Much as I love Robert Sapolsky's work in general, "The triune brain idea is one of the most successful and widespread errors in all of science” (Lisa Feldman Barrett 2020 - references below). When it was first described by Paul MacLean, as Robert says, in "The Triune Brain in Evolution. Role in Paleocerebral Functions" (1990) it was immediately and robustly critiqued (Reiner 1990). The "neo-cortex" is not new, is not unique to modern humans and does not "regulate" the mythic "emotional brain". Evolutionary neurobiology showed, as long ago as the early 1970s, that human brain development is simply a scaled-up version of all mammalian brain development and that all vertebrates possess the same basic brain regions (Cesario et al 2020). Including reptiles. Despite being ubiquitous, continued use of the triune brain fallacy is not supported by the data - and has important implications for how emotions and agency are conceptualised. For example, the idea that rationality = thinking = the absence of emotion when, in practice, thinking can be profoundly irrational and emotion profoundly rational. Law, economics and much of daily discourse assumes there is a sharp distinction between the rational and the emotional, but this is a story, without foundation in how the brain actually evolved, works and is structured. For those still teaching or otherwise engaging with the triune brain fallacy, I urge you to explore more current neuroscience by research scientists rather than commentators (this is NOT a pop at Robert Sapolsky. It's just that many, maybe most proponeents of the triune brain fallacy are not involved with directly testing the hypothesis). The papers below (and especially Lisa Feldman Barrett's books and RUclips interviews) centre a whole-brain view of our construction of reality. And is supported by ample evidence, unlike the 90's neo-Platonic theory. • Your Brain's Most Important Functions - Dan Pink in Conversation with Lisa Feldman Barrett (2023) ruclips.net/video/Ndm06nZJrBA/видео.htmlsi=G7O2nLEnmJOV-aQB • Cesario J, Johnson DJ & Eisthen HL (2020) Your Brain Is Not an Onion With a Tiny Reptile Inside. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 29(3), 255-260. journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0963721420917687#bibr34-0963721420917687 • Feldman Barrett, L (2018) How Emotions Are Made: The Secret Life of the Brain. Pan. lisafeldmanbarrett.com/books/how-emotions-are-made/ • Feldman Barrett, L (2020) Seven and a Half Lessons About the Brain. Picador. lisafeldmanbarrett.com/books/seven-and-a-half-lessons-about-the-brain/ • Reiner A (1990) An explanation of behavior: Review of The Triune Brain in Evolution. Role in Paleocerebral Functions. Paul D. MacLean. Plenum, New York, 1990. Science, 250:4978, 303-305. DOI:10.1126/science.250.4978.303-b www.researchgate.net/publication/6043837_The_Triune_Brain_in_Evolution_Role_in_Paleocerebral_Functions_Paul_D_MacLean_Plenum_New_York_1990_xxiv_672_pp_illus_75 • Steffen PR, Hedges D and Matheson R (2022) The Brain Is Adaptive Not Triune: How the Brain Responds to Threat, Challenge, and Change. Frontiers in Psychiatry 13:802606. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2022.802606 www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2022.802606/full
The criticism is simply based on (sometimes quite dishonest) misinterpretation of MacLean's ideas. For instance, the very idea that thought is not independent for emotion was actually the origin of his theory. It's called the triune brain, not the tripartite brain. He never said these "parts" were independent, or that they were successively added to one another during evolution without prior basis or that the "reptilian brain" in mammals was the same as in reptiles.
0:34 Thank you for the references. "schematic" -good reason for lifelong ongoing educational renewal Disparities in generational educational opportunities create generations of disparities in common working knowledge and communication.
wow! thank you for this detailed answer! I love it when people provide nuance, context and citations for their criticisms! A rare and valuable comment indeed.
this guy is my favourite kind of celebrity cos of his great ability to communicate complicated + relevant info in interesting and accessible ways, absolute legend
“The subconscious mind is ruled by suggestion, it accepts all suggestions - it does not argue with you - it fulfils your wishes.” “Your subconscious mind does not argue with you. It accepts what your conscious mind decrees. If you say, 'I can't afford it,' your subconscious mind works to make it true.
I admire this man so much. I have heard many people speak. Most of the intellectual ones I've heard, I did so on the internet. But this man manages to stand out. Among the great ones, this man is truly an exception.
Thank you for not cluttering this video with a cut rate Philip Glass-like soundtrack and corny stock footage as in some of the other entries in this series.
Nowhere is this more strikingly obvious than in people with mental illnesses, and I think those of us with anxiety have an intrinsic awareness of how our mental and emotional state affects our bodies, because damn if I'm not sitting here in a buttload of pain that I learned to tune out when I was a teenager because my cortisol flooded brain makes the muscles in my body tense 24/7, and I don't remember the last time I didn't have a headache! I can't get rid of the anxiety completely, so I can't get rid of the pain completely either, and the pain often makes my emotional state worse, que the vicious circle 🤷♀️
I understand, as someone that also suffers a lot of daily anxiety (1 of my symptoms of my autism), I strongly recommend trying out cbd, thc and even tripping, because it helped and helps me a lot.
