’shappening.’


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‘Couldyoubemorespecific?’‘Ifyoupressedme,I’dsaymostlikelyI’vebeenherethreedays.’‘Doyouhaveanypriorhistoryofmentalillness?’‘Whodoesn’t?’‘Othermembersofthefamilyaswell?’‘Dependsonwhoyouask.’‘Doyouhaveanyideawhyyou’rehere?’‘No.Doyou?’‘Yes.You’remytestpatientforthepsychiatryportionoftheneurologyboards.It’dsurebehelpfulifyouatleasttriedtogivemesomestraightanswers.’‘Personalanswersareneverstraight.Youlearntocouchyourselfinyes,but,maybe,andontheotherhand.Youneverknowwhenyoumightbeaskedtorunforpresident.’

HamletandAnnaKareninaareartisticone-offsbasednotondeepunderstanding,butontheyarnswespin.

Andso,itwent–30minutesofagonizingheadshakesandbobbingandweaving,whilemyevaluatingpsychiatristtookcopiousnotes,thenindicatedthattimewasup.Heexcusedthepatient.

‘So,’theexaminerasked.‘Whatdoyouthink?’‘Ihavenoidea.Thepatientisentirelyunreliable.’‘Surelyyouhavesomehunches.’‘Notreally.Ican’teventellifhe’sputtingmeon.’‘Ifpassingorfailingdependsonmakingadiagnosis,whatwouldyousay?’‘Sorry.I’djustbeguessing.’‘You’redismissed,’thepsychiatristsaidwithablankexpressionthatIcouldn’tinterpret.Thatevening,aftertheexamwasover,Iranintothepsychiatrist.Hewasallsmiles.‘Nicegoing–youpassedwithflyingcolors.’


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‘You’rekidding?Iwassuremypsychexamwasacompletewhiff.’Theexaminerlaughed.‘So,whatwaswrongwithhim?’Iasked.‘Whoknows?He’soneofourbest;weusehimformanyoftheexamsinthispartofthecountry.’‘He’saprofessionalpatient?’‘Notexactly.Hewasformerlyhospitalized–thoughnoonewasquitesurewhatwaswrong.Whileontheward,heacquiredthisuncannyabilitytomimicmostmajorpsychiatricdiseases.Thistime,weaskedhimtoportrayanuncooperativeandunreliablepatient.’‘So,hedoeshaveanunderlyingmentaldisorder?’Theexaminersimultaneouslyshruggedandsmiled.‘Haveasafeflighthome.’

“I’veconcludedthattragedycancreateotherwiseunimaginableresponses.Thisishardly mind-reading. Conjuring a different view of the world is a rare talentrequiringanextraordinaryleapofimagination:Hamlet,MadameBovaryandAnnaKareninaareartisticone-offsbasednotondeepunderstanding,butyarnswespinabout each other’s intentions and motivations. We make up stories about ourspouses,ourkids,ourleaders,andourenemies.Inspiringnarrativesgetusthroughdarknightsandtoughtimes,butwe’llalwaysmakebetterpredictionsguidedbytheimpersonal analysis of big data than by the erroneous belief that we can readanother’smind.”


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Psychokinesis (PK) Psychokinesis,alinguisticblend,orportmanteauoftheGreeklanguagewords(ψυχή"mind" andκίνησις "movement"), orTelekinesis (fromτηλε- "far off" andκίνηση"movement"),isanallegedpsychicabilityallowingapersontoinfluenceaphysicalsystem without physical interaction. It was coined in 1914 by American authorHenryHoltinhisbookOntheCosmicRelations.TheAmericanparapsychologistJ.BRhinecoinedtheterm‘extra-sensoryperception’todescribereceivinginformationparanormallyfromanexternalsource.

Theword'telekinesis'motionwasfirstusedin1890byRussianpsychicalresearcherAlexanderN.Aksakof;itreferstothemovementand/orlevitationofphysicalobjectsbypurelymentalforcewithoutanyphysicalintervention.

FictionaluniversesandNewAgebeliefsdonotsitwellwiththescientificcommunityat large, and numerous evaluations (notably in Physics) have not produced anyreliable,repeatabledemonstration.

CognitivebiasresearchhassuggestedthatpeoplearesusceptibletoillusionsofPK.Theseincludeboththeillusionthattheythemselveshavethepower,andthattheeventstheywitnessarerealdemonstrationsofPK. ‘Someoftheworstexamplesofconfirmationbiasare inresearchonparapsychology (...)Arguably, there isawholefieldherewithnopowerfulconfirmingdataatall.Butpeoplewanttobelieve,andsotheyfindwaystobelieve’(SternbergRJetal.2007).

Magicians(illusionists)havesuccessfullysimulatedsomeofthespecializedabilitiesof psychokinesis, such as object movement, spoon bending, levitation andteleportation.


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Therearemanyimpressivemagictricksavailabletoamateursandprofessionalstosimulatepsychokineticpowers.Metalobjects suchaskeysor cutlerycanbebentusingseveraldifferenttechniques,eveniftheperformerhasnothadaccesstotheitemsbeforehand.Andtherearemanywaysforfakingpsychokineticmetalbending(PKMB). These include switching straight objects for pre-bent duplicates, theconcealedapplicationofforce,andsecretlyinducingmetallicfractures.

Researchhasalsosuggestedthat(PKMB)effectscanbecreatedbyverbalsuggestion.

Psychokinesisandtelekinesishavecommonlybeenusedassuperpowersincomicbooks,movies, television, computergames, literature,andother formsofpopularculture.

Internationally there are individual skeptics of the paranormal and skeptics'organizationswhooffercashprizemoneyfordemonstrationoftheexistenceofanextraordinary psychic power, such as psychokinesis. Prizes have been offeredspecificallyforPKdemonstrations:forexample,businessmanGeraldFleming'sofferof£250,000toUriGeller ifhecanbendaspoonundercontrolledconditions.TheJames Randi Educational Foundation offered the One Million Dollar ParanormalChallengetoanyacceptedcandidatewhomanagedtoproduceaparanormaleventinacontrolled,mutuallyagreeduponexperiment.


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A Third Way: The Aztec One

Courtesy Metropolitan Museum of Arts

Aztecvirtueethicsisdistinctfrom‘Western’forms,suchasPlato’sorAristotle’sintwoaspects:thefirstisthatwenotovercomeourvicessomuchasmanagethem.Thesecondisthatwedonotmanagethemonourown,butratherdosowiththehelpofanotherperson.

WhilePlatoandAristotlewereconcernedwithcharacter-centeredvirtueethics,theAztecapproachisperhapsbetterdescribedassocially-centeredvirtueethics.IftheAztecswereright,then‘Western’philosophershavebeentoofocusedonindividuals,too reliant on assessments of character, and toooptimistic about the individual’sability to correct her ownvices. Instead, according to theAztecs,we should lookaroundtoourfamilyandfriends,aswellasourordinaryritualsorroutines,ifwehope to lead a better, more worthwhile existence. This distinction bears on an


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importantquestion:justhowbadaregoodpeopleallowedtobe?Mustgoodpeoplebemoralsaints,orcanordinaryfolkbegoodifwehavetherightkindofsupport?Thismattersforfalliblecreatureswhotrytobegoodbutoftenrunintoproblems.Yet it alsomatters forquestionsof inclusivity. If being good requires exceptionaltraits,suchaspracticalintelligence,thenmanypeoplewouldbeexcluded–suchasthosewithcognitivedisabilities.Thatdoesnotseemright.OneoftheadvantagesoftheAztecview,then,isthatitavoidsthisoutcomebycastingvirtueasacooperative,rather thanan individual,endeavor.At itscore,Aztecvirtueethicshasthreemainelements. One is a conception of the good life as the ‘rooted’ or worthwhile life.Secondistheideaofrightactionasthemeanormiddleway.Thirdandfinalisthebeliefthatvirtueisaqualitythat’sfosteredsocially.

Whenwe speak about the Aztecs –the people dominant in large parts of centralAmerica prior to the 16th-century Spanish conquest– even professionalphilosophers are often surprised to learn that the Aztecs were a philosophicalculture.They’reevenmorestartledtohearthatwehave(manyvolumesof)theirtexts recorded in their native language, Nahuatl.While a few of the pre-colonialhieroglyphic-type books survived the Spanish bonfires, our main sources ofknowledge derive from records made by Catholic priests, up to the early 17thcentury.UsingtheLatinalphabet,thesetextsrecordthestatementsoftlamatinime,the indigenous philosophers, onmatters as diverse as bird-flight patterns,moralvirtue,andthestructureofthecosmos.ToexplaintheAztecconceptionofthegoodlife, it’shelpful tobegin in thesixthvolumeofabookcalled theFlorentineCodex,compiled by Father Bernardino of Sahagún. Most of the text contains edifyingdiscourses called huehuetlatolli,the elders’ discourses. This section records thespeeches followingtheappointmentofanewking,whenthenoblemenappeartocompeteforthemosteloquentarticulationofwhatanidealmonarchshouldbeanddo.TheresultisasuccessionofspeecheslikethoseinPlato’sSymposium,whereineachmembertriestoproducethemostmovingexpressionofpraise.

