Neuroscience at Brave New Films

Authors@Google: Marco Iacoboni

2008-10-27T15:31:44Z

Marco Iacoboni, a leading neuroscientist whose work has been covered in The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, and The Wall Street Journal, explains the groundbreaking research into mirror neurons, the "smart cells" in our brain that allow us to understand others. From imitation to morality, from learning to addiction, from political affiliations to consumer choices, mirror neurons seem to have properties that are relevant to all these aspects of social cognition.

Marco Iacoboni is a neurologist and neuroscientist at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. He has appeared on Good Morning America, the Early Show, and Morning Edition, among other TV and radio programs.

This event took place on June 6, 2008, as a part of the Authors@Google series.

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Authors@Google: Dr. John Ratey

2008-11-06T13:29:24Z

In Spark, John J. Ratey, M.D., embarks upon a fascinating and entertaining journey through the mind-body connection, presenting startling research to prove that exercise is truly our best defense against everything from depression to ADD to addiction to aggression to menopause to Alzheimer's. Filled with amazing case studies), Spark is the first book to explore comprehensively the connection between exercise and the brain. It will change forever the way you think about your morning run--or, for that matter, simply the way you think.

John Ratey, M.D. is a clinical professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. He is the author of numerous bestselling and groundbreaking books, including Driven to Distraction and A User's Guide to the Brain. He lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he has a private practice.

This event took place on May 30, 2008, as a part of the Authors@Google series.

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Authors@Google: Dr. John Medina

2008-10-14T11:29:38Z

Most of us have no idea what's really going on inside our heads. Yet brain scientists have uncovered details every business leader, parent, and teacher should know--such as the brain's need for physical activity to work at its best.

How do we learn? What exactly do sleep and stress do to our brains? Why is multi-tasking a myth? Why is it so easy to forget--and so important to repeat new information? Is it true that men and women have different brains?
In Brain Rules, molecular biologist Dr. John Medina shares his lifelong interest in how the brain sciences might influence the way we teach our children and the way we work. In each chapter, he describes a brain rule--what scientists know for sure about how our brains work--and then offers transformative ideas for our daily lives. For more information go to www.brainrules.net

Dr. Medina spoke at Google's Mountain View, CA headquarters as part of the Authors@Google program. This talk took place on Tuesday, April 8, 2008.

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Authors@Google: Sandra Aamodt & Sam Wang

2008-10-18T21:29:25Z

Sandra Aamodt and Sam Wang visit Google's Mountain View, CA headquarters to discuss their book "Welcome to Your Brain: Why You Lose Your Car Keys but Never Forget How to Drive and Other Puzzles of Everyday Life."

Sandra Aamodt, Ph.D., is the editor in chief of Nature Neuroscience, the leading scientific journal in the field of brain research. Before becoming an editor, she did her graduate work at the University of Rochester and was a postdoctoral researcher in neuroscience at Yale University. Sam Wang, Ph.D., is an associate professor of neuroscience at Princeton University. Before becoming a professor, he studied at Caltech, Stanford, and Bell Labs. He has published over forty articles on the brain in leading scientific journals and has received numerous awards.

This event took place on March 27, 2008, as part of the Authors@Google series.

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Raymond Tallis - Free Will and the Brain

2008-10-19T21:29:27Z

Complete video at: fora.tv

British gerontologist, author and cultural critic Raymond Tallis addresses questions regarding free will and the brain.

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"Battle of Ideas: My Brain Made Me Do It" at the 2007 Battle of Ideas conference hosted by the Institute of Ideas.

With the politics of behaviour in the ascendancy, there is increasing interest in what science can tell us about why people behave the way they do. The British government is funding the creation of the National Academy for Parenting Practitioners, with the express aim of training a 'parenting workforce' to provide science-based child-rearing advice to parents. In the USA, the MRI scanner and the neuroscientific community are entering the court room to give evidence about whether defendants can be regarded as being responsible for their alleged crimes. UK policymakers cite scientific 'evidence' to explain new interventions on everything from early years' education to the alleged impact of school dinners on academic performance. The science of nutrition now informs earnest discussions about how children's diets improve their classroom behaviour, in order to justify policing lunchboxes and putting school meals at the top of the political agenda. Studies of teenage brain development now regularly inform social debates about the impact of new technologies on young people.

But how much can science tell us about behaviour? Do scientific findings justify the government's many interventions into the early years of children's lives? Should neuroscience enjoy an exalted place in the courtroom? Are policies being developed because of genuine advances in scientific knowledge - or is science being (mis)used, perhaps in the place of political conviction, to justify policies? - IoI

Raymond Tallis was trained at the University of Oxford and St Thomas's Hospital, qualifying in 1970. He was a Professor of Geriatric Medicine at the University of Manchester and a consultant physician in Health Care of the Elderly in Salford (1987-2006).

Outside his medical career, he has been awarded two honorary degrees: DLitt (Hon Causa) from the University of Hull in 1997; and LittD (Hon Causa) from the University of Manchester in 2002. In 2004 he was identified in Prospect magazine as one of the top 100 public intellectuals in the United Kingdom.

His numerous medical publications include two major textbooks, while most of his research publications are in the field of neurology of old age and neurological rehabilitation. He has also published fiction, three volumes of poetry, and over a dozen books and 150 articles on the philosophy of the mind, philosophical anthropology, literary theory, the nature of art and cultural criticism.

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Mind Wars: Neuroscience and the Next Generation of War

2008-10-15T21:30:43Z

Drugs to make terrorists talk? Brain research to build a better soldier? Future robot armies? Sounds sci-fi, but according to Dr Jonathan Moreno, Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress, many of these technologies are here and more are on the way. Neuroscience research is growing at an exponential rate, a fact Moreno explores in his new book, "Mind Wars".

For more on "Mind Wars" please see:
http://www.amazon.com/Mind-Wars-Research-National-Defense/dp/1932594167

WWW.AMERICANPROGRESS.ORG

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Colbert Report: Daniel Gilbert

2008-11-30T01:04:54Z

Daniel Gilbert tells Stephen why he is so bad at finding happiness.

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The Political Brain, Part 1

2008-10-19T21:30:00Z

A video introduction to Drew Westen's important and insightful new book, The Political Brain. Every dem candidate (and their staffers) should watch this.

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