BRAINLAND

Frank Burke is a leading film scholar with a long interest in Italian director Federico Fellini (1920-1993). Few artists were more obsessed with their dreams than Fellini. In this conversation we talk about his early interest in puppets and circus, and his jobs, before moving into film, as an illustrator and caracaturist. Drawing was always an important part of his preparation for movies but he also kept a graphic, drawn dream diary in the '60s and '70s, at the suggestion of Jungian analyst Ernst Bernhard. We discuss his interest in the work of another analyst, James Hillman who leaned more to the mystical and symbolic, and explore the recurring themes in those diaries (published postumously). Films in which dreams feature large are also discussed - we mention several but we focus on four including the feted 'Eight and a half'( 1963) and the vilified 'City of Women' (1980). To close Frank suggests movies that listeners new to Fellini may watch as an as a way into his work (depending on their interests and state of intoxication).Participants:Frank Burke, Independent film scholar and Professor Emeritus, Department of Film and Media, Queen’s University, Ontario, Canada. https://www.queensu.ca/filmandmedia/people-search/frank-burkeKen Barrett, visual artist, writer and retired neuropsychiatrist: http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.ukMore on Federico Fellini: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federico_FelliniSome films discussed:Eight and a Half: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056801/Juliet of the spirits: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059229/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_6_nm_2_in_0_q_%2520%2520Juliet%2520of%2520the%2520spiritsCity of Women: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080539/More on James Hillman: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_HillmanParticipant:More on Carlos Castaneda: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlos_Castaneda'CAPOLAVORO! Masterworks of Italian Cinema' podcast: https://shows.acast.com/capolavoro-masterworks-of-italian-cinema/episodes/68c9445da8e1b0e4bfd2ee12Opening music: Prelude to the opera Brainland, composed by Stephen Brown. Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.ukSketch by KB.

In this wide ranging conversation Mark Solms talks about his seminal research in the '80s on the effect of brain lesions on patient reports of dreaming. After a brief visit to Charcot and Wilbrand in the late 19th century, we discuss the research of Dement and colleagues in the 1950s, when it was discoverd that every 90 minutes or so during sleep our EEG is more like the awake state, with asociated rapid eye movments (REM). We discuss Jouvet's work in the '60s in which the origin of REM sleep was found to be in the brain stem the belief at the time that REM and dreaming were part of the same process, later disproved by the work of Mark and others who found it to be cortical. There's an interesting diversion into culture wars in the science community (where, in his early days, studying something as subjective as dreams was 'unthinkable') before moving on to somnambulism, the implications of all this for Freudian theory and concluding thoughts about current dream research including a quite incredible recent Japanese study. Great conversation with an enthusiastic communicator.Participants: Mark Solms, Professor, Department of Neuropsychology, University of Capetown, SA. https://neuroscience.uct.ac.za/contacts/mark-solmsKen Barrett, visual artist, writer and retired neuropsychiatrist: http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.ukMark's books 'The Hidden Spring': https://profilebooks.com/work/the-hidden-spring/'The Neuropsychology of dreams: https://www.karnacbooks.com/product/the-neuropsychology-of-dreams-a-clinico-anatomical-study/94585/?Opening and closing music: Prelude to the opera Brainland, composed by Stephen Brown. Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.ukSketch by KB.

In this podcast we discuss the music called plainchant or plainsong - what it is, how did it arise and what effect does it have? We discuss the modal nature of the music, possible links to earlier Jewish intoning and the importance of resonance in recording. Bernard describes his research project in which subjects record their responses, relating to memory, emotion and transcendence. Three short extracts of the recordings he used are included in the podcast and fuller versions can be accessed through the links below. Some results are included before a diversion into philosopher Vladimir Jankélévitch and and quantum time. To conclude, Bernard talks about ways in which his research could be developed, not least the involvement of brain investigation. For a readable thesis on an under researched subject check out the link below .Participants: Bernard Salter, retired Anglican priest, organist and post-doctoral scholar.Ken Barrett, visual artist, writer and retired neuropsychiatrist: http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.ukBernard's dissertation is here: https://etheses.dur.ac.uk/15491/Vladimir Jankélévitch: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Jank%C3%A9l%C3%A9vitchA full version of plainchant sample A: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvfjgSvq6KAThe full album 'Chant' by monks of Sana Domingo di Silo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3T8V-IM4XkA full version of plainchant sample C: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZFaZWi2uSIIf you prefer female voices try this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gn6gXCW_qucOpening music: Prelude to the opera Brainland, composed by Stephen Brown. Closing music: Introit for Christmas Day, from the album 'Chant' by monks of Sana Domingo di Silo, Spain.Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.ukSketch by KB.

Joseph Beuys was a radical post-war German artist who worked in unusual media and in the 1970s developed the notion of ‘social sculpture’ based on the concept that everything is art and every aspect of life could be approached creatively. For episode 17 this season Hugh Rickards, a younger neuropsychiatric colleague from the English Midlands, read and discussed his essay 'The lost tribes of neuropsychiatry'. At the end of that Hugh asked if he could ask me about my experience of creating a neuropsychiatry service in the ‘80s and ‘early ‘90s, with the help of a lot of colleagues, in a National Health Service that didn’t know it needed one. When I left clinical practice I took a deep dive into contemporary art, discovered Joseph Beuys and realised that creative clinical work can also be viewed as a kind of art practice, a social sculpture'. We'd recorded that conversation and it is definitiely niche but, hey, this is Brainland...welcome to ‘neuropsychiatry after dark...'Participants: Hugh Rickards, Consultant and Honorary Professor of Neuropsychiatry, National Centre for Mental Health, Birmingham, UK. http//:www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/clinical-sciences/Rickards-Hugh.aspxKen Barrett, visual artist, writer and retired neuropsychiatrist: http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.ukMore about Joseph Beuys and 'social sculpture': https://www.tate.org.uk/art/art-terms/s/social-sculptureOpening and closing music: Prelude to the opera Brainland, composed by Stephen Brown. Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.ukSketch by KB.