Attheendofthenoblemen’sspeeches,thekinghimselfturnstoaddresshispeople.He tries toarticulate the characterof excellentmenandwomen, the standardheexpectsfromhissubjects.Ofmen,hesays:

Andheisrevered;intruth[nelli],heistakentobeadefenderandsustainer.Hebecomes like the silk cotton tree, like the cypress tree, by which everywhere


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peopletakerefuge…[Yet]thissame[virtuous]oneweepsandsorrows.Isthereanyonewhodoesnotwishforhappiness?

ThepassageisstrikingbecauseithighlightsafundamentaldifferencebetweentheAncientGreekandtheAztecapproachestothegoodlife–namely,thattheAztecsdidnotbelievetherewasanyconceptuallinkbetweenleadingourbestlivesontheonehand and experiencing pleasure or ‘happiness’ on the other. This image of thevirtuousman finds its closest Greek analogue in theIliad’s Hector, the person towhomeveryoneflockedforrefuge,theonewhosupportedhiswholehouse,butwasneverthelessundonebyAchilles.

AcommonsayingamongtheAztecswasthat‘theearth[tlalticpac]isslippery,slick’.Elsewhere,themeaningisclarified:‘Perhapsatonetime,onewasofgoodlife;later,hefellintosomewrong,asifhehadslippedinthemud.’TheAztecsheld,inshort,thatit’sunrealistictothinkthatanyonecanleadaperfectlygoodlife,oneinwhichyouneverslipup.Abettergoal,then,istotrytoleadarootedlife,whichtheycalledneltiliztli:literally,rootedness.Inthiskindoflife,onecanmanagethemistakesandslip-ups well, rather than avoid them altogether. The reward is not happinessnecessarily,butthepromiseofaworthwhilelife.Ifwe’reconvincedbythislineofreasoning –that the good life consists in doingwhat isworthwhile, regardless ofwhetheritmakesushappy–thenextquestionbecomes:whatdoesittaketoleadarootedlife?

FortheAztecs,arootedlifeisonethatislivedwell,withexcellence.ThetraditionalwordusedforthisconceptinEnglishis‘virtue’.OurwordfindsitsoriginintheLatinvirtu,ametonymicexpressionthataimstocapturewhatisbestaboutaman(vir)–manliness,inbrief.TheAztecsalsousedapoeticexpressionforvirtue:inqualliinyectli,meaning‘thegoodandthestraight’.Forexample,intheconfessionalrite,whichisalsorecordedasanedifyingdiscourseinthesixthvolumeoftheFlorentineCodex,theconfessortellsthepenitentthatbeforecommittingwrongs:

Youwereexcellent[cati-qualli,cati-yectli]whenyouweresenthere…Youwerecast,perforatedlikeapreciousgreenstone,abracelet,apreciousturquoise.

Theideaitself isclear:beforeviciousactions,oneisvirtuous,oneis likethemostpreciousofthings,turquoiseandjade.Afterwards,theconfessortellsthepenitent,one is unbalanced, filthy. Thus, when one’s actions are virtuous, one maintains


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balance,isrootedlikethetreetowhomothersflockforcover.Thesevirtuesinclude:moderation,justice,prudenceandcourage.

Whatthelistofvirtuesdoesn’tansweris:justwhatisitthatmakesanactcourageousratherthanrash?TheAztec’sansweristhatvirtuousactionsfollowthemiddlepath,theystrikethemean.Inanedifyingdiscourse,amothertellsherdaughteraboutthedifficultiesoflivingontheearth(tlalticpac):

Onearth,welive,wetravelalongmountainpeaks.Overherethereisanabyss,overthereisanabyss.Ifthougoestoverhere,orifthougoestoverthere,thouwiltfallin.Onlyinthemiddle[tlanepantla]dothonego,dothonelive.Placethisword,mydaughter,dove,littleone,wellwithinthechambersofthyheart.

Asthepassagesuggests, themeanormiddleway(tlanepantla) isnotsomuchanexactmiddleofsomethingasitisametaphorfortheaptexpressionofachoice,actionorfeeling.Inotherpassages,themiddlechoiceistheonethatrepresentstherightformofdress,withclothesthatareneithertooshabby,nortooformal.Forexample,the text presents as bad the case of an overly carnalwoman,who conducts andpresentsherselfsexuallyevenwhenshoppinginthemarketplace.Ouractionsarevirtuous,then,whentheyareaptlyexpressed.Thisaptnessofexpressionturnsonthecircumstances(e.g.howformallyweshoulddress),oursocialposition(e.g.maleor female, commoner or noble), our social role (e.g. warrior or physician), andwhetherweareperformingariteofaspecificsort.Amemorableexampleofthislastkind concerns drunkenness. Public drunkenness was severely punished inTenochtitlan,thecapitaloftheAztecempire;fornobles,thepenaltywasdeath.Buttheelderlyataweddingwerenotonlypermittedbutexpectedtobecomedrunk.

Therewas, then,no formal test for theaptexpressionofanaction,butonecouldlearntodevelopasenseforit inthewaythatwemightspeaktodayofaperson’saesthetic sensibilities. Just aswemight say that our co-worker’s sense of style isimpeccable,wealsoknowofsomepeoplewhoarejustgoodatunderstandinghumanrelationsinanuancedway,whoalwaysseemtoknowwhattodo.HowwedevelopthisunderstandingofvirtuousactionleadsustothefinalpillarofAztecethics.

RecallthatfortheAztecs,ourlivesareledontheslipperyearth.Moraleducation,then,isnotsomethingthatonecompletesinchildhoodoradolescence.Rather,itissomethingthat’sneededthroughoutlife.Therefore,eventhekingisadmonishedby


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theold,andtheelderlyadmonisheachother.Thevirtues, thus,aresustainedandretrainedthroughoutlife.Thistrainingcanoccurinatleastthreeways.Thefirstofthese is a sort of moral education that parallels what happens inPlato’sRepublic(books 3-4) orAristotle’sPolitics(book8). In the third volumeoftheFlorentine Codex, for example, there’s a detailed set of passages that addresseducationamongtheyoungandadolescents.Earlyinlife,uptoabouttheageofsix,childrenaretaughtathomebytheirparents,andaretobegivenapracticaleducationaswellasinstructiononbasicmoralteachings.Whenthechildrengoofftoschool,they’redividedintotwogroups:thosewhogoto learnaspecifictradeorbecomewarriors,andthosewhowouldgotolearntheartssuitabletothenoblecourts,suchaslaw,astronomy,history,philosophyandreligiousmatters.Ofthosestudentswhopursueda ‘noble’ education, thedevelopmentofvirtueswasaprimary focus.Thereasoning was that a greater level of virtue, especially of moderation, would berequired if theyeverbecamea lord.Thestudentswouldthushavetogetupveryearlyinthemorningtoperformtasks,togatheritemsinthornbushes,tosleepinthecold, and to go on fasts. These practices, and others, were set up to enable thestudentstopracticeandhabituatetomoderationinitsvariousforms.Comparatively,onepriestremarks,‘themanneroflifeofthe[other]youthswasnotverygood’,sincetheywerenotheldtothesamestandardsofexcellence.Afterthisschooling,virtueswere fosteredvia rites thatweren’t strictly religious –whatmightbest be calledsocialrituals.Forexample,whenmerchantswerepreparingtotraveltoanothercity,theymadespecialpreparations.Anauspiciousdaywouldbeselectedbyaday-signreader,andthemerchantswouldmakeaburntofferingtotheappropriatedivinitiesthe night before. Then, on the dawn of the day of departure, theywould ask theleadersoftheirneighborhoodtoappear.Seatedinacirclethatreflectedtheirstature,theywoulddescribethedetailsoftheirtravel,andtheleaderswouldrespondwithadviceaboutthejourney,contingencyplans,andurgecertainmoralvirtuessoasnottooffendothersinforeignlands.

