Last week we posted a blog on mirror neurons and a growing body of psychological research that suggests that language is closely intertwined with our abilities to empathize with and understand other people. In this Ted Talk, Neuroscientist Vilayanur Ramachandran outlines the fascinating functions of mirror neurons. Only recently discovered, these neurons allow us to learn complex…
Read MoreHow Our Brains Read People
For centuries, philosophers and scientists have struggled to discover the mysterious origins of human language. A growing body of psychological research may have developed a neurological answer to this question, finding that language is closely intertwined with our abilities to empathize with and understand other people. Not only does recent scholarship suggest that our language…
Read MoreEmotion Recognition and Da Vinci
Is the Mona Lisa smiling? There seems to be little doubt that we can learn a great deal through artwork, and a recent study on Leonardo Da Vinci’s famous Mona Lisa painting can help shed light on our facial expression recognition skills, as well. This painting has long intrigued viewers, presenting an ambiguous facial expression…
Read MoreCan We Learn Empathy from Robots?
Many people familiar with science fiction tend to have an ingrained fear and repulsion at what are seen as cold and unfeeling robots. The idea of widespread artificial intelligence brings to mind terrifying visions from films such as The Terminator or The Matrix, both of which present an apocalyptic future where artificial intelligence turns on…
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