Problems associated with the topic of the mind-brain interaction are reviewed and analyzed. If there is an interaction, then the "mind" and "brain" are independent variables; the mind represents subjective experience and is therefore a non-physical phenomenon. This fact led to the need for a field theory, termed here the "cerebral mental field" (CMF). By definition, the CMF is a system property...

Susan Pockett presents sound arguments supporting her reinterpretations of data that Libet and co-workers used to support a number of intriguing and influential conclusions regarding the microgenesis and timing of (a) conscious sensory experience and (b) volitionally controlled motor responses. The following analysis, extending and elaborating some of her main arguments, proposes that Libet's e...

We developed and tested a behavioral measure to better understand the entire experience and related satisfaction for a commercial packaged food. Measures were performed at home considering the entire food experience, i.e. food unpacking, food preparation and consumption. Participants filmed their interaction at home with the food and also scored in a questionnaire their satisfaction for a list ...

Neuroscience research in slice preparations and animal models within the last decade has shown that neural plasticity is a ubiquitous mechanism by which the brain represents and encodes its dynamic sensory world. This workshop considered how dynamic sensory representations are modified by experience, new methods for imaging those representations in human subjects, and applications of human neur...

The functional and anatomical rearrangements of cortical sensory maps accompanying changes in experience are not well understood. We examined in vivo and in vitro how the sensory map and underlying synaptic connectivity of the developing rat barrel cortex are altered when the sensory input to the cortex is partially deprived. In the nondeprived cortex, both the sensory responses and synaptic co...

The balance between excitation and inhibition is critical in shaping receptive field tuning properties in sensory neurons and, ultimately, in determining how sensory cues are extracted, transformed and interpreted by brain circuits. New findings suggest that developmentally-regulated, experience-dependent changes in intracortical inhibitory networks are key to defining receptive field tuning pr...

The central nervous system architecture is highly dynamic and continuously modified by sensory experience through processes of neuronal plasticity. Plasticity is achieved by a complex interplay of environmental influences and physiological mechanisms that ultimately activate intracellular signal transduction pathways regulating gene expression. In addition to the remarkable variety of transcrip...

Recent electron microscopic studies provide evidence that the adult cortex generates new synapses in response to sensory activity and that these structural changes can occur rapidly, within 24 hr of sensory stimulation. Together with progress imaging synapses in vivo, the stage appears set for advances in understanding the dynamics and mechanisms of experience-dependent synaptogenesis.