Used to have a lot of anxiety and panic attacks, but fixed them for good with breathe work. It's kinda almost stupid and tragic how much pain and loss I could've prevented just by breathing in spesific ways for like 10-15 minutes a day.
I’ll jump on the advice wagon and say if you haven’t already done so look into how nutrition can help you. The food we eat has a lot of impact on our brain and and rest of our body. I’m glad you learned to control your state of mind and I hope you’re able to conquer this challenge entirely 🙏🏼
So many ppl in the comments saying that this is not real... in 0:40 he litterally addresses that this is just schematic, the brain is not like this, its just a simple way of analysing how it works
Thinking about something totally different from our present external situation isn't as easy as it is being said. But with practice it can be done. Practice to think. Take 30 mins of lone time and spend it to think, various scenarios, not fictitious, past, present and future, and when in stress, this will help you think better. Great video.
In my darker moments I judge the world for ignorance, but essentially it is a form of guiding the mind away from certain problems in order to survive, that all of us engage in, sometimes without knowing it.
I mastered this in mid 80s And you can as well. Well not really most people are too far gone. They are easily identified and avoided. Everything flows from your mental health, nurture and protect it as though your life depended on it cuz it sure as hell does!
Consciously focusing your attention on something positive, exciting or relaxing just before you go to bed and when you wake up in the morning is really helpful.
Every time I listen to him my brain gets excited evidently I’ve been doing biofeedback for a couple decades now I just didn’t know that’s what it was called God bless everybody happy Fourth of July
I've been waiting for this kind of explanation of how the brain communicates my entire life! I wish our educational system would teach this as it's most basic level starting in elementary school. It makes sense why meditation works, and how athletes and soldiers overcome their physical and mental obstacles when they are deemed, 'in the zone', and how some people have survived seemingly insurmountable circumstances. I feel like I just had the entire history of humanity's behavior summed up in an a matter of minutes.
You have many areas in the brain with specialized functions. The three brain perspective is just one perspective, only a partial truth (since any object has many partial truths from different perspectives). The question is, how useful is your partial perspective, which depends on what you are doing.
Those “many areas” are specific to certain functions, eyes, ears etc. Robert is talking of how our mental/ emotional/ autonomic systems and how they interrelated, and control your behaviour, dispute having the largest neocortex of species
Very informative and perspective shifting! As for the last part: he coul call it meditation. People call it praying, yoga or positive thinking as well.
It is perfectly acceptable to speak of the "3 Brains" schema. What we currently understand about the evolution of the brain, specifically the human brain, the hind, limbic, and forebrain are stratified and came about through evolutionary pressures that had no single end-goal in mind.
@@jamaalrichardson4966 I'm not a doctor, but that would be like title a video: "learn to use your 4 hearts" (just because the human heart has four chambers), I just criticized the title of the video, of course my absolute high respects for the professor Robert Sapolsky.
I'm surprised he doesn't mind referring to it as the Lizard Brain. I like to call it the Nematode Brain, since that's about the time we split off on the evolution arc, prior to the reptiles coming around. It just shows how confident he is with his knowledge, since he clearly sidesteps any of the issues of referring to it as literally a reptilian brain.
I'm dealing with a pain condition caused by mind body syndrome. The Lizard brain is creating pain to distract from the emotions the limbic system is feeling. The Lizard brain sees the emotions as just as dangerous as a bear, but instead of hiding pain like it usually does when it aroused temporarily, it creates pain because the limbic is aroused chronically, thus the pain becomes a chronic response like a stuck open neurological valve. It becomes chronic and I have to unlearn it. Dr. John Sarno pioneered this theory.
I'm convinced that the lizard brain was created by actual reptilian extraterrestrials there are civilizations that have lived before us we were not the first ones on the planet I'm sure we our DNA manipulated
Going by your excellent advice, it looks to me that hypnosis sessions to achieve, say weight loss or learning the piano easier and in less time spent is a big win win. Your book Determined is also a very thought provoking read. I wonder that you do not put that all to a video format. In general folks seem to lack social science guiding them in early and later educational years. Professor Sapolsky saves the world.
"You don’t have an inner lizard or an emotional beast-brain. There is no such thing as a limbic system dedicated to emotions. And your misnamed neocortex is not a new part; many other vertebrates grow the same neurons that, in some animals, organize into a cerebral cortex if key stages run for long enough. Anything you read or hear that proclaims the human neocortex, cerebral cortex, or prefrontal cortex to be the root of rationality, or says that the frontal lobe regulates so-called emotional brain areas to keep irrational behavior in check, is simply outdated or woefully incomplete. The triune brain idea and its epic battle between emotion, instinct, and rationality is a modern myth." Excerpt From Seven and a Half Lessons About the Brain Lisa Feldman Barrett
What about the contrast between the Default Mode Network and the Task Positige Network. They seem to be in Part 3 in the description given above. For most people the DMN is default mode (hence the name) of perception and response, while the mind shifts into the TPN unconsciously depending on the focus of attention and action. But training (meditation) can allow the person to select greater involvement of the TPN to guide attention and action.
