Politicians use ‘salient availability’ bias to manipulate constituents and journalists

Politicians use ‘salient availability’ bias to manipulate constituents and journalists

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https://www.wired.com/2017/02/cognitive-bias-president-trump-understands-better/  “When something is memorable, it tends to be the thing you think of first, and then it has an outsize influence on your understanding of the world. After the movie Jaws came out, a generation of people was afraid to swim in the sea—not because shark attacks were more likely but because all those movie viewers could more readily imagine them.”

Neuroplasticity at the neuron and synapse level – Neurons sort into functional networks

Neuroplasticity at the neuron and synapse level – Neurons sort into functional networks

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“Individual neurons whose synapses are most likely to strengthen in response to a certain experience are more likely to connect to certain partner neurons, while those whose synapses weaken in response to a similar experience are more likely to connect to other partner neurons,” Friedlander said. “The neurons whose synapses do not change at all in response to that same experience are more likely to connect to yet other partner neurons, forming a more stable but non-plastic network.”

People’s brains store and recall stories the same way

People’s brains store and recall stories the same way

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New scientific findings support the idea that different humans’ brains store and recall story scenes the same way, rather than each person developing unique memory patterns about stories. Also, people generally do well recalling the details of stories. I want to see more targeted research that determines whether information packed in story structures (a person wrestling with a difficult challenge and changing as a result) is more readily and accurately transmitted from brain to brain via storytelling. This would be…

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How to Convince Someone When Facts Fail

How to Convince Someone When Facts Fail

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Cognitive bias article of the day: How to Convince Someone When Facts Fail A concise, timely look at how worldview-driven cognitive dissonance leads people to double down on their misbeliefs in the face of challenging evidence. It also recommends steps for having more meaningful conversations with others whose irrational positions differ from your own. 😉

Endurance runners appear to have greater functional connectivity in their brains

Endurance runners appear to have greater functional connectivity in their brains

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“MRI scans show that running may affect the structure and function of the brain in ways similar to complex tasks like playing a musical instrument” http://neurosciencenews.com/running-neural-network-5744/

New gene editing method modifies non-dividing cells in brain

New gene editing method modifies non-dividing cells in brain

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Until now, gene editing has relied on cell division to propagate modifications made with techniques like CRISPR Cas9. Researchers at the Salk Institute have devised a new method that can modify the genes of non-dividing cells (the majority of adult cells). They demonstrated the method’s potential by inserting missing genes into the brains of young mice that were blind due to retinitis pigmentosa. After the team inserted fully functional copies of the damaged gene responsible for the condition into the…

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Next group meeting will be 17 January 2017

Next group meeting will be 17 January 2017

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There will be no meeting in December, due to low availability of members. The next meeting will be on Tuesday, 17 January 2017. Three spots are left. You can sign up (RSVP “Yes”) at the following page: https://www.meetup.com/abq_brain_mind_consciousness_AI/events/236014987/ Mark Harris Facilitator