June 16, 2014

Free Videos Explaining How the Brain Works

The human mind is one of the last great mysteries that science has yet to fully understand. Learn the latest science with this list of free videos explaining how the brain works. Here LearnOutLoud.com has collected lectures from experts on the cutting edge of neuroscience research, including John Searle on freedom and neurobiology, the latest developments in our understanding of consciousness, and what scientists are doing to battle various addictions and mental disorders. Find out more on what makes the brain tick and where neuroscience is leading us in this up to the minute dispatch from the field of the mind:

1. The Origin of the Human Mind

In this streaming video Lecture from UCTV, cognitive scientist Martin Sereno gives us a survey of the brain’s evolution. With thorough visual aids, Sereno examines the difference between the human brain and that of other species, showcasing experiments he has conducted that have helped broaden our understanding of the physical mechanics behind human thought. The biggest question he poses is why our minds are so special, when organically the human brain is 99% similar to that of the primates. Learn why size doesn’t matter when it comes to brain power!

2. John Searle on Freedom and Neurobiology

In a thought-provoking lecture provided by Authors@Google on streaming video, philosopher John Searle discusses the perennial problem of human free will. Starting with the historical arguments associated with free will, Searle then points viewers to how quantum mechanical theories of a chaotic and ultimately indeterminate universe may provide some solution to the problem. Delivered with a sense of fun and respect for the novice, Searle’s lecture is a must for anyone that wonders about the full nature of human choice and whether or not any of our decisions can truly be considered our own. It is available on streaming video through YouTube.

3. The Neuroscience of Consciousness, Perception, and Self

While covering the Iraq war in 2006, TV news Journalist Bob Woodruff suffered a traumatic brain injury after nearly losing his life to a roadside bomb. In this fascinating discussion from the Aspen Institute, Woodruff traces how he rebuilt his ability to comprehend the world step by step; showing the viewers video of his first few days of rehabilitation through to his still ongoing attempts to recover lost brain functions. Woodruff offers a prime case study for scientists that are attempting to uncover the many mysteries of human consciousness. This talk is available on streaming video through FORA.tv.

4. Neuroethics

This MIT World lecture on streaming audio & video is a sort of debate over whether today’s approach to neuroscience is ethical. MIT Professor of Psychology Stephan Chorover derides the notion that all human experience can be reduced to neuroscience and speaks of the dangerous consequences that result from this dogma. Professor of Neuroscience Mriganka Sur agrees with him that there are complexities in human behavior, but still sees great importance in the attempt to determine the scientific ways our brains work. Check it out.

5. Jill Bolte Taylor’s Stroke of Insight

In this moving talk delivered at the TED conference, brain researcher Jill Bolte Taylor provides a first-person account of her own stroke and the experience of losing control of her bodily functions as well the functions of the left side of her brain. Instead of it being a painful or frightening experience, she said the stroke put her in a intense state of bliss and nirvana. Sharing this experience became her motivation for recovery. This talk is available on streaming video and MP3 download from the TED.com website.

6. Neuroscience and the Emerging Mind

His Holiness the Dalai Lama recently visited UC-San Diego and gave a series of talks. In one of the talks he sits down with neuroscientist V.S. Ramachandran, philosopher Larry Hinman, and brain researcher Jennifer Thomas to talk about the connections between brain science and human consciousness. V.S. Ramachandran asks the Dalai Lama about the importance of mirror neurons which seem interact with the empathy and compassion which the Dalai Lama frequently addresses. Philosopher Larry Hinman asks about emotions like anger and also our increasing ability to control our memories and how this relates to our new knowledge of the brain and mindfulness. The Dalai Lama stresses education and further research above all for the future of relating the science of the brain to powers of human consciousness. This talk is available on streaming video from YouTube and MP3 audio download from the UCTV website.

7. Here we’re featuring two talks from Dr. Louann Brizendine covering her books The Female Brain and The Male Brain:

Louann Brizendine: The Female Brain

Dr. Louann Brizendine authored the book The Female Brain back in 2006. She gave this talk at Book Passage which covered some of her findings from that book. Brizendine focuses primarily on hormones and the role that they play in the brain during various stages of a woman’s life. She clarifies some of the differences between male and female brains and answers a number of questions. Definitely a good listen for parents, couples, and individuals of both sexes.

Louann Brizendine: The Male Brain

Dr. Louann Brizendine also authored the book The Male Brain in 2010. In this talk which she delivered at Dominican University of California, Dr. Brizendine shows some of the differences in the male brain covering the important hormone testosterone. She discusses puberty in males and the changes that take place at that time. In the Q&A she addresses the important nature vs. nuture question when it comes to the differences in the sexes.