1. "If you think about the brain and behavior long enough, you can’t help but conclude that free will is an illusion. Our actions are shaped by our biology, our environment, and our experiences, and all of these are beyond our conscious control." 2. "When you realize that so much of what you do is not under your control, it’s liberating in a way. You can stop beating yourself up for your mistakes. You can recognize that you’re a product of forces far beyond your control, just like everyone else." 3. "One of the kindest things we can do for ourselves is to stop shaming ourselves for things that are beyond our control." 4. "In family relationships, understanding that free will is an illusion can lead to more empathy." 5. "Compassion arises naturally when we recognize that everyone is doing the best they can with the circumstances and biology they’ve been given." Neurobiologist Dr Robert Sapolsky
Thank you Dr. Sapolsky for this info. But what I would like to understand is whether or not our subconscious mind and its thought generation are totally controlled by the limbic area. For instance, when people attempt to meditate we observe "mind chatter". Unwanted thoughts that annoyingly get injected over and over again into our consciousness and temporarily interrupt our focus. Such thoughts seem to be emanating from our subconscious, but are they actually originating in our conscious mind? But the real bottom line question here is, "What is the most efficient method for stopping them?"
I'm reminded of therapies, or potential ones, for folks with PTSD. How can we out-think the trauma we've through? How can we get our limbic systems past those ingrain associations? Please correct me if I'm not on the right track - Am also reminded of Bernie Siegel's work to help cancer patients heal - Seems he's been able to help people reach past the surface with regard to these systems. Thank you for sharing.
Gurdjieff covered this idea back in 1900ish. Been a while since I read Ouspendsky’s “In Search” but I think he outlines it in that book. So the ancients knew about this far back in millennia. 🤷♀️🙏
Look here, somebody needs to figure this out cause I just saw another video uploaded 3 days ago from Big Think , she says no the brain isn't made up of 3 systems, that that is the old thinking, that it's ridiculous. I wanna know what's really how it is..
I am but a simple creature - Sabine synthesizes amazing videos and I phagocytose them. 17:40 - About this, a certain show I used to watch expressed it this way: maybe the universe _is_ teeming with life. But we won't find them anytime soon because Earth happens to be out in the space boonies!
Oh my overflowing GOURD! Thankyou Robert, you have given me an understanding of yet another TRIAD to help dispel the tension and contention that DUALISTIC thinking causes! I've been stuck contemplating how communication between the AMYGDALA (the older, 'lower', impulsive brain region) and the CORTEX (the younger, 'higher', cognitive region) results in my perceptions and responses to life events. Now, I have the 'missing third', the LIMBIC system (the 'middle aged', neither 'high' nor 'low', instinctive) to factor into the equation, and a formula for a more balanced perspective on life.
Thanks Henk. I need to keep learning, obviously! Im trying to understand interactions between the "head, heart & hands", or mental, emotional, physical aspects of my being, and am missing something regarding the differences between sensation & perception ('feelings' & emotions), cognition & conception (intentional thinking & intuitive inspiration).
@@tonyarmstrong8291 Terence McKenna. Jung. Nietzsche. CTMU. Psilocybin. I am releasing information on such topics soon. Not sure why but RUclips is trying to censor me. I have uploaded shorts about NS-TMT, what I believe may save humankind.
@@tonyarmstrong8291 Know this: The Truth of the Matter lies where Representative instants of categories Functional variable categories Proper accurate code/coding Ranked causal value All meet in the middle
Dear Robert, I have been following your lectures with pleasure for years and I find them very interesting, but I have a question. What is your diagnosis?
It would have helped if the talk was not so "run-on" and had more distinct segments. Visuals that illustrate the concepts would have helped enormously. Some bulleted points would help to focus.
Robert ! Professor !! Nice . Great user manual for the / my brain(s) . I am really enjoying the increased awareness of and fascination with the stuff in my scull . Just one question please: ¿ what was your favorite Talmudic tractate when you were growing up , or now ? Just curious, plus I would love to learn / chavrusa with you holy dude ! Thanks
Sometimes when you are fasting you feel a mental clarity after that initial state of hunger. And why is that is something I still struggle to understand?
Its the ketones that your body is producing by fasting. The brain loves them. Plus the lack of insulin eliminates hypoglycemia and the liver ramps up gluconeogenesis. Epinephrine and noradrenaline become elevated. All of this combines to give you great clarity of thought and focus. From an evolutionary perspective this makes absolute sense. When do you need more alertness, focus and energy? When you have to go out in the dangerous world and hunt for game or run down an antelope. Fasting increases metabolic rates , switches the body into fat utilization and spares lean muscle catabolism.
So for those afflicted with PTSD, the limbic layer is influence the lower layer and upper layers? Is trauma merely a memory that needs to be reevaluated in a way that is 'healthy' for the individual?
Real Trauma is locked behind a DREAD of neurons, that the cortex will only show you when the cortex believes your imagined self is ready that the thought process is a REAL as it can get to deal with the coming reality In other words complete disassociation with the words whirling around Muruguns finger And you are like Kumar :)
I'm not sure I caught how I can choose to use them differently other than the bio-feedback part. I'm currently reading his book "Determined" and find his views parallel mine. The book is giving me more details to support what I think is true about free-will.