Whilethiswasaritualizedmatter,thepracticeallowedmerchantstoputtheiraffairsinorderbeforeundertakingwhatwasoftenadangerousexercise.Thisriskexplainswhytheywantedtomaketheirpeacewiththedivineandtheircommunitybeforeventuringout.Yetthepracticealsoprovidedasociallyacceptablemeanstoexchangerelevantinformationaboutthejourney,aswellasurgecertainvirtuesofcharacter,includingmoderationandcircumspection.Itserved,inshort,asasortof‘refresher


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course’ in moral virtue. Yet the groups themselves were arranged in ways thatenabledthemerchantstosupporteachother.Mothersandfatherswouldarrangefortheirchildrentotravelwithothers,reasoningthat‘perhaps,withtheirhelp,hewillbecome prudent, mature, understanding’. The young, however, carried no heavymerchandise (theAztecsdidnothavehorses, and so carriedmuchof theburdenthemselves).Themostexperiencedwould lead thegroup, theotherswouldcarrywhatwasappropriate,andeachencouragedtheothersso that theycouldremainmoderateandcircumspect.Finally,themerchantritualhighlightssomethingthathasbeenimplicitinmyargumentsofar:namelythattheexcellenceofpracticalreasonor prudence (Greek:phronēsis) was not primarily a quality that individualspossessed. For Aristotle, for example, thephronimosis a rare person who coulddiscerntherightmeansofachievingends.ThisexplainswhyAristotlethoughtthatthebestsocietywasamonarchythatwasruledbyasingleandmostwiseman.TheAztecs,bycontrast,thoughtthatpracticalreasonwasbestexercisedingroups–andone finds evidence for this everywhere, from themerchant rites, to the choiceofschoolforchildren,tothedecisionsofthekinghimself.Moreover,theAztecsweren’tdemocraticaboutthematter.Ratherthanweighalladviceevenly,theygavegreaterweight in the deliberative process to those with the most practical experience(ixtlamatiliztli), who were often the elderly. This explains why the leader of themerchantsaskstheelderlymenandwomenforadvice,eventhoughheisthoughttobetheprincipletraineroftheyoung.

VirtueisthusfosteredsociallyamongtheAztecsthroughoutlife.Thisbeginsinone’searlychildhood,continuesthroughformaleducation,advancesinone’sprofessionwhereoneis‘refreshed’byone’speers,andissustainedbysocialrituals.Eventheassessmentof‘themiddleway’remainsacollectiveratherthanpersonaleffort,sinceitwasbelievedthatpracticalwisdomworkedbestingroupsthatplacedahighvalueon the opinions of the most experienced members. The Aztecs thought all thisbecausetheybelievedthatwehumansleadlivesontheslipperyearth(tlaticpac).Thebestguardwehaveagainstthiseventuality,then,iseachother.

Plato’sRepublicendswiththemythofEr,awarriorwhodiesandreturnstoEarthtotellothersabouttheafterlife.LikemanyofthemythsinthePlatoniccorpus,thisoneexpressesnotsomethingthatPlatoholds,butsomethingforwhichwemighthope.InEr’stranscendentexperience,heseesthatintheafterlifethevirtuousare


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rewardedandthebadarepunishedfor1,000years.Afterthisterm,theydrawlotstodeterminehowtheywillbereincarnated,andtheirchoicesareinformedbythestatesoftheircharacter(thatis,whethertheyarevirtuousorvicious).Odysseushasbadluckandisgiventhelastpickoflives,aftereveryoneelsehasbeenabletogoinfrontofhim.Yethechoosesthesamelifehewouldhavepickedifhe’dbeengivenfirstchoice.TheRepublicthusendswithamessage:ifyouarevirtuous,notonlywillyouberewardedintheafterlife,butaboveall,youcanbeatchanceitself.

TheAztecswouldneverhavewrittensuchastory!Plato,ofcourse,isreplacingtheheroicwarrior Achilleswith the thinkingman Odysseus.We saw above that theAztecswould likelyhavepreferredHector–thesupportingbeamfor thehouseofTroy, despite being on the losing side. But this preference suggests a strongerdisagreement,sincetheAztecswouldhaveheldthatitisanerrortothinkthatvirtuecansaveonefromthevicissitudesofchance.Nomatterhowvirtuousyouare,there’salwaysapossibilitythatayounger,moreskilled,andmoreimpetuousmanwithasword will strike you down. And we ourselves are always prone to slipping up,despiteourbetterupbringing.Wisdominhumanaffairsconsistsintherecognitionthatthebestthatwecandoistolearntostandwiththehelpofothers,toalterourcircumstancesforthebetter,andtoclasphandssothatwecanpullourselvesbackupwhenwefall.ThisisthefundamentalinsightbehindthesocialdimensionofAztecethics.Aschallengingasitseemsto‘Western’sensibilities,perhapsthere’senoughthat’srightaboutittohelpusleadbetter,moreworthwhileandrootedlives.


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Meditation and Neurosciences Cantrainingthemindmakeusmoreattentive,altruistic,andserene?Canwelearntomanageourdisturbingemotionsinanoptimalway?Whatarethetransformationsthatoccurinthebrainwhenwepracticemeditation?InanewbooktitledBeyondtheself, two friends—Matthieu Ricard, who left a career as a molecular geneticist-biologist at the Institut Pasteur to become a Buddhist monk in Nepal, andWolfSinger, a distinguished neuroscientist (my friend too!)—engage in an unusualconversationaboutmeditationandthebrain.

MatthieuRicard(Nepali:मा ◌ु रका)wasborn15February1946andisaFrenchwriterandBuddhistmonkwhoresidesatShechenTennyiDargyelingMonasteryin


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Nepal.HegrewupamongthepersonalitiesandideasofFrenchintellectualcircles;his father Jean-François (nom-de-plume Jean-François Revel) was a philosopher,prolificwriterandpolemicist.

Matthieuworked under the Nobel Laureate François Jacob, and received a Ph.D.degreeinmoleculargeneticsfromthePasteurInstitutein1972.Hethendecidedtoforsake his scientific career and instead study Tibetan Buddhism with KangyurRinpoche and some other great masters of that tradition, and became the closestudentandattendantofDilgoKhyentseRinpocheuntilRinpoche'sdeathin1991.HeresidesinNepalandholdsFrenchandNepalicitizenships.

Ricardhasbeencalledthe"happiestpersonintheworld"byseveralpopularmedia.MatthieuRicardwasavolunteersubjectinastudyperformedattheUniversityofWisconsin–Madison on happiness, scoring significantly above the average ofhundredsofvolunteers.

HeistheauthorandphotographerofTibet,AnInnerJourney,andofmanyaward-winning photobooks, as well of the dialogue with his father The Monk and thePhilosopherthatwasabest-sellerinEurope,aswellasmanyotherhighlyregardedbooks.

MatthieuRicardisaboardmemberoftheMindandLifeInstituteandreceivedtheFrenchNationalOrderofMeritforhishumanitarianworkintheEast.

Matthieu Ricard & Wolf Singer


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Wolf Singerwasborn inMunich, on9March1943, and studiedmedicine at theLudwigMaximilianUniversityofMunich(LMUMunich) from1965onwards(asascholarship holder of the German Academic Scholarship Foundation) and in1965/66spenttwosemestersattheSorbonneinParis.

In1968,hereceivedhisPhDfromLudwigMaximilianUniversitywithhisdoctoralthesis on “The role of telencephalic commissures in bilateral EEG-synchrony “. Hisdoctoral supervisor was Otto Detlev Creutzfeldt of the Max Planck Institute forPsychiatry.Duringhisadvancedtraininginneurophysiology,hespentayearattheUniversity of Sussex in England. In 1970, he received his medical license as aphysicianwhileworkingasadoctorattheUniversityHospitalMunich.

In 1975, he habilitated in Physiology at the Medical Faculty of the TechnicalUniversityofMunich.In1981,hewasappointedamemberoftheMaxPlanckSocietyandDirectoroftheDepartmentofNeurophysiologyattheMaxPlanckInstituteforBrainResearchinFrankfurtamMain.There,togetherwithWalterGreinerandHorstStöcker,hefoundedtheFrankfurtInstituteforAdvancedStudies(FIAS)aswellastheBrainImagingCenter(BIC)in2004andtheErnstStrüngmannScienceForumandtheErnstStrüngmannInstitute(ESI).HeisanhonoraryprofessorofphysiologyattheGoetheUniversityFrankfurt.Since2011hehasthestatusofanemeritusandassuchcontinuestooperatethe"Singer-Emeritus-Department"atMPIFrankfurt.

The aim of the work of his neurophysiological department is to elucidate theneuronalprocessesinthecaseofso-calledhighercognitiveperformance,suchasinthe case of visual perception, in memory, or in other ways of cognition. In hisinstitute, amongother things, the emergenceof visualdisorder amblyopia is alsobeingstudied.

Intheneurophysiologicalresearchcommunity,Singerisinternationallyknownforhisresearchandreflectionsonthephysiologicalbasisofattentionandidentificationprocedures. The institute, with its technically elaborate experiments, is primarilyconcernedwith the binding problem,where the question is at the center of howdifferentsensoryaspectsofanobject-form,color,hardness,weight,smell,etc.-canbecombinedintoasingleobjectexperience.Thetheoryisbased,amongothers,onthe works by Christoph von der Malsburg. It attaches great importance to thetemporalsynchronicityofneuronalactivityinthecortex.Correspondingoscillatorfrequencies of the nerve cells would then refer to the same object, while other


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frequencieswouldmarkotherobjects.

Singer’sthesisonthefreewillisparticularlycontroversial.Hedeclinedtospeakofa free will. This he expressed publicly in an article published in the FrankfurterAllgemeine Zeitung in 2004, whose subtitling he made in the slightly modifiedformulation“Brainstructuresdetermineus:Weshouldstoptalkingaboutfreewill”asthe main title of the reprinting of an extensive scientific contribution to thediscussion"BrainasaSubject?(PartI)"intheGermanJournalofPhilosophy.

