Freakonomics Radio 262. This Is Your Brain on Podcasts
Oct 13, 2016
A recent MRI study shows that storytelling stimulates the brain, highlighting the benefits of listening to podcasts. The complexity of the human brain and its processing of vision is discussed, along with the hierarchical organization of language. The podcast's impact on curiosity and cultural awareness is mentioned, and an Olympian shares their experience of finding inspiration in a Freakonomics Radio episode. Listeners are encouraged to support the show.
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Brain Is A Wet, Highly Connected Computer
- The brain is a wet, squishy computer wired in a massively interconnected network.
- Thoughts emerge from information flowing over fixed wires and feedback loops.
We're Data-Limited In Neuroscience
- Neuroscience progress is limited more by lack of data than by theory.
- Collecting rich datasets will let modeling and machine learning explain brain principles.
Vision Commands A Quarter Of The Brain
- Humans devote about a quarter of their brain to vision, making it computationally intense.
- Vision's clear goal simplifies scientific study compared with abstract cognition.