When hungry you go hunter mode - senses heighten to prime you for finding food and we do not make harsher moral judgements, we just think more clearer and people that seem to make harsher moral judgements when hungry they do the same when full anyway, just with patience and with a smile
One problem I always had with the triune model of the brain is that don't reptiles also experience some kind of fear, arousal, anxiety, and so on? It sure seems like they do, even if it's not as prominent and perhaps not as potent as it is in mammals.
I think it is just a name, like amphibian brain wouldn't sound as good. Both classes of animals also have emotions, I think?, but their basic behavior mostly resembles what the basic reptilian brain does.
@@neildutoit5177 Indeed. And that's why I'm a bit disappointed to see it discussed here. Still admire Sapolsky and appreciate this channel, but was surprised to see Sapolsky of all people talking about it as though it were a rigorous and valid concept.
I think it's called reptilian brain because reptiles can regulate their bodily functions while, say, fish and frogs can't (like slowly boiling a frog). This isn't to say that reptiles ONLY operate on a reptilian level, but rather that this is their defining feature.
🎯 Key Takeaways for quick navigation: 00:00 🚀 *Setting and achieving goals doesn't have to feel like hard work; the key is implementing the advice from this video.* 01:08 🧹 *A clean room reduces distractions, lowers stress hormones, and improves focus; spend 5 minutes tidying it up every morning or night.* 02:29 📱 *Phones, computers, and game consoles can be major time-suckers; consider reducing screen time using apps like Unplug or built-in screen time options.* 03:38 👫 *The people you spend the most time with significantly influence you; surround yourself with positive individuals through clubs, sports, or online communities.* 04:58 🎉 *The tips shared in the video are aimed at making productivity enjoyable, eliminating distractions, and can be easily implemented by anyone for significant differences.* Made with HARPA AI
Bro said all that in a single sentence 😂 I absolutely love this man, his Stanford lectures are phenomenal 🙏
Agreed 😊
Watch his lecture on religion.
Bro has four brains.
Much as I love Robert Sapolsky's work in general, "The triune brain idea is one of the most successful and widespread errors in all of science” (Lisa Feldman Barrett 2020 - references below). When it was first described by Paul MacLean, as Robert says, in "The Triune Brain in Evolution. Role in Paleocerebral Functions" (1990) it was immediately and robustly critiqued (Reiner 1990).
The "neo-cortex" is not new, is not unique to modern humans and does not "regulate" the mythic "emotional brain".
Evolutionary neurobiology showed, as long ago as the early 1970s, that human brain development is simply a scaled-up version of all mammalian brain development and that all vertebrates possess the same basic brain regions (Cesario et al 2020). Including reptiles.
Despite being ubiquitous, continued use of the triune brain fallacy is not supported by the data - and has important implications for how emotions and agency are conceptualised. For example, the idea that rationality = thinking = the absence of emotion when, in practice, thinking can be profoundly irrational and emotion profoundly rational. Law, economics and much of daily discourse assumes there is a sharp distinction between the rational and the emotional, but this is a story, without foundation in how the brain actually evolved, works and is structured.
For those still teaching or otherwise engaging with the triune brain fallacy, I urge you to explore more current neuroscience by research scientists rather than commentators (this is NOT a pop at Robert Sapolsky. It's just that many, maybe most proponeents of the triune brain fallacy are not involved with directly testing the hypothesis). The papers below (and especially Lisa Feldman Barrett's books and RUclips interviews) centre a whole-brain view of our construction of reality. And is supported by ample evidence, unlike the 90's neo-Platonic theory.
• Your Brain's Most Important Functions - Dan Pink in Conversation with Lisa Feldman Barrett (2023) ruclips.net/video/Ndm06nZJrBA/видео.htmlsi=G7O2nLEnmJOV-aQB
• Cesario J, Johnson DJ & Eisthen HL (2020) Your Brain Is Not an Onion With a Tiny Reptile Inside. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 29(3), 255-260. journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0963721420917687#bibr34-0963721420917687
• Feldman Barrett, L (2018) How Emotions Are Made: The Secret Life of the Brain. Pan. lisafeldmanbarrett.com/books/how-emotions-are-made/
• Feldman Barrett, L (2020) Seven and a Half Lessons About the Brain. Picador. lisafeldmanbarrett.com/books/seven-and-a-half-lessons-about-the-brain/
• Reiner A (1990) An explanation of behavior: Review of The Triune Brain in Evolution. Role in Paleocerebral Functions. Paul D. MacLean. Plenum, New York, 1990. Science, 250:4978, 303-305. DOI:10.1126/science.250.4978.303-b
www.researchgate.net/publication/6043837_The_Triune_Brain_in_Evolution_Role_in_Paleocerebral_Functions_Paul_D_MacLean_Plenum_New_York_1990_xxiv_672_pp_illus_75
• Steffen PR, Hedges D and Matheson R (2022) The Brain Is Adaptive Not Triune: How the Brain Responds to Threat, Challenge, and Change. Frontiers in Psychiatry 13:802606. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2022.802606 www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2022.802606/full
Thank you both for the detailed comment and the additional sources of information to explore. Lots to chew on.