WolfSingerarguesthatthenaturalscientificcausalmodel,accordingtowhichtheworldistobeviewedasacloseddeterministicwhole,excludesfreedom.ProponentsoftheconceptoffreedomasPeterBieriargue,however,thatthenotionoffreedomof will is only under certain conditions, contrary to determinism and that theseassumptionsneednottobeaccepted.

Singer also demands that the lack of free will must have consequences for ourconceptionsofguilt andpunishment: ifnoonecandecide freely froma scientificpointofview,itisnotusefultomakepeopleresponsiblefortheiractions.Sociallyintolerable persons would have to be "locked away" and "subjected to specificeducationalprograms".

He is the recipientof (too)manyawardsandhonors,honorarydoctorates, andamemberorfellowonmanyacademies.

Hereunder is an edited version of Ricard and Singer’s conversation as initiallypublishedinTheAtlanticon17December2017:

“Although one finds in the Buddhist literature many treatises on “traditionalsciences”—medicine,cosmology,botanic,logic,andsoon—TibetanBuddhismhasnotendeavoredtothesameextentasWesterncivilizationstoexpanditsknowledgeoftheworldthroughthenaturalsciences.Ratherithaspursuedanexhaustiveinvestigationof themind for 2,500 years andhasaccumulated, in an empiricalway, awealth ofexperientialfindingsoverthecenturies.Agreatnumberofpeoplehavededicatedtheirwholelivestothiscontemplativescience.

ModernWesternpsychologybeganwithWilliamJamesjustoveracenturyago.In2003,attheMIT,duringtheMindandLifemeeting“InvestigatingtheMind”,StephenKosslyn(thenChairofPsychologyatHarvard)startedhispresentationbysaying,“Iwanttobeginwithadeclarationofhumilityinthefaceofthesheeramountofdatathatthe


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contemplativesarebringingtomodernpsychology.”Itdoesnotsufficetoponderhowthe human psycheworks and elaborate complex theories about it, as, for instance,Freud did. Such intellectual constructs cannot replace two millennia of directinvestigation of theworkings ofmind through penetrating introspection conductedwithtrainedmindsthathavebecomebothstableandclear.

Whatnaturegaveusisbynomeansentirelynegative;itisjustabaseline.Fewpeoplewouldhonestlyarguethatthereisnothingworthimprovingaboutthewaytheyliveand the way they experience the world. Some people regard their own specificweaknesses and conflicting emotions as a valuable and distinct part of their“personality,”assomethingthatcontributestothefullnessoftheirlives.Theybelievethatthisiswhatmakesthemuniqueandarguethattheyshouldacceptthemselvesastheyare.Butisn’tthisaneasywaytogivingupontheideaofimprovingthequalityoftheirlives,whichwouldcostonlysomereasoningandeffort?

Modern conventional education does not focus on transforming the mind andcultivating basic humanqualities suchas lovingkindness andmindfulness. Buddhistcontemplativesciencehasmanythingsincommonwithcognitivetherapies,withthoseusing mindfulness as a foundation for remedying mental imbalance. As forpsychoanalysis,itseemstoencourageruminationandexploreendlesslythedetailsandintricaciesofthecloudsofmentalconfusionandself-centerednessthatmaskthemostfundamentalaspectofmind:luminousawareness.

Ruminationshouldbethetotaloppositeofwhatyoudoduringmeditation.Itisalsowellknownthatconstantruminationisoneofthemainsymptomsofdepression.Whatweneedistogainfreedomfromthementalchainreactionsthatruminationendlesslyperpetuates.Oneshouldlearntoletthoughtsariseandbefreedtogoassoonastheyarise,insteadoflettingtheminvadeone’smind.Inthefreshnessofthepresentmoment,thepastisgone,thefutureisnotyetborn,andifoneremainsinpuremindfulnessandfreedom,potentiallydisturbingthoughtsariseandgowithoutleavingatrace.

What you must learn then is to adopt a much subtler approach to your internalemotional theater, to learn to identify with much higher resolution the variousconnotations of your feelings. In the beginning, it is difficult to do it as soon as anemotion arises, but if you become increasingly familiar with such an approach, itbecomesquitenatural.Wheneverangerisjustshowingitsface,werecognizeitrightawayanddealwithitbeforeitbecomestoostrong.


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Itisnotunlikeascientificendeavorexceptthattheanalyticaleffortisdirectedtowardtheinnerratherthantheouterworld.Sciencealsoattemptstounderstandrealitybyincreasing the resolving power of instruments, training themind to grasp complexrelations,anddecomposingsystemsintoeversmallercomponents.

It issaidintheBuddhistteachingsthatthereisnotasksodifficultthatitcannotbebrokendownintoaseriesofsmall,easytasks.

TheWesternapproach,whileusing the first-personperspective for thedefinitionofmental phenomena, clearly favors the third-person perspective for its investigation.Thereisnothinganotherpersoncanlookatandjudgeasvalid;theobserverscanonlyrelyontheverbaltestimonyofsubjectivestates.Youfirstshouldrelyonthecredibletestimonyofanumberofscientists,butlateryoucantraininthesubjectandverifythefindingsfirsthand.Thisisquitelikecontemplativescience.Youfirstneedtorefinethetelescope of your mind and the methods of investigations for years to find out foryourselfwhatothercontemplativeshave foundandallagreedon.Thestateofpureconsciousnesswithoutcontent,whichmightseempuzzlingatfirstsight,issomethingthat all contemplatives have experienced. So, it is not just some sort of Buddhistdogmatictheory.Anyonewhotakesthetroubletostabilizeandclarifyhisorhermindwillbeabletoexperienceit.

Regardingcross-checkinginterpersonalexperience,bothcontemplativesandthetextsdealingwiththevariousexperiencesameditatormightencounterarequitepreciseintheirdescriptions.Whenastudentreportsonhisinnerstatesofmindtoanexperiencedmeditationmaster,thedescriptionsarenotjustvagueandpoetic.Themasterwillaskprecisequestionsandthestudentreplies,anditisquiteclearthattheyarespeakingaboutsomethingthat iswelldefinedandmutuallyunderstood.However, intheend,what matters is the way the person gradually changes. If, over months and years,someonebecomeslessimpatient,lesspronetoanger,andlesstornapartbyhopesandfears,thenthemethodheorshehasbeenusingisavalidone.

An ongoing study seems to indicate that while they are engaged in meditation,practitioners can clearly distinguish, like everyone who is not distracted, betweenpleasant and aversive stimuli, but they react much less emotionally than controlsubjects.Whileretainingthecapacityofbeingfullyawareofsomething,theysucceedinnotbeingcarriedawaybytheiremotionalresponses.


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Thisprocessrequiresperseverance.Youneedtotrainagainandagain.Youcan’tlearntoplaytennisbyholdingaracketforafewminuteseveryfewmonths.Withmeditation,theeffortisaimedatdevelopingnotaphysicalskillbutaninnerenrichment.Inextremecases,youcouldbe inasimplehermitage inwhichnothingchangesorsittingalonealwaysfacingthesamescenedayafterday;theouterenrichmentisalmostnil,buttheinnerenrichmentismaximal.Youaretrainingyourmindalldaylongwithlittleouterstimulation. Furthermore, such enrichment is not passive, but voluntary, andmethodicallydirected.Whenyouengageforeightormorehoursadayincultivatingcertainmentalstatesthatyouhavedecidedtocultivateandthatyouhavelearnedtocultivate, you reprogram thebrain. Ina sense, youmakeyourbrain theobjectofasophisticatedcognitiveprocessthatisturnedinwardratherthanoutwardtowardtheworldaroundyou.Youapply thecognitiveabilitiesof thebrain to studying itsownorganizationand functioning,andyoudoso inan intentionaland focusedway, likewhenyouattendtoeventsintheouterworldandwhenyouorganizesensorysignalsintocoherentpercepts.Youassignvaluetocertainstatesandyoutrytoincreasetheirprevalence,whichprobablygoesalongwithachangeinsynapticconnectivityinmuchthesamewayasitoccurswithlearningprocessesresultingfrominteractionswiththeouterworld.

Braindevelopment ischaracterizedbyamassiveproliferationofconnectionsand isparalleledbyashapingprocessthroughwhichtheconnectionsbeingformedareeitherstabilizedordeletedaccordingtofunctionalcriteria,usingexperienceandinteractionwiththeenvironmentasthevalidationcriterion.Thisdevelopmentalreorganizationcontinuesuntiltheageofabout20.Theearlystagesservetheadjustmentofsensoryandmotorfunctions,andthelaterphasesprimarilyinvolvebrainsystemsresponsibleforsocialabilities.Oncethesedevelopmentalprocessescometoanend,theconnectivityofthebrainbecomesfixed,andlarge-scalemodificationsarenolongerpossible.Theexistingsynapticconnectionsremainmodifiable,butyoucan’tgrownewlong-rangeconnections. In a few distinct regions of the brain, such as the hippocampus andolfactory bulb, new neurons are generated throughout life and inserted into theexistingcircuits,butthisprocessisnotlargescale,atleastnotintheneocortex,wherehighercognitivefunctionsaresupposedtoberealized.

