As a proud mid-Atlantic East Coaster, I thought I was relatively well adapted to colder winter climates. After being in sunny San Diego for a few years, however, I have realized that this is NOT so when a slight breeze invokes a shiver in my spine, or sitting outside on a 55 degree day can […]
Category Archives: Perception
A review: “How Emotions are Made” by Lisa Feldman Barrett
posted by Desi Chu
Take a moment and think about the last time you saw someone cry, or broke into a fit of laughter with your friends. It’s memories like these that last the longest in our minds and ultimately make up who we are – our ability to feel a vast range of emotions, and to share those […]
Mal de Débarquement: The Science of Land Sickness
posted by Seraphina Solders
Recently I was lucky to spend seven days on a catamaran out at sea with a small group of (COVID-vaccinated) friends. We traveled around the Gulf of California, witnessing truly amazing sights like manta rays jumping out of the water, sea birds diving into the water, and turtles floating along in the swell. This was […]
Magnetoreception – a Quantum Sixth Sense
posted by Seraphina Solders
Imagine you are dropped off hundreds of miles away from your home, deep in some unknown forest. Would you be able to find your way home using only your five basic senses – sight, smell, sound, taste, and touch? If you’re anything like me, you may struggle to navigate around your own city without help […]
More than a feeling…
posted by Laura Beebe
As animals with brains, we are challenged to make sense of a world full of rich sensory experience. There is a world created inside of our brains that we may see, hear, touch, taste, or smell. Built out of our senses, humans possess an innate ability to extract patterns and other meaningful features from the […]
Perks of Being a Trichromat
posted by egeyalcinbas
As a youngster, many excursions with my grandmother would end with her pointing out the breathtaking combination of hues that graces the sky during golden hour. She would be sure to mention the weather predictions that stem from our folklore: Warm mixtures of pink and lavender, she would tell me, means that tomorrow will be […]
Get out of my personal s p a c e
posted by Jess Du
How does the brain dynamically represent our personal space? It’s more interesting, and complicated, than you may think.
Brains and Buildings
posted by minicontreras
[En Español] There is a fascinating explosion of potential questions to ask when two previously thought-to-be-unrelated fields converge. One night, as I was having a beer in a Chula Vista brewery with my best friend Alma and her husband Ross, I was invited to be conscious about our surroundings. Alma and Ross Majewski graduated from […]
Open Borders: Remapping the Brain
posted by James R. Howe VI
While reading articles online, you may occasionally stumble across headlines like “Scientists find fear center of the brain,” or “Could this really be where the mind resides?” You might have also heard a TED talk where the speaker discusses how they discovered a part of the brain that makes decisions. Such expressions can take more […]
Now you see me… now you don’t
posted by kelseysundby
At a very young age, I was caught on camera during a game of hide-and-seek. In my bright red coat, I sat crouched against a tree in full view of the seeker with my hands cleverly placed over my face to obstruct any chance of being found. Until ages 4 to 5, we humans are […]
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