Benjamin Young

1 week ago | thetransmitter.org | Calli McMurray |Benjamin Young |Jill Adams |Mark Humphries

Olfactory neuroscientists have known for a while that their stimuli stink. In many experiments, lab animals inhale puffs of a single strong odorant for only a few seconds at a time, an experience that “likely bears little resemblance—either in concentration or in form—to the ways in which animals naturalistically interact with odors,” says Sandeep Robert Datta, professor of neurobiology at Harvard University.

Oct 21, 2024 | thetransmitter.org | Terrence Sejnowski |Benjamin Young |Charles Choi |Francisco J. Rivera Rosario

Francis Crick ChairSalk Institute for Biological Studies Share this article: Tags: Large language models, Artificial intelligence, Language, Neural networks In the latter half of the twentieth century, physics coasted along on discoveries made in the first half of the century. The theory of quantum mechanics gave us insight into secrets of the universe, which led to a cornucopia of practical applications. Then physics took on another grand challenge—complexity.

Aug 26, 2024 | thetransmitter.org | Benjamin Young |Angie Voyles Askham |Nicole Rust |Francisco J. Rivera Rosario

Upcoming titles:“From Sensing to Sentience: How Feeling Emerges From the Brain,” by Todd E. Feinberg (MIT Press)Individual brain structures work together to perform the cognitive processes that power sentience. But how sentience develops from these separate but interconnected brain areas has proved difficult to pin down. In “From Sensing to Sentience,” neurologist Todd E.

Aug 26, 2024 | thetransmitter.org | Benjamin Young |Jill Adams |Tim Requarth |Francisco J. Rivera Rosario

Words are a poor medium for conveying smells—there is something qualitatively missing in writing about smells that leaves out the ephemeral nature of these sensory entities. Despite this obstacle, those of us who study olfaction have dedicated our careers to researching and writing about how the nervous system perceives smells and the nature of olfactory consciousness. The following excerpt from Chapter 2 of my book “Stinking Philosophy!” asks a simple question: What are smells?

Aug 26, 2024 | thetransmitter.org | Benjamin Young |Angie Voyles Askham |Nicole Rust |Francisco J. Rivera Rosario

DirectorInterdisciplinary Center for Neuroscience Share this article: Tags: Consciousness, Books, Evolution, History Defining consciousness has been a subject of debate ever since humans have had a sense of their existence. Consciousness is inextricably bound to the workings of our brain, but how neurophysiological processes become the internal, subjective experiences that make up sentient life remains obscure.