A studyofpeoplewhohavepracticedmeditation fora long timedemonstrates thatstructuralconnectivityamongthedifferentareasofthebrainishigherinmeditators


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thaninacontrolgroup.Hence,theremustbeanotherkindofchangeallowedbythebrain.Thereisampleevidenceofthisfromreeducationprograms,wherepracticeleadsto small but incremental behavior modifications. There is also evidence for quitedramaticandsuddenchangesincognition,emotionalstates,andcopingstrategies.Inthis case, the same mechanisms that support learning—distributed changes in theefficiencyof synapticconnections—leadtodrasticalterationsofglobalbrainstates.You could also change the flow of neuron activity, as when the traffic on a roadincreasessignificantly.

Whatchangeswithlearningandtrainingintheadultistheflowofactivity.Thefixedhardwareofanatomicalconnectionsisratherstableafterage20,butitisstillpossibletorouteactivityflexiblyfromAtoBorfromAtoCbyaddingcertainsignaturestotheactivitythatensurethatagivenactivationpatternisnotbroadcastinadiffusewaytoallconnectedbrainregionsbutsentonlytoselectedtargetareas.Theresultsof thestudies conducted with trained meditators indicate that they have the faculty togenerateclean,powerful,well-definedstatesofmind,andthisfacultyisassociatedwithsomespecificbrainpatterns.Mentaltrainingenablesonetogeneratethosestatesatwill and to modulate their intensity, even when confronted with disturbingcircumstances,suchasstrongpositiveornegativeemotionalstimuli.Thus,oneacquiresthe facultytomaintainanoverallemotionalbalancethat favors innerstrengthandpeace.

You must use your cognitive abilities to identify more clearly and delineate moresharply the various emotional states, and to train your control systems, probablylocatedinthefrontallobe,toincreaseordecreaseselectivelytheactivityofsubsystemsresponsibleforthegenerationofthevariousemotions.

An analogy for this process of refinement could be the improved differentiation ofobjects of perception, which is known to depend on learning. With just a littleexperience, you can recognize an animal as a dog.Withmore experience, you cansharpenyoureyeandbecomeabletodistinguishwithgreaterandgreaterprecisiondogsthatlooksimilar.Likewise,mentaltrainingmightallowyoutosharpenyourinnereyeforthedistinctionofemotionalstates.Inthenaïvestate,youcandistinguishgoodandbadfeelingsonlyinaglobalway.Withpractice,thesedistinctionswouldbecomeincreasinglyrefineduntilyoucoulddistinguishmoreandmorenuances.Thetaxonomyofmentalstatesshouldthusbecomemoredifferentiated.Ifthisisthecase,thencultures


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exploitingmentaltrainingasasourceofknowledgeshouldhavearichervocabularyformentalstatesthanculturesthataremoreinterestedininvestigatingphenomenaoftheouterworld.

Buddhisttaxonomydescribes58mainmentaleventsandvarioussubdivisionsthereof.It is quite true that by conducting an in-depth investigation of mental events, onebecomesabletodistinguishincreasinglymoresubtlenuances.Takeanger,forinstance.Oftenangercanhaveamalevolentcomponent,butitcanalsoberightfulindignationinthefaceofinjustice.Angercanbeareactionthatallowsustorapidlyovercomeanobstaclepreventingus fromachievingsomethingworthwhileorremoveanobstaclethreateningus.However,itcouldalsoreflectatendencytobeshort-tempered.Ifyoulook carefully at anger, you will see that it contains aspects of clarity, focus, andeffectiveness thatarenotharmful inandof themselves. Ifyouareable torecognizethose aspects that are not yet negative and let yourmind remain in them,withoutdriftingintothedestructiveaspects,thenyouwillnotbetroubledandconfusedbytheseemotions.

Anotherresultofcultivatingmentalskillsisthat,afterawhile,youwillnolongerneedtoapplycontrivedefforts.YoucandealwiththearisingofmentalperturbationsliketheeaglesIseefromthewindowofmyhermitageintheHimalayas.Thecrowsoftenattackthem,eventhoughtheyaremuchsmaller.Theydiveattheeaglesfromabovetryingtohitthemwiththeirbeaks.However,insteadofgettingalarmedandmovingaroundtoavoidthecrow,theeaglesimplyretractsonewingatthelastmoment,lettingthe diving crow pass by, and extends its wing back out. The whole thing requiresminimaleffortandisperfectlyefficient.Beingexperiencedindealingwiththesuddenarisingofemotionsinthemindworksinasimilarway.Whenyoucanpreserveaclearstate of awareness, you see thoughts arise; you let them pass through your mind,without trying toblockorencourage them;and theyvanishwithoutcreatingmanywaves.whatwedowhenweencounterseveredifficultiesthatrequirefastsolutions,suchasacomplicatedtrafficsituation.Weimmediatelycallonalargerepertoireofescapestrategiesthatwehavelearnedandpracticed,andthenwechooseamongthemwithoutmuchreasoning,relyingmainlyonsubconsciousheuristics.Apparently,ifwearenotexperiencedwithcontemplativepractice,wehaven’tgonethroughthedrivingschoolforthemanagementofemotionalconflicts.

Complexsituationsbecomegreatlysimplifiedthroughtrainingandthecultivationof


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effortlessawareness.Whenyoulearntorideahorse,asabeginneryouareconstantlypreoccupied,tryingnottofallateverymovementthehorsemakes.Especiallywhenthehorsestartsgalloping,itputsyouonhighalert.Butwhenyoubecomeanexpertrider,everything becomes easier. Riders in easternTibet, for instance, can do all kinds ofacrobatics,suchasshootingarrowsatatargetorcatchingsomethingonthegroundwhilegallopingatfullspeed,andtheydoallthatwitheaseandabigsmileontheirface.

Onestudywithmeditatorsshowedthattheycanmaintaintheirattentionatanoptimallevel for extended periods of time. When performing what is called a continuousperformance task, even after 45minutes, they did not become tense and were notdistractedevenforamoment.WhenIdidthistaskmyself,Inoticedthatthefirstfewminutes were challenging and required some effort, but once I entered a state of“attentionalflow,”itbecameeasier.

Thisresemblesageneralstrategythatthebrainapplieswhenacquiringnewskills.Inthenaïvestate,oneusesconsciouscontroltoperformatask.Thetaskisbrokendownintoaseriesofsubtasksthataresequentiallyexecuted.Thisrequiresattention,takestime, and is effortful. Later, after practice, the performance becomes automatized.Usually,theexecutionoftheskilledbehavioristhenaccomplishedbydifferentbrainstructuresthanthoseinvolvedintheinitial learningandexecutionofthetask.Oncethis shift has occurred, performance becomes automatic, fast, and effortless andnolongerrequirescognitivecontrol.

This type of learning is called procedural learning and requires practice. Suchautomatizedskillsoftensaveyouindifficultsituationsbecauseyoucanaccessthemquickly.Theycanalsooftencopewithmorevariablessimultaneouslyduetoparallelprocessing.Consciousprocessingismoreserializedandthereforetakesmoretime.Intheteachingsofthemeditatingprocess,itsaysthatwhenonebeginstomeditate,oncompassion, for instance,oneexperiencesacontrived,artificial formofcompassion.However, by generating compassion repeatedly, it becomes second nature andspontaneouslyarises,evenduringacomplexandchallengingsituation.

Julie Brefczynski and Antoine Lutz studied the brain activity of novice, relativelyexperienced,andveryexperiencedmeditatorswhentheyengageinfocusedattention.Differentpatternsofactivitywereobserveddependingon thepractitioners’ level ofexperience. Relatively experienced meditators (with an average of 19,000 hours ofpractice) showed more activity in attention-related brain regions compared with


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novices.Paradoxically, themostexperiencedmeditators (withanaverageof44,000hours of practice) demonstrated less activation than the ones without as muchexperience.Thesehighlyadvancedmeditatorsappear toacquirea levelof skill thatenablesthemtoachieveafocusedstateofmindwithlesseffort.Theseeffectsresembletheskillofexpertmusiciansandathletescapableofimmersingthemselvesinthe“flow”of their performances with a minimal sense of effortful control. This observationaccordswithotherstudiesdemonstratingthatwhensomeonehasmasteredatask,thecerebralstructures,putintoplayduringtheexecutionofthistask,aregenerallylessactivethantheywerewhenthebrainwasstillinthelearningphase.Thissuggeststhatthe neuronal codes become sparser, perhaps involving fewer but more specializedneurons,onceskillsbecomehighlyfamiliarandareexecutedwithgreatexpertise.Tobecomearealexpertseemstorequirethenatleastasmuchtrainingasisrequiredtobecomeaworld-classviolinorpianoplayer.Withfourhoursofpracticeaday,itwouldtakeyou30yearsofdailymeditationtoattain44,000hours.”