The criticism is simply based on (sometimes quite dishonest) misinterpretation of MacLean's ideas. For instance, the very idea that thought is not independent for emotion was actually the origin of his theory. It's called the triune brain, not the tripartite brain. He never said these "parts" were independent, or that they were successively added to one another during evolution without prior basis or that the "reptilian brain" in mammals was the same as in reptiles.
0:34 Thank you for the references. "schematic"
-good reason for lifelong ongoing educational renewal
Disparities in generational educational opportunities create generations of disparities in common working knowledge and communication.
Thanks!
wow! thank you for this detailed answer! I love it when people provide nuance, context and citations for their criticisms! A rare and valuable comment indeed.
this guy is my favourite kind of celebrity cos of his great ability to communicate complicated + relevant info in interesting and accessible ways, absolute legend
This guy is definitively my favourite neurobiologist! His work is a real treasure trove for my work as a self-employed neuropsychological clinician!
“The subconscious mind is ruled by suggestion, it accepts all suggestions - it does not argue with you - it fulfils your wishes.” “Your subconscious mind does not argue with you. It accepts what your conscious mind decrees. If you say, 'I can't afford it,' your subconscious mind works to make it true.
thank you for this justin 🙏🏽🖤
what is this from?
@@user-kj2gf1cn1pSounds like Napoleon Hill or even Robert Anton Wilson to me
No, often the subconscious mind sends signals to the conscious mind.
What the thinker thinks the prover proves
I admire this man so much. I have heard many people speak. Most of the intellectual ones I've heard, I did so on the internet. But this man manages to stand out. Among the great ones, this man is truly an exception.
Explanations without solutions
a meso potamian fossil
going extinct
@@TNT-km2eg Solution TLDW: When SHTF, go to your happy place.
Always a pleasure as well as an education to hear the eminent Robert Sapolsky.
Thank you for not cluttering this video with a cut rate Philip Glass-like soundtrack and corny stock footage as in some of the other entries in this series.
Nowhere is this more strikingly obvious than in people with mental illnesses, and I think those of us with anxiety have an intrinsic awareness of how our mental and emotional state affects our bodies, because damn if I'm not sitting here in a buttload of pain that I learned to tune out when I was a teenager because my cortisol flooded brain makes the muscles in my body tense 24/7, and I don't remember the last time I didn't have a headache! I can't get rid of the anxiety completely, so I can't get rid of the pain completely either, and the pain often makes my emotional state worse, que the vicious circle 🤷♀️
I understand, as someone that also suffers a lot of daily anxiety (1 of my symptoms of my autism), I strongly recommend trying out cbd, thc and even tripping, because it helped and helps me a lot.
Used to have a lot of anxiety and panic attacks, but fixed them for good with breathe work. It's kinda almost stupid and tragic how much pain and loss I could've prevented just by breathing in spesific ways for like 10-15 minutes a day.
Read Psychocybernetics. You'll understand.
I highly recommend you check out Dr. Russell Kennedy's work, and his approach to healing anxiety
I’ll jump on the advice wagon and say if you haven’t already done so look into how nutrition can help you. The food we eat has a lot of impact on our brain and and rest of our body.
I’m glad you learned to control your state of mind and I hope you’re able to conquer this challenge entirely 🙏🏼
So many ppl in the comments saying that this is not real... in 0:40 he litterally addresses that this is just schematic, the brain is not like this, its just a simple way of analysing how it works
He is ICONIC, and the way he explains things 🙌🏼 thank you sir
Genius. How I love these series. The science of thinking. Thank you for sharing your decades of knowledge. Powerful.
Thinking about something totally different from our present external situation isn't as easy as it is being said. But with practice it can be done. Practice to think. Take 30 mins of lone time and spend it to think, various scenarios, not fictitious, past, present and future, and when in stress, this will help you think better. Great video.
Thank you. I was looking for a TLDR.
But why not fictitious? I've heard that large parts of the brain can't tell the diff.
Listening to Mr Saplsky talk lowers my blood pressure :)
Fascinating! Very informative. I’ve known many of these concepts separately but Rob connects the dots for us, creating another wonderful Aha moment.
In my darker moments I judge the world for ignorance, but essentially it is a form of guiding the mind away from certain problems in order to survive, that all of us engage in, sometimes without knowing it.
I read Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers around 20 years ago and I've been a huge fan ever since. Loved this video.
I mastered this in mid 80s
And you can as well.
Well not really most people are too far gone.
They are easily identified and avoided.
Everything flows from your mental health, nurture and protect it as though your life depended on it cuz it sure as hell does!
You sound pretty ego driven though.
So nice! Seems to explain how practicing gratitude for the good things in your day or your life are good for your well being 😊
Consciously focusing your attention on something positive, exciting or relaxing just before you go to bed and when you wake up in the morning is really helpful.
