Group items tagged

long-term improvements in mental function and is the single best thing one can do to slow the cognitive decline that accompanies normal aging.

a short-lasting, deeply euphoric state that's well beyond the simple relaxation or peacefulness felt by many following intense exercise.

there are different types of endorphins

that are synthesized within the brain and therefore could cause euphoria without crossing the blood-brain barrier.

The researchers found that this long run was associated with increased opioid release in the runner's' brains, particularly in the prefrontal cortex

and the anterior cingulate cortex and insula

It's likely that runner's high is not entirely mediated by the opioid system: Exercise also increases the levels of endocannabinoids, the brain's natural cannabis-like molecules, in the bloodstream.

Thus exercise-induced increases in endocannabinoid levels in blood are presumably mirrored in the brain and could also contribute to the euphoria of runner's high.

1990s

The link between cannabis and psychosis is well established

link between use of marijuana and depression

triggers the onset or relapse of schizophrenia in predisposed people and also exacerbates the symptoms generally

use of marijuana during adolescence increased the risk of schizophrenia in a dose-response relation

possible causal role of other drugs, and prodromal symptoms of schizophrenia

led to the use of cannabis, rather than cannabis triggering the psychosis.

is associated with later schizophrenia and that this is not explained by prodromal symptoms

cannabis

relation between

strong association between use of cannabis and psychosis

Participants who showed psychotic symptoms at baseline and used cannabis had a worse outcome

used cannabis three times or more by age 15 or 18

more likely to have schizophreniform disorder at age 26

cannabis increased the risk of major depression

increase in suicidal ideation and anhedonia

the use of cannabis and anxiety or depression in a large cohort of 14-15 year olds followed for seven years

Length of exposure to use of cannabis predicted the severity of the psychosis

higher rates of anxiety or depression

frequency

study in the New Zealand

did not find an association between cannabis use at age 15 and depressive disorder at age 26

that young people who had used cannabis three times or more by age 18 were more likely to have a depressive disorder at age 26

findings strengthen the argument that use of cannabis increases the risk of schizophrenia and depression

importance of reducing the use of cannabis in people who use it

exposure to cannabis would have reduced the incidence of psychosis requiring treatment by as much as 50%

showing that the use of cannabis increased the risk of schizophrenia by 30%

cannabis will contribute to more episodes or new cases of the illness

it cannot offer a secure foundation for our self-esteem.

People with healthy self-esteem are able to take risks and to give their all to a project or ambition, because, although failure may hurt or upset them, it is not going to damage or diminish them.

It is instructive to compare healthy self-esteem with pride and also with arrogance. If self-confidence is “I can” and self-esteem is “I am”, then pride is “I did”. To feel proud is to take pleasure from the goodness of our past actions and achievements.

arrogance stems from hunger and emptiness.

so there can be no such thing as excessive self-esteem. Instead, it betrays all the opposite.

Whenever we live up to our dreams and promises, we can feel ourself growing. Whenever we fail but know that we have given our best, we can feel ourself growing. Whenever we stand up for our values and face the consequences, we can feel ourself growing. Whenever we come to terms with a difficult truth, we can feel ourself growing. Whenever we bravely live up to our ideals, we can feel ourself growing. That is what growth depends on. Growth depends on bravely living up to our ideals, not on the ideals of the bank that we work for, or our parents’ praise, or our children’s successes, or anything else that is not truly our own but, instead, a betrayal of ourself.

Nor is he someone who ever betrayed knowledge and integrity in favour of deception and unconsciousness.

More than a great philosopher, Socrates was the living embodiment of the dream that philosophy might one day set us free.

phenotypes

My goal is to convince skeptics that a combination of “hard” and “soft” interdisciplinary research is necessary to advance the study of animal emotions.

broadly defined as psychological phenomena that help in behavioral management and control

It is important to extend our research beyond the underlying physiological mechanisms that mask the richness of the emotional lives of many animals and learn more about how emotions serve them as they go about their daily activities

emotions are real and that they are extremely important,

René Descartes

B. F. Skinner

Why then are there competing views on the nature of animal emotions? In part, this is because some people view humans as unique animals, created in the image of God

researchers studying animal behavior came to realize that there was too little in studies of animal emotions and minds that was directly observable, measurable, and verifiable, and chose instead to concentrate on behavior because overt actions could be seen, measured objectively, and verified

Most researchers now believe that emotions are not simply the result of some bodily state that leads to an action

William James and Carl Lange

Walter Cannon's criticisms

drugs producing bodily changes like those accompanying an emotional experience

do not produce the same type of conscious experience of fear

Primary emotions, considered to be basic inborn emotions

Natural selection has resulted in innate reactions that are crucial to individual survival.

are wired into the evolutionary old limbic system (especially the amygdala), the “emotional” part of the brain

substrate

. Each is connected to the other two but each also has its own capacities

current research (LeDoux 1996) indicates that all emotions are not necessarily packaged into a single system, and there may be more than one emotional system in the brain.

Secondary emotions are those that are experienced or felt, evaluated, and reflected on. Secondary emotions involve higher brain centers in the cerebral cortex.

ethologists

cognitive ethologists want to know what it is like to be another animal.

concerns how emotions and cognition are linked

A sense of self in the act of knowing is created,

various brain structures map both the organism and external objects

I am inclined merely to delete it [the mental realm] from biological explanation, because it is an entirely private phenomenon, and biology must deal with the publicly demonstrable.”

abanac postulated that the first mental event to emerge into consciousness was the ability of an individual to experience the sensations of pleasure and displeasure

Examples of animal emotions

Studies of the chemistry of play support the idea that play is enjoyable.

rats enjoy being playfully tickled.

grief in geese

grief and depression in orphan elephants is a real phenomeno

It is unlikely that romantic love (or any emotion) first appeared in humans with no evolutionary precursors in animals

No one discipline will be able to answer all of the important questions that still need to be dealt with in the study of animal emotions

However, research that reduces and minimizes animal behavior and animal emotions to neural firings, muscle movements, and hormonal effects will not likely lead us significantly closer to an understanding of animal emotions.

studies of the behavior of captive animals

Field work also can be problematic. It can be too uncontrolled to allow for reliable conclusions to be drawn.

Emotions are an integral part of human life, so why not for other animals?

in many instances, differences in degree rather than differences in kind.