TheMonkandtheScientistbothagreedonmuch,morethantheydivergedupon.But,MatthieuRicardisnotonlyabasicTibetanBuddhistmonk,andWolfSingerisnotonly a famous and respected neuroscientist; both are open-minded, teaching-oriented,alwaysexploring,learningandquestioning.Asitshouldbe.


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The Bible Read Through Neuroscience

TheAbrahamicreligionshaveshaped,sculptedandmoldedtheWesternworld,andcolonized its Empires – never for the better, nor the future of the indigenouspopulations. Theremust have been a charm, a spell, an irresistible fascination toembark an initial handful of rapacious andhatednomad shepherds in very riskyexpedition,withoutever(orseldom)doubtorhumility.Itsucceeded,expandedandultimatelybecameTHEreference,THEtruth,THEonlyacceptedfaith.ItremainsdefactotheuniqueanduniversalEcclesia,andthemillennialHebrewshaveamplifiedand magnified the conquering, contemptuous, scornful messages of the TorahagainstalltheNokri( רְָכנ ).

JamesKugelhasspenthisentirescholarlycareerstudyingtheBible,butsomeverybasic questions about it still obsesshim.Whatwas it about themindsof ancientIsraelitesthatallowedthemtohearandseeGoddirectly—oratleast,tobelievethatthey did? Were the biblical prophets literally hearing voices and seeing visions,understandingthemselvestobetransmittingGod’sownexactwords?Ifso,whydidsuchdirectencounterswithGodbecomerarerovertime?


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Inhisnewbook,TheGreatShift,Kugelinvestigatesthesequestionsthroughthelensofneuroscientific findings.First,Kugelusesbiblicalresearchtoshowthatancientpeoplehada“senseofself”thatwasfundamentallydifferentfromtheonemodernWesterners have—and this enabled them to experience and interpret prophecydifferentlythanwedo.Thenheusesscientificresearchtoshowthatweshouldn’tassume their view was wrong. If anything, our modern Western notion of thebounded, individual self is the anomaly; most human beings throughout historyconceivedoftheselfasaporousentityopentointrusions.Infact,muchoftherestoftheworldtodaystilldoes.

Kugelcitesseveralstudiesshowingthatevennow,manyhealthypeoplehearvoices—asmuch as 15 percent of the general population. He also cites a recent cross-culturalstudyinwhichresearchersinterviewedvoicehearersintheUnitedStates,Ghana,andIndia.Theresearchersrecorded“strikingdifferences”inhowthedifferentgroups of people felt about the voices they hear: in Ghana and India, manyparticipants“insistedthattheirpredominantorevenonlyexperienceofthevoicewaspositive.…NotoneAmericandidso.”“Theseresults,”Kugelconcludes,“wouldsuggestthat a society’s ‘givens’ have a lot to do with how voice hearing is interpreted”—cultural conditioning impacts whether a phenomenon like prophecy will becelebratedorpathologized.

Anthropologistswho have studied cultures that are very different from ours—insub-SaharanAfrica,SouthAmerica,andelsewhere—havecometofocusincreasinglyonthiselusiveitem.Apeople’s“senseofself”istheideathattheycarryaroundintheir heads aboutwho “Imyself” am and how I fit into the largerworld.What itconsistsofturnsouttovarygreatlyfromonesocietytoanotherandfromperiodtoperiod.

Forthemostpart,wetendtoassumethatbiblicalfigureshavethesamesenseofselfaswedo;when theBible says thatGodappeared toAbrahamoutsidehis tentorcalledtoMosesoutofaburningbush,wehavetodismisssuchthingsassomesortoffigurativelanguage,orelsewejustshrugthemoff:suchthingshappened“backthen”buttheydon’tanymore.

But if we go back far enough in biblical history, ancient Israelites seem to haveconceivedofthemselvesintermsverydifferentfromourown.Gettinginsidetheirminds,seeingthingsthewaytheysawthem,isthekeytounderstandingwhatthe


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Bibleistryingtogetacross.

Thehumanmindcouldbepenetratedbyoutsideforces.NotonlybyGod—whoissometimesdepictedasgoinginsidepeople,“probingtheirkidneysandheart”tofindoutwhatthey’retrulythinking—butbyvarioussortsof“spirits.”Someofthemwerebenign,butotherswerewickedspiritsdispatchedbySatantotakeover.Theywerelikebacteria;youcouldn’tseethem,butoncetheygotinsideofyoutheywouldtakecharge,makingyou thinkanddo thingsagainstyourwill. So, theBibleandothertexts,fromthesameperiod,containprayersspecificallydesignedtowardofftheseevil spirits. That’s part ofwhat James Kugelmeans by being semipermeable. Youcouldn’t stop God from entering yourmind, but sometimes you could head off awickedangel.

We tend to think that there is some central part of our brains that acts as aclearinghouse,processingalltheoutsidesensorydatathatcomeintoourheadsviaoureyesandearsandsoforthandthendecidingwhattothinkandhowtorespond.Theproblemwiththispictureisthatscientistscannotfindanythingphysicalinthebrainthatseemstoactastheclearinghouse. Inphysiological terms, there isno“Imyself”; such an entity seems to be amental construct, something human beingsevolvedovermillionsofyearsbutwhichhasnoindependent,physicalreality.This“Imyself”isnot,webelieve,identicaltoourbodiesorourbrains—wehaveabodyandabrain,butthepossessorofthesethingsissomehowconceivedtobeseparatefrom them, some fictional owner, me. This, as far as most neuroscientists areconcerned,issimplyamentalconstruct.Sciencedoesn’tneedan“Imyself”toexplainwhatgoesoninourbrains,butapparently,wedo.

Kugel was particularly affected by one anthropologist’s description of the DinkapeopleofsoutheasternSudan.Theyhave,hewrote,nothingthatcorrespondstoourideaofthemindasmediatingorrememberingourexperiences.Inotherwords,thereisnothing“inhere”thatstandsbetweenwhateverhappenedoutthereandwhoIamrightnow.Thatoutsidethingjustkeepsonbeingthere,andthereisno“Imyself”toputitintoperspectiveormoveitintothecategoryofmemory.OneoftheDinkahestudiedreportedthat,afterhavingbeenimprisonedinKhartoum,namedoneofhischildrenKhartoum,inparttoprotecthimselffromanyfuturemisfortunethatmightcomefromthatplace.Khartoumwasthestill-activeactor,andthemanwasmerelyanobjectthatpotentiallymightbeacteduponagain.


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Eventoday,peoplehearvoices(thereisanexcellentradioshowonNPR).Someofthemarehomicidalmaniacs,butothersleadperfectlynormallives,theyjusthearpeople who aren’t there. They even have an organization, the Hearing VoicesMovement (with a Network), with an annual convention of hundreds of voicehearers.

Thebiblicalprophetssaywhattheyalwayssay—“Godtoldmetotellyouthis.”It’shardtoknow,butitseemspossiblethatatleastsomeofthemmeantpreciselythat.Ofcourse,asotherscholarshaveargued,thewholephenomenonofbiblicalprophecyalsohadalottodowiththesurroundingsocietyanditsopennesstohavingaprophetinitsmidst.

Kugellikesthedefinitionofhallucinationrecentlyproposedbyaneuropsychiatristwhowrotethatit’snotsomethingfalse,buta“sensoryexperiencewhichoccursintheabsenceofcorrespondingexternalstimulationoftherelevantsensoryorgan.”Thisiswhatsomebiblicaltextsaretalkingabout.Thepersonthinkshe’sseeingorhearingsomething, but it seems to work a little like a dream. In a dream, the dreamerprocesseswhateverhe’sdreamingasifit’scomingfromtheoutside,withhiseyesdartingaroundbehindhiseyelids.Whenthedreamerwakesup,he’llsay,“Isawawomanwearingareddress,itlookedasifshewascomingfromsomeparty,andthenIheardascream”—butofcourse,hiseyeswereclosedandhisearsheardnothing.Thismaybeawayofunderstandingbiblicalhallucinations—thoughitdoesn’tsaywhypeoplehadthem,orwhytheystoppedinlaterbiblicaltimes.

Somuchof theworldhas changed; in fact, it hadbegun to change radically evenwithin thebiblicalperiod.Ancient Israelitesweren’t scientists,but theygraduallydevelopedasensethattherearerulesthatgovernwhathappensintheworld,andviolationsof thoserules,miracles,becamemoreandmore infrequent.PeoplestillencounteredGod,buttherewasadefinitemovementfromoutsidetoinside;thesoulgraduallybecamewhat ithadneverbeenbefore,akindofdivine islandamidthehumanbody.Mostofall,people’ssenseofselfevolved;thedivinenolongerbeganwhereaperson’sfingertipsended,andpeoplewerenolongerasopentoanuncannysurprisejustaroundthecorner.