Every time I listen to him my brain gets excited evidently I’ve been doing biofeedback for a couple decades now I just didn’t know that’s what it was called God bless everybody happy Fourth of July
Explaining so much in such a short period of time is an incredible expression of human altruism or love! Wow!
I've been waiting for this kind of explanation of how the brain communicates my entire life! I wish our educational system would teach this as it's most basic level starting in elementary school. It makes sense why meditation works, and how athletes and soldiers overcome their physical and mental obstacles when they are deemed, 'in the zone', and how some people have survived seemingly insurmountable circumstances. I feel like I just had the entire history of humanity's behavior summed up in an a matter of minutes.
He's the beast in explaining and storytelling 🎉
Wonderful, thank you, Dr. Sapolsky
I love it even more, that this genius is so appreciated
Thank you again, Dr. Saplosky, you are a genius among many.
🙏❤️🌎🌿🕊🎵🎶🎵
Cheers. I needed that: to think about listening to a schematic talk on thinking about what motivates me; Three talks to two who talks to one.
You have many areas in the brain with specialized functions. The three brain perspective is just one perspective, only a partial truth (since any object has many partial truths from different perspectives). The question is, how useful is your partial perspective, which depends on what you are doing.
Those “many areas” are specific to certain functions, eyes, ears etc. Robert is talking of how our mental/ emotional/ autonomic systems and how they interrelated, and control your behaviour, dispute having the largest neocortex of species
the man is ahead of his time. although old, his courses from Stanford and " the great courses" are life changing.
Each time I listen to him, my hope for humanity goes up ...!
I'm more positive.
Ahead of his time? This model of the brain was obsolete years ago. He's far behind.
@@neildutoit5177 obviously you know nothing about him or read any of his books..take care.
How is he ahead oh his time? We’ve always had brains and people attempting to explain them. He’s quite brilliant though.
Thanks Odin, I'll do my best to use this information practically to improve my life 🥰
Very informative and perspective shifting!
As for the last part: he coul call it meditation. People call it praying, yoga or positive thinking as well.
So true!
The great Robert Sapolsky!
It's like a calming rap.
Gifted narrator.
you make everything so logical, it really helps me to parse my emotional life, which right now is overwhelming me. (i think it matters , i’m 78 :) 🌷🌱
The professor mentioned three functional layers of the brain, the same brain, NOT 3 BRAINS!.
It is perfectly acceptable to speak of the "3 Brains" schema. What we currently understand about the evolution of the brain, specifically the human brain, the hind, limbic, and forebrain are stratified and came about through evolutionary pressures that had no single end-goal in mind.
Its just meant s y m b o l i c !
@@jamaalrichardson4966 I'm not a doctor, but that would be like title a video: "learn to use your 4 hearts" (just because the human heart has four chambers), I just criticized the title of the video, of course my absolute high respects for the professor Robert Sapolsky.
I'm surprised he doesn't mind referring to it as the Lizard Brain. I like to call it the Nematode Brain, since that's about the time we split off on the evolution arc, prior to the reptiles coming around. It just shows how confident he is with his knowledge, since he clearly sidesteps any of the issues of referring to it as literally a reptilian brain.
I'm dealing with a pain condition caused by mind body syndrome. The Lizard brain is creating pain to distract from the emotions the limbic system is feeling. The Lizard brain sees the emotions as just as dangerous as a bear, but instead of hiding pain like it usually does when it aroused temporarily, it creates pain because the limbic is aroused chronically, thus the pain becomes a chronic response like a stuck open neurological valve. It becomes chronic and I have to unlearn it. Dr. John Sarno pioneered this theory.
I'm convinced that the lizard brain was created by actual reptilian extraterrestrials there are civilizations that have lived before us we were not the first ones on the planet I'm sure we our DNA manipulated
Going by your excellent advice, it looks to me that hypnosis sessions to achieve, say weight loss or learning the piano easier and in less time spent is a big win win. Your book Determined is also a very thought provoking read. I wonder that you do not put that all to a video format. In general folks seem to lack social science guiding them in early and later educational years. Professor Sapolsky saves the world.
Distract yourself! Feel bad? Distract yourself and think about something that makes you feel good!
Yes. We can learn and practice self-regulation skills to improve health and happiness. No drugs or equipment necessary.
"You don’t have an inner lizard or an emotional beast-brain. There is no such thing as a limbic system dedicated to emotions. And your misnamed neocortex is not a new part; many other vertebrates grow the same neurons that, in some animals, organize into a cerebral cortex if key stages run for long enough. Anything you read or hear that proclaims the human neocortex, cerebral cortex, or prefrontal cortex to be the root of rationality, or says that the frontal lobe regulates so-called emotional brain areas to keep irrational behavior in check, is simply outdated or woefully incomplete. The triune brain idea and its epic battle between emotion, instinct, and rationality is a modern myth."
Excerpt From
Seven and a Half Lessons About the Brain
Lisa Feldman Barrett
What about the contrast between the Default Mode Network and the Task Positige Network. They seem to be in Part 3 in the description given above. For most people the DMN is default mode (hence the name) of perception and response, while the mind shifts into the TPN unconsciously depending on the focus of attention and action. But training (meditation) can allow the person to select greater involvement of the TPN to guide attention and action.
