Scientists 'switch off' self control using brain stimulation

https://www.scientificamerican.com/...tch-off-self-control-using-brain-stimulation/

The article is nowhere near as over the top as the headline. I'd be interested to see if the study is as low powered as most neuroscience research is and if it's been replicated.

What's everyone's thoughts?
Interesting article, and not even behind a paywall:
Brain stimulation reveals crucial role of overcoming self-centeredness in self-control
So, i guess you can judge for yourself.
 
A few beers can have the same effects, I'm told. Well, I'm not too enthused about more of 'this brain region is correlated with this cognitive function'. It doesn't provide any immediate insight into the human mind.
 
A few beers can have the same effects, I'm told. Well, I'm not too enthused about more of 'this brain region is correlated with this cognitive function'. It doesn't provide any immediate insight into the human mind.
There is no immediate insight into the human mind. We're going to understand it like it's a machine.

~~ Paul
 
https://www.scientificamerican.com/...tch-off-self-control-using-brain-stimulation/

The article is nowhere near as over the top as the headline. I'd be interested to see if the study is as low powered as most neuroscience research is and if it's been replicated.

What's everyone's thoughts?

Yeah, it was an interesting paper. (Thanks for the link to the paper Bart.). I've just rushed through the main part of the paper... in no particular order I note a few points that popped into my head... lol...

1. We don't know what the physiological effects of the TMS were on the brain's network. My assumption being that the effects of the TMS probably did not remain localised to the TPJ.

2. The behavioral observations seemed only to indicate a disruptive effect to the normal network functioning. For instance I would expect that had the TMS been left in place since birth, the brain may learn to adapt to the effect, and neutralise it. Later removal of the TMS would then simply cause another disruptive effect.

3. Are the observed behavioral effects more childlike... (I don't know without doing some more research...) but off the top of my head they seem a little like that (learning to share etc). (Suggesting that network disruption caused a loss in focus of a persons EM field that affects the ability to deploy what has been learnt in the more recent past.)

4. At first glance the results seem supportive of the idea that neural firing (the EM field) selectively allows stuff in, and keeps stuff out, a bit like an active filter. A disruption of the field that causes more stuff to be kept out, because TMS induces stronger intracellular currents through the introduction of more energy. should increase Egocentric behaviour, as the sense of being an individual (less externally connected) increases.
 
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