WearenotsurewhataMartian’sviewofoursenseofselfwouldbe,butmanythinkthatJamesKugelhasanideaofwhatancientIsraelitesmightsayaboutus,oncetheshockworeoff.QuiteapartfromourlivinginaworldinwhichGodplaysnoobvious


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part, they would be astounded at encountering a sense of self that is just huge,virtuallyfillingtheheavens.

Eachofuswouldseemtothemsoimportant,sobig!Theirsenseofselfwasfarmorecollectivethanours;theirownexistencewastightlyconnectedtothatofsiblingsandcousins and clan-mates far andwide, andwho theywere (then)was verymuchdefinedbywhotheycamefromaswellasbytheirinheritedsocialroles.Allthis,quiteapartfromsemi-permeability,simplymadethemmuchsmallerthanwearetoday.In fact, fromthisperspective thesemipermeablemindwas justanotheraspectofhumansmallness.IthinkthechallengefacingreligionsintheWestnowadaysistotrytohelppeopleshrinkdowntoamorerealisticsize,andthentoletthedivinetakeoverwherethehumanleavesoff.

But“Therearegroundsforcautiousoptimismthatwemaynowbeneartheendofthesearchfortheultimatelawsofnature.”

“Wearebathinginmysteryandconfusiononmanysubjects,”CarlSaganreflectedinan interview in August of 1980, “and I think that will always be our destiny. Theuniversewillalwaysbemuchricherthanourabilitytounderstandit.”


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Exactlyeightyearslater,amindfarmorescientificallyformidable,ifnotaspoetic,ignitedinthepopularimaginationtheideathatSagan’sworldviewmightbewrong-thattheuniversemight,afterall,befullyknowableandfullydescribableinasingleeleganttheory.

WhenStephenHawking(January8,1942–March14,2018)senthisbookproposalforwhatwouldbecome‘ABriefHistoryofTime:FromtheBigBangtoBlackHoles’)toCambridgeUniversityPress-hisfirstbookofpopularscience-hiseditorscautionedhim that it contained too much science to be sellable. Every equation, theyadmonished,wouldcutbooksalesinhalf.Hawkingrevisedthemanuscriptuntilitcontainedasingleequation -Einstein’sE=mc2.He transmutedall theremainingequationsintoascintillatingscientificnarrativeandcompletedthebookjustbeforehe rallied Cambridge into a celebration of the 300th anniversary of Newton’sPrincipia -perhaps the most paradigm-shifting book in the history of science,introducingthetheoryofgravitationtotheworld.

Stephen Hawking (Photograph: Gemma Levine)

ABriefHistoryofTimewaspublishedonAprilFool’sDay1988.Intheintroduction,


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CarlSaganextolledHawkingasa“worthysuccessor”toNewtonandlaudedthebookasrepletewith“lucidrevelationsonthefrontiersofphysics,astronomy,cosmologyandcourage.”ItsacceleratedascentupthebestsellerliststunnedevenHawkinghimself.Withinmonths,millionsofcopieshadsoldandthebookwasbeingtranslatedintomultiple languages- success so rapid that it entered the Guinness Book of WorldRecords. (Hawking was amused that his American-made speech synthesizerstruggled with the word, pronouncing it Guy-ness.) A “phenomenal internationalbestseller” for decades to come, in thewords inscribed on the cover of themostcurrenteditionat thetimeofHawking’sdeath,ABriefHistoryofTimewentontoshape the way generations comprehend the universe. One of the most abidingaspectsofthebookisHawking’ssuccinctdescriptionofwhatmakesagoodtheory.Inasense,itparallelspioneeringpsychologistJeromeBruner’sframeworkofwhatmakesagoodstory.WithaneyetoKarlPopper’sfamousassertionthat“knowledgeconsistsinthesearchfortruth…notthesearchforcertainty”,Hawkingwrites:

Anyphysicaltheoryisalwaysprovisional,inthesensethatitisonlyahypothesis:youcanneverproveit.Nomatterhowmanytimestheresultsofexperimentsagreewithsometheory,youcanneverbesurethatthenexttimetheresultwillnotcontradictthetheory. On the other hand, you can disprove a theory by finding even a singleobservationthatdisagreeswiththepredictionsofthetheory.AsphilosopherofscienceKarlPopperhasemphasized,agoodtheoryischaracterizedbythefactthatitmakesanumberofpredictionsthatcouldinprinciplebedisprovedorfalsifiedbyobservation.Each time new experiments are observed to agree with the predictions the theorysurvives,andourconfidenceinitisincreased;butifeveranewobservationisfoundtodisagree,wehavetoabandonormodifythetheory.


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A 1568 illuminated illustration of the Ptolemaic geocentric system -

100 Diagrams that Changed the World

Inherexcellentbiography, ‘StephenHawking:AnUnfetteredmind’,KittyFergusonbuilds upon Hawking’s formulation of a good theory and offers her own, moreexpansiveandpoeticdefinition:

AtheoryisnotTruthwithacapitalT,notarule,notfact,notthefinalword.Youmightthinkofatheoryasatoyboat.Tofindoutwhetheritfloats,yousetitonthewater.Youtestit.Whenitflounders,youpullitoutofthewaterandmakesomechanges,oryoustartagainandbuildadifferentboat,benefitingfromwhatyou’velearnedfromthefailure.

Sometheoriesaregoodboats.Theyfloatalongtime.Wemayknowthereareafewleaks,butforallpracticalpurposestheyserveuswell.Someserveussowell,andaresosolidlysupportedbyexperimentandtesting, thatwebegintoregardthemas truth.


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Scientists,keepinginmindhowcomplexandsurprisingouruniverseis,areextremelywaryaboutcallingthemthat.Althoughsometheoriesdohavealotofexperimentalsuccesstobackthemupandothersarehardlymorethanaglimmerinatheorist’seyes—brilliantlydesignedboatsthathaveneverbeentriedonthewater—itisriskytoassumethatanyofthemisanabsolute,fundamentalscientific“truth.”

It is important, however, not to dither around forever, continuing to call intoquestionwell-establishedtheorieswithouthavingagoodreasonfordoingso.Forscience to move ahead, it is necessary to decide whether some theories aredependableenough,andmatchobservationsufficientlywell,toallowustousethemasbuildingblocksandproceedfromthere.Ofcourse,somenewthoughtordiscoverymightcomealongandthreatentosinktheboat.

Simulation of two black holes colliding to produce a gravitational wave — the landmark event

detected by LIGO in 2016, arguably the most significant astrophysical discovery since Galileo’s day, building heavily on Hawking’s work.


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Hawking’sownlifewasanimatedbyoneparticulartheoreticalpursuit-thesearchforatheory,colloquiallyknownasa“atheoryofeverything”,thatunifiesEinstein’sgeneral relativity, the gravity-based science of the very large, and quantummechanics,thescienceoftheverysmall,basedonthreenon-gravitationalforces:theweak, strong, and electromagnetic forces. In the penultimate chapter of A BriefHistoryofTime,Hawkingconsidersthisunholygrailofphysicsagainstthebackdropofthehistoryofscience:

Theprospectsforfindingsuchatheoryseemtobemuchbetternowbecauseweknowsomuchmoreabouttheuniverse.Butwemustbewareofoverconfidence—wehavehadfalsedawnsbefore!Atthebeginningofthiscentury,forexample,itwasthoughtthateverythingcouldbeexplainedintermsofthepropertiesofcontinuousmatter,suchaselasticityandheatconduction.Thediscoveryofatomicstructureandtheuncertaintyprincipleputanemphaticendtothat.Thenagain,in1928,physicistandNobelPrizewinnerMaxBorntoldagroupofvisitorstoGöttingenUniversity,“Physics,asweknowit,willbeoverinsixmonths.”HisconfidencewasbasedontherecentdiscoverybyDiracof the equation that governed the electron. It was thought that a similar equationwouldgoverntheproton,whichwastheonlyotherparticleknownatthetime,andthatwouldbetheendoftheoreticalphysics.However,thediscoveryoftheneutronandofnuclearforcesknockedthatoneontheheadtoo.Havingsaidthis,Istillbelievetherearegroundsforcautiousoptimismthatwemaynowbeneartheendofthesearchfortheultimatelawsofnature.

Complementthiswiththis150secondsanimatedcartoon:https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=29&v=D6lFGJdwRyo


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Self-Reflected Currently, and until spring 2018, the Franklin Institute with the University ofPennsylvania and the National Science foundation present a mesmerizing,breathtaking,uniqueexhibitionSelf-Reflected.

“Followthelightasitmovesacrossthegoldensurface.Whatyouseeisaportraitofyourbrain—thecommunicationhappeninginyourownheadatthisveryinstant.Self-Reflectedisyourbrainperceivingitself.”

Dr.GregDunn(artistandneuroscientist)andDr.BrianEdwards(artistandappliedphysicist)createdSelfReflectedtobridgetheconnectionbetweenthemacroscopicperception of the brain as a wrinkled, mysterious, three-pound organ and themicroscopicbehaviorofbraincells,orneurons.Together,thefunctionsofthebrainatboth levelsunderlie theveryessenceofourconsciousness.DunnandEdwardswanted to capture the brain as realistically as possible. The result—anunprecedentedinsightofthebrainintoitself—showsthemovementanddynamiccommunicationofinformationasthebrainisvisuallystimulatedbyaworkofart.

