Dr. David Berson: The Logic & Function of Your Brain’s Circuits | Episode 50

In this episode, my guest is Dr. David Berson, Professor & Chairman of Neuroscience at Brown University. Dr. Berson discovered the neurons in your eye that set your biological rhythms for sleep, wakefulness, mood and appetite. He is also a world-renowned teacher of basic and advanced neuroscience, having taught thousands of university lectures on this topic. Many of his students have become world-leading neuroscientists and teachers themselves. 

Here Dr. Berson takes us on a structured journey into and around the nervous system, explaining: how we perceive the world and our internal landscape, how we balance, see, and remember. Also, how we learn and perform reflexive and deliberate actions, how we visualize and imagine in our mind, and how the various circuits of the brain coordinate all these incredible feats. 

We discuss practical and real-life examples of neural circuit function across the lifespan. Dr. Berson gives us a masterclass in the nervous system—one that, in just less than two hours, will teach you an entire course's worth about the brain and how yours works.

 

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Links:

InsideTracker Interview - https://blog.insidetracker.com/longevity-by-design-andrew-huberman  Dr. Berson's Webpage -  https://vivo.brown.edu/display/dberson  Eyewire - (Contribute to Neuroscience Research from Home/Computer - https://eyewire.org/explore   Best Neuroscience Textbook (NOTE this is a TEXTBOOK) - https://amzn.to/3lZWrL4  Book - We Know It When We See It by Richard Masland - https://amzn.to/31S60Vp 

 

Timestamps:

00:00:00 Dr. David Berson  00:02:55 Sponsors: Athletic Greens, InsideTracker, Magic Spoon  00:08:02 How We See  00:10:02 Color Vision  00:13:47 “Strange” Vision 00:16:56 How You Orient In Time 00:25:45 Body Rhythms, Pineal function, Light & Melatonin, Blueblockers 00:34:45 Spending Times Outdoors Improves Eyesight  00:36:20 Sensation, Mood, & Self-Image 00:41:03 Sense of Balance 00:50:43 Why Pigeons Bob Their Heads, Motion Sickness  01:00:03 Popping Ears 01:02:35 Midbrain & Blindsight  01:10:44 Why Tilted Motion Feels Good  01:13:24 Reflexes vs. Deliberate Actions 01:16:35 Basal Ganglia & the “2 Marshmallow Test” 01:24:40 Suppressing Reflexes: Cortex  01:33:33 Neuroplasticity  01:36:27 What is a Connectome? 01:45:20 How to Learn (More About the Brain) 01:49:04 Book Suggestion, my Berson Appreciation 01:50:20 Zero-Cost ways to Support the HLP, Guest Suggestions, Sponsors, Patreon, Thorne

 

Please note that The Huberman Lab Podcast is distinct from Dr. Huberman's teaching and research roles at Stanford University School of Medicine. The information provided in this show is not medical advice, nor should it be taken or applied as a replacement for medical advice. The Huberman Lab Podcast, its employees, guests and affiliates assume no liability for the application of the information discussed.

 

Title Card Photo Credit: Mike Blabac - https://www.blabacphoto.com