BS: Empathy and the brain

Subject: RE: BS: Empathy and the brain
From: Jeri
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 05:18 PM

Personally, I'm more inspired by the questions than the answers. I don't know why some things happen, but I'm sure they do, and I'm sure all sorts of people will keep trying to find explanations. I think it probably comes down to butterfly wings. Things too small for us to notice can add up to something that looks like magic.

I used to love the TV show "Touch". At least for most of the first season, until it fell into the trap many shows do of sacrificing the small, interesting, but not-so-important things in favor of the usual plot of having some ultra bad guy or bad guy organization trying to do away with the main character. It went from being something really special to being another dumb show. But it HAD been all about the connections, and about a kid who could see them.

Subject: RE: BS: Empathy and the brain
From: akenaton
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 04:58 PM

Well, like gnu, I don't want to go into details, but I told someone what I was thinking, couldn't sleep etc....just like gnu,

Within 2 hrs my thoughts were verified through an horrific accident.
All witnessed by a third party.

Subject: RE: BS: Empathy and the brain
From: GUEST,Ed T
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 04:11 PM

To be clear, I don't believe in mind readers either.That considered,
that side issue does not deminish the main concepts brought forward in the link in the op.

Subject: RE: BS: Empathy and the brain
From: Lighter
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 04:08 PM

Journalists, including science journalists, will go for the colorful cliche' whenever they can in order to keep the dry science interesting and understandable.

Obviously no "reading" of minds is implied in the article, regardless of the attention-grabbers used.

Subject: RE: BS: Empathy and the brain
From: gnu
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 03:42 PM

I totally agree, Bill D.

Having said that, do I believe there is a possibily of what I experienced? Of course. Do I believe there are "mind readers"? No.

Subject: RE: BS: Empathy and the brain
From: Bill D
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 03:13 PM

The article says.."... we practically are in another person's mind."

Fascinating article and discoveries... but..(you knew I'd have a 'but', hmm?)...but it amounts to equivocation on the term 'mind reading'.

It may well be that certain areas of the brain process data about the behavior of others and compare it to our own... and it may be that lacking certain structures make it difficult to DO this comparison, leading to a lack of what we call empathy........but using that to imply a proof of genuine "mental telepathy" is a stretch.

We compare our behavior with that of others constantly... that is part of what children do to 'grow up'. I am sure that most people are not lying about 'experiences' of supposed mind reading, but verification requires more than relating interesting stories and making assumptions. (It would be nice to have testable theory about the mechanism for such experiences)

Subject: RE: BS: Empathy and the brain
From: gnu
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 03:08 PM

I agree too, Lighter. But, what happened to me was real. All I can ask for is the benfit of the doubt. It could not have been mere coincidence. I have had other similar experiences but they were mild in comparison. What I describe above was heart wrenching in more ways than one but I will not discuss the details.

Hmmmm... maybe an example of one I dismissed. I could not get to sleep. I had no idea why. For over an hour. Then, I knew someone was in the room. I sat up and there was my father who was dead for exactly one year. He said, "Thank you. You are a good son." in reference to something he asked me to do and he vanished. Surely one would dismiss that as a dream, as a subconcious wish created in my brain? I certainly did, in time. But the instance I spoke to above? No. That was real. It happened. I was there. That was no dream.

Subject: RE: BS: Empathy and the brain
From: akenaton
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 03:04 PM

No coincidence in my case Lighter, it was verified by a third party.
I have had several similar experiences.
gnu....what I'm talking about was very similar to your experience, I certainly believe you and believe there are powers in the mind which have never been explained.

As I said, my opinion is that it harks back to a time when these powers were needed for survival
I also believe that animals have powers of intuition, as well as heightened powers of sight, smell, hearing.

Subject: RE: BS: Empathy and the brain
From: GUEST
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 01:22 PM

I agree, Lighter.

Subject: RE: BS: Empathy and the brain
From: Lighter
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 12:49 PM

> in the end, that is what really matters.

To the experiencer.

But what really matters to the rest of us is whether more than coincidence was involved.

Not scoffing, mind you. Just observing.

Subject: RE: BS: Empathy and the brain
From: GUEST,Ed T
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 12:44 PM

intuition 

An interesting interview on intuition with Laura Day

Subject: RE: BS: Empathy and the brain
From: GUEST
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 12:11 PM

I've had a few 'similar type' experiences, gnu. It's hard to document, but we know the experiences happened and in the end, that is what really matters. BM

Subject: RE: BS: Empathy and the brain
From: gnu
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 12:00 PM

It's hard to wrap one's head around the concept/claim of mental telepathy but I had one experience which precludes me from denying it's possible existence.

I was sat upon a large fallen log way back in the woods waiting on partridge, about 50 miles from my city. I looked at my watch and it was 5PM. A sudden, overwhelming sensation came over me and my head spun in the direction of home. I heard her. I said aloud, "J*** needs me.", immediately rose and did not travel by road but ran as fast as possible through the woods directly toward my truck. I raced all the way home, changed and went to the hospital. It was her. I won't give you the details, except to say she was okay but, at the moment when I heard her, in extreme pain.

I am having a hard time to type this. I am actually trembling from the vivid recollection.

Proof? No. But there it is.

Subject: RE: BS: Empathy and the brain
From: akenaton
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 11:26 AM

I have certainly experienced mental telepathy (verified)
So I am sure that primitive man was fully equipped with a large number of "senses", which are gradually being lost as we become more "civilised"

Subject: RE: BS: Empathy and the brain
From: Lighter
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 11:08 AM

Interesting.

Are sociopaths unable to interpret mirror neuron input fully?

Subject: RE: BS: Empathy and the brain
From: GUEST,Ed T
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 10:43 AM

Science - why some have it, others not 

Let s try it again

Subject: BS: Empathy and the brain
From: GUEST,Ed T
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 10:40 AM

"Empathy allows us to feel the emotions of others, to identify and understand their feelings and motives and see things from their perspective. How we generate empathy remains a subject of intense debate in cognitive science.

Some scientists now believe they may have finally discovered its root. We're all essentially mind readers, they say.

The idea has been slow to gain acceptance, but evidence is mountiing."

a href="http://www.livescience.com/220-scientists-read-minds.html">Science - why some have it, others not