From the design of seatbelts to the symptoms of a heart attack, the average male body has long served as the default model for research and development across society. Fortunately, efforts are now underway to better represent others, including women. But where do we currently stand in neuroscience?
Imagine someone offers to split €10 with you but keeps €8 for themselves and gives you only €2. Most people would see that as unfair. Now imagine two different people making this offer. One person is usually generous. The other person is known for being selfish. Even though they both offer the same split, it feels different, doesn’t it?
Your brain was recording, but it lost the remote.
You see a car – wait… it’s not just a car. It’s red, it has a particular shape, and it’s moving fast. You hear the engine as it races past you. Maybe you even catch the smell of exhaust. Your amazing brain is able to combine all these different signals into a single red car, but how does it do that?
You’re walking home at night and think you see someone behind you, but when you turn around, no one’s there. Moments like this raise a question: how does your brain tell what’s real and what you’re imagining? Evidence suggests the answer may be surprisingly simple: the brain listens to the “volume” of its own signals. When internal thoughts become strong enough, they can briefly fool the mind into treating imagination as reality.
Why does one person feel completely exhausted after being in a busy place, while another barely notices it? Why is one person deeply moved by a sad movie or quick to notice small details, while another hardly reacts? According to researchers, this has to do with how our brain processes sensory input. It can be explained with the ideas of predictive processing.
What if we encounter aliens without neurons and brains like ours? How will we be able to say how intelligent they are? Beyond cognitive science, how else can we define intelligence?
Being highly sensitive and having a high level of sensation-seeking may feel like living life with one foot on the gas and the other on the brake – but this paradox can be your greatest strength. When you accept and respect both sides, highly sensitive sensation seekers can truly thrive.
Look in a mirror. The face you see feels completely like your own. You rarely question it. But what if your brain could be convinced that another face also belongs to you?
When thinking about the necessities for a safe childhood, we often think of visible and measurable things: low crime, stable housing, sufficient income. A new study shows how something more subtle is just as important: how safe a child feels. This subjective experience is not only psychologically relevant, but also visible in the brain.
Does a city have a mind? 
Is there really an off switch for fear? 
How Estrogen Shapes the Female Brain 