Wow! Robert really did a great job on explaining the brain(s) and its dynamics.
Good hair, good beard and good brain
Good comment! 😉
I’m jealous.😅
Frfr❤
I admire your creativity and the unique perspective you bring to your videos🌟🌟
I do this for chronic pain all the time!!
I find it fascinating that we just came out of a couple of strong dieting decades and a lot of us were raised by starving parents who were cruel
Im just here for his hair routine. Those curls are moisturized and healthy ✌️✨
Would love to hear his thoughts on using breath as a communication channel between layer 1 and 3. Conscious means to influence the reptile
Thanks for spending the time to create and share this content awareness/perspective
1. "If you think about the brain and behavior long enough, you can’t help but conclude that free will is an illusion. Our actions are shaped by our biology, our environment, and our experiences, and all of these are beyond our conscious control."
2. "When you realize that so much of what you do is not under your control, it’s liberating in a way. You can stop beating yourself up for your mistakes. You can recognize that you’re a product of forces far beyond your control, just like everyone else."
3. "One of the kindest things we can do for ourselves is to stop shaming ourselves for things that are beyond our control."
4. "In family relationships, understanding that free will is an illusion can lead to more empathy."
5. "Compassion arises naturally when we recognize that everyone is doing the best they can with the circumstances and biology they’ve been given."
Neurobiologist Dr Robert Sapolsky
Thank you Dr. Sapolsky for this info. But what I would like to understand is whether or not our subconscious mind and its thought generation are totally controlled by the limbic area. For instance, when people attempt to meditate we observe "mind chatter". Unwanted thoughts that annoyingly get injected over and over again into our consciousness and temporarily interrupt our focus. Such thoughts seem to be emanating from our subconscious, but are they actually originating in our conscious mind? But the real bottom line question here is, "What is the most efficient method for stopping them?"
If you like this, I urge you to seek out his classroom lectures here on yt -- great stuff!
I'm reminded of therapies, or potential ones, for folks with PTSD. How can we out-think the trauma we've through? How can we get our limbic systems past those ingrain associations? Please correct me if I'm not on the right track -
Am also reminded of Bernie Siegel's work to help cancer patients heal -
Seems he's been able to help people reach past the surface with regard to these systems.
Thank you for sharing.
What a pleasure to stumble upon a video by this amazing mind.
As a 2 brainer, I highly appreciate the information given by this 4 brainer gentleman.
this guy is a certified genius .... recipient of the macarthur genius grant for his work on neuroscience
Gurdjieff covered this idea back in 1900ish. Been a while since I read Ouspendsky’s “In Search” but I think he outlines it in that book. So the ancients knew about this far back in millennia. 🤷♀️🙏
Very well explained.
Thanks
Thanks for watching, we're glad you're here!
Love the way this has been simplified
The Tao does as well.
basics animals (fight or flight) < mammals (emotional support) < homo sapiens (rational thinking)
We don’t use our brain; it uses us.
First there is a mountain then there is not, then there is
Why create the division? Did you or your brain create that hierarchy?
😍❤️ The most kind man to explain madly complected things so,
that even such a 'paramecium' like me can understand something! /🙏🏻👍🏻❤✌🏻
Such a legend, thank you.
Not just the beard but the knowledge.
Look here, somebody needs to figure this out cause I just saw another video uploaded 3 days ago from Big Think , she says no the brain isn't made up of 3 systems, that that is the old thinking, that it's ridiculous. I wanna know what's really how it is..
Do you remember the name of that person? Or do you have a link to that video?
I am but a simple creature - Sabine synthesizes amazing videos and I phagocytose them.
17:40 - About this, a certain show I used to watch expressed it this way: maybe the universe _is_ teeming with life. But we won't find them anytime soon because Earth happens to be out in the space boonies!
Dr Robert, un humano excepcional en su campo, admirable
Perhaps more appropriate to state that we have 3 'levels' of brain, as opposed to 3 brains? Technicalities aside, loved the insights! 🧠
What do you think "une" in "triune" brain means?
live in present with full awareness is a success
Very insightful, thank you
כל הכבוד.
דברים ראויים.
למרות שהידע המדעי מוגבל
במדעי המוח.
Explains the Snickers TV commercials. Explains method acting and sense memory.
Fantastic content, but haven't we seen this before? 🤔
Yes we did..
Yeah we've seen it
Probably from The Big Think
@The Answer Hub yes and some people may have missed it - like me lol
Oh my overflowing GOURD! Thankyou Robert, you have given me an understanding of yet another TRIAD to help dispel the tension and contention that DUALISTIC thinking causes! I've been stuck contemplating how communication between the AMYGDALA (the older, 'lower', impulsive brain region) and the CORTEX (the younger, 'higher', cognitive region) results in my perceptions and responses to life events. Now, I have the 'missing third', the LIMBIC system (the 'middle aged', neither 'high' nor 'low', instinctive) to factor into the equation, and a formula for a more balanced perspective on life.
the amygala is part of the limbic system though
Thanks Henk. I need to keep learning, obviously! Im trying to understand interactions between the "head, heart & hands", or mental, emotional, physical aspects of my being, and am missing something regarding the differences between sensation & perception ('feelings' & emotions), cognition & conception (intentional thinking & intuitive inspiration).
