How Your Brain Works & Changes

Today’s episode provides an introduction to how the nervous system works to create sensations, perceptions, emotions, thoughts and behaviors, as well as how we can change our nervous system—a phenomenon known as neuroplasticity. The information sets the stage for all Huberman Lab podcast episodes that follow by covering neurons, synapses, brain chemicals and the rhythms that control our ability to focus, learn and sleep… and more. Thank you for your interest in science. We'll see you next week! For the full show notes, visit hubermanlab.com. Thank you to our sponsors AG1 (Athletic Greens): https://athleticgreens.com/huberman LMNT: https://drinklmnt.com/huberman Waking Up: https://www.wakingup.com/huberman Momentous: https://www.livemomentous.com/huberman Timestamps (00:00:00) Introduction (00:02:25) Sponsors: AG1, LMNT (00:07:57) What is the Nervous System (00:7:25) Deja Vu (00:08:09) How War, Guns & Soap Shaped Our Understanding of the Brain (00:10:47) Jennifer Aniston Neurons (00:11:58) Sensations (00:13:30) Magnetic Sensing & Mating (00:14:51) Perceptions & The Spotlight of Attention (00:16:33) Multi-Tasking Is Real (00:17:45) Bottom-Up vs. Top-Down Control of Behavior (00:18:38) Focusing the Mind (00:21:47) Antidepressants (00:25:01) Thoughts & Thought Control (00:25:56) Actions (00:30:40) How We Control Our Impulses (00:33:44) Neuroplasticity: The Holy Grail of Neuroscience (00:38:34) The Portal to Neuroplasticity (00:43:53) Accelerating Learning in Sleep (00:47:29) The Pillar of Plasticity (00:52:22) Leveraging Ultradian Cycles & Self Experimentation (00:57:17) Summary (00:58:03) Zero-Cost Support, Feedback, Reviews Title Card Photo Credit: Mike Blabac Disclaimer

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Huberman Lab discusses neuroscience — how our brain and its connections with the organs of our body control our perceptions, our behaviors, and our health. We also discuss existing and emerging tools for measuring and changing how our nervous system works. Andrew Huberman, Ph.D., is a neuroscientist and tenured professor in the department of neurobiology, and by courtesy, psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford School of Medicine. He has made numerous significant contributions to the fields of brain development, brain function and neural plasticity, which is the ability of our nervous system to rewire and learn new behaviors, skills and cognitive functioning.  Huberman is a McKnight Foundation and Pew Foundation Fellow and was awarded the Cogan Award, given to the scientist making the most significant discoveries in the study of vision, in 2017. His lab’s most recent work focuses on the influence of vision and respiration on human performance and brain states such as fear and courage. He also works on neural regeneration and directs a clinical trial to promote visual restoration in diseases that cause blindness. Huberman is also actively involved in developing tools now in use by the elite military in the U.S. and Canada, athletes, and technology industries to optimize performance in high stress environments, enhance neural plasticity, mitigate stress and optimize sleep.   Work from the Huberman Laboratory at Stanford School of Medicine has been published in top journals including Nature, Science and Cell and has been featured in TIME, BBC, Scientific American, Discover and other top media outlets.  In 2021, Dr. Huberman launched the Huberman Lab podcast. The podcast is frequently ranked in the top 5 of all podcasts globally and is often ranked #1 in the categories of Science, Education, and Health & Fitness.