A thread through the archive
Essays tagged “neuroscience”. Follow an idea across the archive.
Scott explores how acetylcholine-related cognitive enhancers might work by increasing sensory precision and learning rate, while speculating on potential tradeoffs and acknowledging the highly speculative nature of these ideas.
Scott Alexander uses the Jewish legend of the Chamber of Guf as a metaphor for subconscious thoughts, exploring its implications for behavior, OCD, and self-defeating thoughts.
The post examines the theory of treating schizophrenia's prodrome stage, exploring how early intervention might prevent full-blown schizophrenia and discussing the biological mechanisms behind the disease's progression.
Scott Alexander explores Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder (HPPD) and other conditions where drugs cause permanent effects, discussing potential mechanisms and their implications.
The post reviews research on adult neurogenesis, initially presenting evidence for its existence and importance, then reveals a new study suggesting it doesn't occur in humans, examining the implications of this potential field-wide error.
Scott Alexander attempts to understand and explain Karl Friston's complex 'free energy' principle in neuroscience, exploring its various interpretations and potential implications.
Scott Alexander explores the motivational system as described in 'The Hungry Brain', connecting it to dopamine, willpower, and predictive processing theory.
Scott reviews a theory about serotonin receptors that explains how they help cope with stress, and discusses its implications and limitations.
Scott proposes a speculative theory of depression as pathologically low confidence in neural predictions within the predictive processing framework, explaining how this could account for various depressive symptoms.
Scott Alexander examines the conflict between predictive processing theory and evolutionary psychology claims about innate knowledge, questioning how genes could directly encode complex preferences.
Scott Alexander explores the similarities between Predictive Processing and Perceptual Control Theory, arguing that PCT anticipates many aspects of PP and deserves recognition for its insights.
Scott Alexander reviews 'Surfing Uncertainty' by Andy Clark, exploring the predictive processing model of brain function and its wide-ranging explanatory power.
Scott reviews 'The Hungry Brain' by Stephan Guyenet, exploring the neuroscience of eating behavior and obesity, presenting a model focused on brain regulation of body weight.
Scott reviews Will Powers' book on Perceptual Control Theory, finding it convincing for explaining lower-level brain functions but skeptical of its application to higher-level concepts.
The post explores how Bayesian processes in the brain might explain perception and various mental disorders, linking neurotransmitters to different aspects of Bayesian reasoning.
Scott explores the implications of Sean Carroll's argument against the simulation hypothesis, suggesting that our inability to explain consciousness might indicate we're in a 'ground-level' simulation.
A curated collection of interesting links covering science, history, politics and culture, with brief commentary from Scott Alexander on each item.
Scott Alexander presents satirical, absurdist 'hardball' questions for presidential candidates, blending their backgrounds with outlandish scenarios and philosophical puzzles.
Scott Alexander hypothesizes that mystical experiences, hallucinations, and paranoia might be linked to an overactive pattern-matching faculty in the brain.
Scott shares and comments on various interesting links covering science, politics, and curiosities, with particular focus on recent studies in genetics and psychology.
Scott Alexander discusses the concept of gender identity, relating it to his personal experience and scientific understanding, and poses questions about the nature of gender identity in cisgender individuals.
Scott examines neurological theories explaining delusions like Capgras syndrome through Bayesian reasoning, arguing that damage to the right prefrontal cortex causes patients to ignore priors and base their beliefs solely on explanatory adequacy.
Scott reviews a book arguing that glial cells are crucial for cognition (not just neuron support), and uses this century-long scientific oversight as a cautionary tale about how entire communities can miss important phenomena.
Scott discusses the neuroscientific split between 'wanting' and 'liking', showing how wireheads might not actually be happy, and explores the troubling implications this has for economics, philosophy, and AI alignment.
Scott explores how innate neurological differences in emotional responses might drive political disagreements, suggesting that people form intuitive reactions first and rationalize them later, making political debate extremely difficult.