@@tonyarmstrong8291 Terence McKenna. Jung. Nietzsche. CTMU. Psilocybin. I am releasing information on such topics soon. Not sure why but RUclips is trying to censor me. I have uploaded shorts about NS-TMT, what I believe may save humankind.
@@tonyarmstrong8291 Know this:
The Truth of the Matter lies where
Representative instants of categories
Functional variable categories
Proper accurate code/coding
Ranked causal value
All meet in the middle
Dear Robert, I have been following your lectures with pleasure for years and I find them very interesting, but I have a question. What is your diagnosis?
Fascinating.
Outstanding Lecture!
thoughts interact with affect interact with behavior interact with motivational states, and not necessarily in that order
Brain is a loyal soldier of mind.
Best channel
It would have helped if the talk was not so "run-on" and had more distinct segments. Visuals that illustrate the concepts would have helped enormously. Some bulleted points would help to focus.
He’s my favourite.
Robert ! Professor !! Nice . Great user manual for the / my brain(s) . I am really enjoying the increased awareness of and fascination with the stuff in my scull .
Just one question please:
¿ what was your favorite Talmudic tractate when you were growing up , or now ? Just curious, plus I would love to learn / chavrusa with you holy dude !
Thanks
I love these videos.
Same!
Best way to think about YOUR brain is to complicate it.
Waste it on figuring it out.
Genius
in its argumentation this feels very supportive of the Wim Hof method.
A explanation why ignorance sometimes makes you happyier
Absolutely genius! 👏
Sometimes when you are fasting you feel a mental clarity after that initial state of hunger. And why is that is something I still struggle to understand?
Its the ketones that your body is producing by fasting. The brain loves them. Plus the lack of insulin eliminates hypoglycemia and the liver ramps up gluconeogenesis. Epinephrine and noradrenaline become elevated. All of this combines to give you great clarity of thought and focus. From an evolutionary perspective this makes absolute sense. When do you need more alertness, focus and energy? When you have to go out in the dangerous world and hunt for game or run down an antelope. Fasting increases metabolic rates , switches the body into fat utilization and spares lean muscle catabolism.
i really really love this!
So for those afflicted with PTSD, the limbic layer is influence the lower layer and upper layers? Is trauma merely a memory that needs to be reevaluated in a way that is 'healthy' for the individual?
Real Trauma is locked behind a DREAD of neurons, that the cortex will only show you when the cortex believes your imagined self is ready
that the thought process is a REAL as it can get to deal with the coming reality
In other words complete disassociation with the words whirling around Muruguns finger
And you are like Kumar
:)
so is the decision to think about something to get a limbic response, is that a choice? or an inevitability?
I'm not sure I caught how I can choose to use them differently other than the bio-feedback part. I'm currently reading his book "Determined" and find his views parallel mine. The book is giving me more details to support what I think is true about free-will.
When hungry you go hunter mode - senses heighten to prime you for finding food and we do not make harsher moral judgements, we just think more clearer and people that seem to make harsher moral judgements when hungry they do the same when full anyway, just with patience and with a smile
One problem I always had with the triune model of the brain is that don't reptiles also experience some kind of fear, arousal, anxiety, and so on? It sure seems like they do, even if it's not as prominent and perhaps not as potent as it is in mammals.
I think it is just a name, like amphibian brain wouldn't sound as good. Both classes of animals also have emotions, I think?, but their basic behavior mostly resembles what the basic reptilian brain does.
Yes. The Triune model is wrong.
@@neildutoit5177 Indeed. And that's why I'm a bit disappointed to see it discussed here. Still admire Sapolsky and appreciate this channel, but was surprised to see Sapolsky of all people talking about it as though it were a rigorous and valid concept.
I think it's called reptilian brain because reptiles can regulate their bodily functions while, say, fish and frogs can't (like slowly boiling a frog). This isn't to say that reptiles ONLY operate on a reptilian level, but rather that this is their defining feature.
@@edwardgrigoryan3982 what is the current concept in place of the triune then?
Where has this channel been my entire life?
Right here, waiting for you! 💡
So insightful stuff, thanks
Fascinating! Thanks!
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00:00 🚀 *Setting and achieving goals doesn't have to feel like hard work; the key is implementing the advice from this video.*
01:08 🧹 *A clean room reduces distractions, lowers stress hormones, and improves focus; spend 5 minutes tidying it up every morning or night.*
02:29 📱 *Phones, computers, and game consoles can be major time-suckers; consider reducing screen time using apps like Unplug or built-in screen time options.*
03:38 👫 *The people you spend the most time with significantly influence you; surround yourself with positive individuals through clubs, sports, or online communities.*
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Much appreciated! 💡
Thank you, I dont need a therapist anymore. I need books and articles, also, a lot of coffee or just water