Self-Reflectedwascreatedtoremindusofourcommonhumanitythatstemsfromtheinnerworkingsofourminds.


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Thisimageintheartworkrepresentsoneverythinsliceofahumanbrain,22timeslarger than life. Encompassing over 500,000 neurons, the image is based on anobliquesagittalslice(angledfromrighttoleft)throughthebrain.Asthelightmovesfromlefttoright,weseemotionthroughfunctionalregionsofthebrainincludingthecerebellum(motorcontrol),thalamus(sensoryprocessingandinformationsorting),olfactory system (sense of smell), basal ganglia (initiation of movement), pons(motorprocessing),andmanyregionsofthemultifunctionalcerebralcortex:frontal,motor,sensory,andvisual.Themovementoflightilluminatesthepatternscreatedby the firing of electrical signals, or action potentials, in the brain over 500microsecondsoftime.

SelfReflectedisareflectivemicroetching,atechniqueinventedbyDunnandEdwardsto microscopically manipulate the reflectivity of a surface. This creates a thirddimensionofinformationthatcanbeusedtocreateanimationsinaseeminglytwo-dimensional surface. The technique combines a complex array of hand drawing,scientificdata,computersimulation,photolithography,gilding,andstrategiclightingdesign.

To make the piece, different types of neurons in each region of brain werecharacterizedandpaintedbyhand.Theywere thendigitizedandassembled intoanatomically correct regions by painting large swaths of them at a time. Theseneurons were then connected together using Edwards’ specialized computeralgorithmthatcansimulatethechaosandorderofhowthebrainactuallywiresitselfduringdevelopmenttoprograminthe“choreography”ofneuralactivity.Theresult:networksofneuronsthatfireinsequencetoillustratetheflowofinformationinourbrains.

Thecreationofamicroetchingisliketheprocessofprintingcomputerchips,wherelight is used to carve very complex designs into photoresist (a material that issensitivetoultravioletlight).Ahatchingpatternwassuperimposedontheartwork,definingtheshapeofeachneuronoraxonbyaseriesofblackandwhitelineswhoseanglesencodethepositionfromwhichtheviewerwillseethatpartoftheimage.Thisdesignwasthenprintedatultra-highresolutionontotransparencies.Thefinalstepinvolvedcoatingthesurfacewithgoldleaftoincreaseitsreflectivityandbeautifyitssurface.


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To get a seamlessmicroetching at 8’ X 12’, the artists had toworkwith extremeprecision in controlling the lithography and gilding conditions. Fabricationof themicroetching plates had little room for error, involving tolerances of just a fewmicrons—smallfractionsofthewidthofahumanhair.Inaddition,Self-Reflectedismadeupof25individuallycreatedmicroetchedplates,whichhadtoalignperfectlytoreducetheseamsbetweenplatesasmuchaspossible.

Theartworktooktwoyearstocreatefromconceptiontocompletion.Itcontains32gigabytesofbinarydataintheartworkusedtoprinttheetchings(atwo-hourfilminhighdefinitionisaround20gigabytes).Itrequiredtwoweeksofdedicatedrenderingtimeonahigh-poweredcomputertosolvethecomplexmaththatwentintocreatingthenetworkchoreographiesandhatchingpatterns.Finally,theartistshandapplied1,750leavesofgoldontothemicroetching.

Self-Reflectedisthemostcomplexpieceofartonthebrainintheworld,yetitpalesincomparisontothetruecomplexityofthebrain.Hardworkingandeverchanging,thebraincreateseverythingwesee,hear,feel,andthink.Self-Reflectedaimstoshowusamirrorimageofwhoweare.

Here’s the link to a short (3’17”) video that will tell you much more:https://vimeo.com/216052850.Watchitfullscreen.


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Is There a Compass?

PossiblysincehomininsmigratedoutofAfricamillenniaago,huntingandgatheringscarceresourcesanddangerousanimals,theyfoundthatlifewasataletoldbyanidiot,fullofsoundandfury,signifyingnothing”(Macbeth);theyweresurroundedbylava belching volcanoes, unpredictable tsunamis, frequent horrible earthquakes,alternatingdelugesanddesertifyingdrought,aniceageand–soon-internecinelethalfights.Mostpregnanciesresultedinmiscarriagesandfewchildrenreachedtheearlyageoffive;thenallkindsandsortsofbacterial,parasitic,fungalorviralplagueskeptthedogmaofthesurvivalofthefittest(ortheluckiest!)abasictruth.

Nowonderthenthattheysearchedforameaning,comfortandsolace,intercessionanddialoguewith all these forcesof themosthostilenatural environment.Theirskills were embryonic; their tools inexistent –for centuries; their panic blinding.


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WHO to turn to?Since languagewasbarelyaboveprimate level, thoughwas stillmost crude. Their only solacewas to turn inwards first during the nights full ofinvisible –but very loud- dangers. Hence these not -yet- Sapiens questionedthemselves–butgotfewanswers.

It took several thousands of years to sedentarize large, organized populations inspecificpartsoftheworld;someofthesecountriesestablishedaclassofpriestsorwisermen(andwomen)whokeptwisdom,knowledge,spiritualpowerunderstrictcontrol: only the selected, then initiated had access to thesemysteries. All this“power”residedinthemind;theinitiatedkeptthekeys,thesigns,thesymbols,thecodescarefully.Thosewhobetrayedwerekilled–ordiedof“consumption”,shameandostracism.

Itstartedaround3000BCEandreacheditsgoldenageinEgyptc.1500BCEwithitspriests,thesourceofallmysticalwisdomfortheGreeks.ThencametheEleusinianMysteriesofDemeterandKore(c.600BCE)nearAthens,andthecounterbalancingrise of philosophywith Socrates (c. 400BCE) andLaozi (c. 500BCE), actors andwitnessesoftheglobalspreadofintrospection,criticalthinking,withlaterareturnto the capture of the mind by the Abrahamic established religions – with manyunderground exceptions e.g. Sanātana Dharma, the Kabballah, the AntiocheneFathers,Sufism,andmorerecently the Illuminatior–asmentioned theTantrism-derivedVajrayanaTibetanBuddhism;andthesedaystheEsalenInstitute…

Thislong,immenselylongquestisnowinourgenes(butwhere?)andunderliesourculturesfromtheArcticFirstNationstothePapuaNewGuineaisolatedvalleytribes.Theseparationoflife(understandable)anddeath(unapproachable)isalwaysinourmindsandnagsus.Thetransitionstatesare(generally)one-way.Aprimalfearthatoverwhelmsduringthenights.

TheProgressinNeurosciencesisamazinglyrecentandstunninglyrapid;butwearefar from possessing and mastering the tools, instruments, methods, algorithms,properinterpretationsthatwillcreatethenextstep,thenewerawhenhumansthatdonotdieearlyanymore,controlmoremaladiesandscourgeseveryday,controlourenvironmenttoallow(soon)9billionfellow-beingtoprosperonourblueplanet.Theeraofdemiurgesmaybearoundthecorner.


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Acknowledgements Despite the repudiationof ruminationbyMatthieuRicard (andWolf Singer), anddespite the fact that I am no cattle, dusk and night rumination is my frequentcompanion.JustasmostSapienshumans.ThisessayisanattempttofreemyselffromthisTunicofNessus-atleastafirstattempt.

Mysources–asusual-arelisted;Icopiedmanyverbatim.YvesP.Huinmanagedtosqueezetimetoedit,correctandformatittofinditsrestingplaceonthewebsite.

References

• https://aeon.co/essays/think-you-can-tell-what-others-are-thinking-think-again?utm_source=Aeon+Newsletter&utm_campaign=112587920c-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_07_25_04_26&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_411a82e59d-112587920c-70468141

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychokinesis

• https://aeon.co/essays/aztec-moral-philosophy-didnt-expect-anyone-to-be-a-saint?utm_source=Aeon+Newsletter&utm_campaign=922e4340d0-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_07_04_11_46&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_411a82e59d-


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922e4340d0-70468141

• https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=3mA9NPAgWR0C&hl=en

• https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2017/12/buddhism-and-neuroscience/548120/

• https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2017/09/reading-the-bible-through-neuroscience/539871/

• https://www.brainpickings.org/2018/08/20/stephen-hawking-a-brief-history-of-time-theory/byMariaPopova21-08-2018

• https://www.fi.edu/selfreflected

Illustration Credits • https://www.livescience.com/28119-telekinesis.html

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqPWachXRcw

• https://twitter.com/matthieu_ricard

• http://who-is-hu.de/node/332

• https://www.amazon.com/Great-Shift-Encountering-Biblical-Times/dp/0544520556

• https://www.fi.edu/selfreflected

• https://8tracks.com/simplistics/exploring-the-mind

• https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Giambologna_herculesenesso.jpg

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