
This Is Your Brain on Podcasts - dnetesn
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/29/science/this-is-your-brain-on-podcasts.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fscience&action=click&contentCollection=science&region=rank&module=package&version=highlights&contentPlacement=1&pgtype=sectionfront
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mapleoin
This is what I got from this article: Researchers looked at MRI scans of
people listening to a Podcast on their daily commute. The researchers don't
know what any of it means.

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revelation
Functional MRI scans are the equivalent of looking at what transistors are
switching in a chip at any given moment, only more useless since the brain is
much more generalized.

"Oh! Cache is lighting up!"

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Balgair
[http://www.wired.com/2009/09/fmrisalmon/](http://www.wired.com/2009/09/fmrisalmon/)

It's from 2009, so things have improved, but still.

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ddt_Osprey
You know what? I bet the differentiation in the exposure to light (via
different pictures), combined with ever-so-slightly-still-electrolytically-
active neuro-pathways, produced those results.

Dead salmon, though they may be, light-sensitive organs the eyes still are.

And provided that the salmon were probably preserved on ice, much of the
carcasses probably remained fairly chemically stable, so while the electron
pumps in the electron transport chains of the multi-polar neurons were
deactivated, I bet the whole pipeline from salmon's visual cortex to its
eyeball probably was still slightly capable of transmitting photo-sensitivity.

Then, it probably came down to the fMRI imaging software being so fine-tuned
as to notice that differentiation, and amplify it into statistical
significance!

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Balgair
If that is true, then fMRI studies of V1 in humans are totally screwed. You
show them anything, and the unconscious effects overwhelm the stats software
and you get 'hits'. As the article goes into, you better be damn careful with
your controls and your p values if you want to actually do anything useful in
fMRI. If you want to just publish papers, it seems like a great field, but
there seems to be better ways to just make a paycheck.

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wimagguc
The paper this article references has not much to do with listening to
podcasts while commuting. It's about how _" the meaning of language is
represented in regions [of the brain]"_.

Wonder if the post would have received the same attention with the more
precise title "This is your brain on stories".

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johnchristopher
I certainly would like to read an article on "This is your brain on stories"
that would highlights and explores escapism, role of story-telling, etc. That
would make a nice book as well.

I recently got into listening to podcasts. I noticed that I really don't like
the "get together to discuss a topic" kind or the "here's a 2 minutes segment
from the radio news" but really do enjoy one-hour long political, history and
documentary podcasts.

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civilian
Just wanna make sure you have these in your feed: Revolutions Podcast, History
of Rome podcast (finished, but with 5 years of content), Dan Carlin's Hardcore
History.

Idk, the "get together and discuss" podcasts vary _widely_ in quality. I find
that the way the hosts talk really determines whether I like it. I really
enjoy _My Brother My Brother and Me_ (A comedy podcast around answering
YahooAnswers questions), and listening to _Boars, Gore and Swords_ helps me
solidify and digest what I watched in Game of Thrones.

But some of the discussions podcasts are just babbly. "One bad mother",
"Throwing shade". There's very little content.

Even RadioLab does me wrong sometimes, but that's probably just because I have
a basic science education and Robert Krulwich is an idiot. Radiolab suffers
from the balance fallacy, argument to moderation, and false dilemma.

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hgh
Article itself is pretty light on the details, but good opportunity to ask the
HN community -- which podcasts really fire your neurons?

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randycupertino
I'm not into podcasts but I am VERY into audiobooks via audible. I listen to
them while commuting, while doing chores around the house and while walking
the dog. I used to read voraciously and never had time any more. I alternate
fiction and non fiction. Some recommendations: 14 by Peter Cline, the Power of
the Dog by Don Winslow, and The Like Switch by an ex-FBI agent about
likability.

Changed my life immensely for the better. I read about 5 books a month now.

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goldenkey
I'd argue that listening to the book is quite different from reading it.

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randycupertino
Why?

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goldenkey
Well for starters, different areas of the brain are used and the voice or
accent of the narrator can have an effect

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Dowwie
EconTalk The RSA events London School of Economics events CATO Institute
Events Commonwealth Club of California Big Ideas produced by Australian
Broadcasting Corp Stanford Entrepreneurship Series Inquiring Minds BBC
Thinking Allowed Science Friday Both US and UK Intelligence squared debates

Edge.org talks are great, too, but I don't think they're offered as podcasts
yet. Minor inconvenience..

For stories, there's Radiolab, Freakonomics, Snap Judgment, and The Moth

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agumonkey
Podcasts are my tool of choice for bike riding smooth cardio sessions. They
drive my mind off the effort, it makes my rhythm more regular and the
experience more pleasurable. Sometimes I'm even thinking "hard" while
pedaling.

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travelbyphone
I do the same when running. Much better than music

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Amorymeltzer
Amusingly, I heard about this research on the Nature podcast.

I was skeptical at first — these fMRI studies are a dime a dozen these days,
with dubious results — but this one is pretty robust. The use of training data
is nice, and definitely adds a level of verifiablility to it. It's a nice step
toward actually understanding how the brain processes not just language but
ideas. There is definitely a future where we can understand what people are
thinking by observing their brain.

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svensken
Isn't it just the bloodflow within the brain that we're observing?

We'll never be able to read a mind based on fMRI-style data any more than
we'll be able to judge the ongoings of America by the headlights on the
highways.

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towlejunior
C++ podcasts, anyone?

A niche request, yes, but my podcast app's search won't respect the plus
characters. :(

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lexap
Incredible that they were able to predict areas of the brain that would light
up.

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ecuzzillo
Link to paper full text?

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slashcom
[http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v532/n7600/full/nature1...](http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v532/n7600/full/nature17637.html)