8. Music and the Brain Video Series on YouTube
Music and the Brain Audio Podcast

Watch or listen to this great series from the Library of Congress on streaming video or audio podcast. Project chair Kay Redfield Jamison convenes scientists and scholars, composers, performers, theorists, physicians, psychologists, and other experts to talk about cognitive neuroscience and music. Here are some of the lectures in the series:

“The World in Six Songs: How the Musical Brain Created Human Nature”: In this short talk, author Daniel Levitin suggests that in human history music came before language, and that throughout history music has almost always been accompanied by movement.

“Depression and Creativity Symposium”: Kay Redfield Jamison, Dr. Terence Ketter, and Dr. Peter Whybrow take a look at depression and bipolar disorder and their possible connection to creativity. They specifically discuss artists like Vincent van Gogh, Robert Schumann, and Felix Mendelssohn.

“The Mind of an Artist”: Cognitive psychologist Michael Kubovy and composer Judith Shatin suggest that language and music are very closely related in the brain, and Kubovy shows findings on the brain’s reaction to different types of music in comparison to the cognition of language.

“Music, Criminal Behavior, and Crime Prevention”: Norman Middleton of the Library of Congress Music Division starts the lecture with providing examples of how music has been used in regards to preventing crime and treating criminals. Then Dr. Jacqueline Helfgott talks about ways of discouraging criminal activity and anti-social behavior through the use of music in different environments.

“Wellness and Growth: Acoustic Medicine and Music Therapy”: Jayne Standley, director of the Music Therapy Program at Florida State University, introduces music therapy and the many ways it has been applied in the medical profession while showing video examples of successful music therapy.

Enjoy these and many more lectures on “Music and the Brain” in this series of talks from the Library of Congress.

9. Drugs, Addiction, & Mental Disorder: PSYC 179 – UCSD Course
Impulse Control Disorders: PSYC 188 – UCSD Course

UC San Diego is offering two podcasted courses on addiction with Professor George Koob. Koob is Chair of the Committee on the Neurobiology of Addictive Disorders at The Scripps Research Institute and has been doing research on addictions for over 40 years. He is also the author of the book Neurobiology of Addiction with his colleague Michel Le Moal. In his course “Drugs, Addiction, & Mental Disorder”, Koob covers legal and illegal drugs as well as prescription and non-prescription drugs and the addiction potential of various drugs. He looks at the ways certain drugs affect the brain including lectures on opiods, alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, caffeine, LSD, steroids, and many drugs used for the treatment of mental illness. In the course he also provides info on the treatments available for addictions to these drugs. In his course “Impulse Control Disorders”, Koob turns his focus to other addictions including pathological gambling, alcohol abuse, nicotine dependence, compulsive sex, compulsive eating & bulimia, computer addiction, and other addictions and impulse control disorders that can hijack one’s self control. After covering these addictions, Koob looks at the best treatments now available. These two courses provide a great introduction to understanding the various types of addiction and the brain mechanisms involved in addiction, with lectures delivered by one of the leading researchers in the field of addiction and neurobiology.

10. Vilayanur Ramachandran: A Journey to the Center of Your Mind

In this TED talk, neurologist Vilayanur Ramachandran provides some neuroscientific explanations for puzzling psychological and physiological phenomena. He covers why after certain brain injuries patients cannot visually recognize their mother, how to amputated patients can overcome the pain of phantom limbs for only $3, and why certain people see colors when they look at numbers and letters. This talk is available on streaming video and MP3 download from the TED.com website.

11. Human Behavioral Biology

Certainly one of the best courses we’ve added into our new Free Courses Collection is Stanford University Professor Robert Sapolsky’s course on “Human Behavioral Biology”. Sapolsky is an award-winning professor, superstar lecturer, and author of numerous books including Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers: A Guide To Stress, Stress Related Diseases, and Coping. His course on “Human Behavioral Biology” is so good that The Great Courses (formerly The Teaching Company) invited him to teach the course for their customers in an audio & video course entitled Biology and Human Behavior: The Neurological Origins of Individuality. We’ve purchased and listened to that course in its entirety and it’s incredible! Now the course is being offered for free on video from Stanford University and it seems like basically the same course except more! The Teaching Company course runs 12 Hrs. and the free video edition at Stanford runs 36 Hrs. The course comprehensively covers human behavior from the perspective of biology from an in-depth look at the nervous system, limbic system, and hormones to the latest discoveries in neuroscience, genetics, and human evolution. Sapolsky attempts to give you a well rounded picture of the biology of human behavior today. And after that, he then takes a look at certain human behaviors which can be examined from this perspective including lectures on human sexual behavior, aggression, language, schizophrenia, and what makes up for the individual differences in humans. This 25-lecture course is available on video on YouTube.