In this podcast Kimberly Campanello, a poet, novelist and academic, talks frankly about her early onset Parkinson's disease and how this lead her to pursue her Italian roots in Puglia. On a visit there, to her great grandmother's village, she literally discovered Dante's 'Comedia', which she is currently 'reversioning' - a method that involves processing the original Italian, a range of translations and commentaries, plus her life experience, coloured by her condition. She discussed making creative use of the effects of Parkinson's and the beneficial effects of her writing on her motor function, similar to the benefits of walking on irregular surfaces. We discuss the recent remarkable finding that, not only does PD influence movement, but also use of language, and especially verbs (see the link to the paper below). Along the way Kimberly reads one of her poems based on a canto from Dante and extracts from her published and recently finished novel. We end with a reading from her current poetry collection. This is 'Brainland'! Grreat conversation.Participants:Kimberly Campanello, Poet, novelist and Professor of Poetry, University of Leeds. https://www.kimberlycampanello.com/Ken Barrett, artist, writer and retired neuropsychiatrist. http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/Kimberly’s published canti from her Dante versioning:https://www.stillpointldn.com/articles/kimberly-campanello-two-cantos-from-this-knot/https://www.pamenarpress.com/post/kimberly-campanellohttps://blackboxmanifold.sites.sheffield.ac.uk/https://www.poetryireland.ie/publications/poetry-ireland-review/back-issues/issue-144The books discussed [Use the Words You Have (novel) & An Interesting Detail (poetry collection)]:https://somesuch.co/shop/use-the-words-you-have-by-kimberly-campanello https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/interesting-detail-9781526690616/Kimberly's recent and really interesting Parkinson's disease inspired poem 'Moving Nowhere Here' is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SzRJTZ2lHgURead Paradoxical Kinesia (short prose): https://checkout.somesuch.co/products/somesuch-stories-7 A paper on Parkinson's disease and use of language: file:///Users/kenbarrett/Downloads/Words_in_motion_Motor-language_coupling_in_Parkins-1.pdOpening and closing music: Prelude to 'Brainland', the opera by Stephen Brown.Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.ukFollow us us on Instagram:#brainlandcollective #brainlandthepodcastPortraitsketch by KB.

The Burden Neurological Institute (and Hospital) opened its' doors in 1939 and closed in 2000. In this wide ranging conversation, Jonathan Bird and Ken Barrett, neuropsychiatric alumni, chew the fat about the history of 'The Burden', the research home of Grey Walter who featured in the last Brainland episode. We discuss the unusual origin, Frederick Golla, the first director, the impact of the war, a wide range of characters who worked there and the work they did. A bit niche? Absolutely, but hey, that's Brainland!Participants:Jonathan Bird, Retired Consultant Neuropsychiatrist, Bristol.Ken Barrett, artist, writer and retired neuropsychiatrist. .http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/Opening and closing music: Prelude to 'Brainland', the opera by Stephen Brown.Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.ukFollow us us on Instagram:#brainlandcollective #brainlandthepodcastPortrait sketch by KB.

Grey Walter was an important figure in mid-20th century neurophysiology and cybernetics and this episode brings together professors of history of science and AI to discuss his life and work. We talk about his early personal and academic life, moving on to his work as a pioneer of the clinical applications of the EEG, particularly at the Burden Neurological Institute in Bristol. After setting the scene, we discuss his creation of the earliest EEG frequency analyser and brain mapper (the toposcope) before moving onto his influential book 'The Living Brain' and, in Cornelius's phrase, the 'vital abstraction' paradigm . We discuss his creation of a simple robot, in the late 1940s, the reason why he is revered in cybernetics circles, and later his experiments on brain computer interfacing. We touch on his controvertial personal life, a possible reason why he was never invited to become a Royal Society member, before talking about his legacy. A great conversation about an important figure form 20th century brain science.Participants:Cornelius Borck, Professor and Director of the Institute for History of Medicine and Science Studies, Lübeck University, Germany. https://www.imgwf.uni-luebeck.de/Phil Husbands, Emeritus Professor of Artificial Intelligence at the University of Sussex ( https://profiles.sussex.ac.uk/p1334-phil-husbands/about)Ken Barrett, artist, writer and retired neuropsychiatrist. .http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/More on William Grey Walter: https://collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/people/ap28659/walter-william-greyhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Grey_WalterHis robotic tortoises: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLULRlmXkKo His book 'The Living Brain': https://wwnorton.com/books/The-Living-Brain/Grey Walter's novel 'Further Outlook' (published as 'The curve of the snowflake' in the US): https://openlibrary.org/books/OL6200854M/The_curve_of_the_snowflake.Ken's recent paper on the first forensic use of the EEG: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/bjpsych-bulletin/article/first-appearance-of-eeg-evidence-in-a-uk-court-of-law-a-cautionary-tale/9D97D5564586762599DBA680D61C994DMusic: Stephen Brown’s prologue to the opera 'Brainland'Sketch by KB.Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.uk

In this conversation philospher Raymond Tallis talks about his new book 'Circling Around Explicitness: The heart of human being'. Ray's book opens with a quote from German philosopher Friedrich Schelling ‘Uniquely within us nature opens her eyes and sees that she exists.’ What follows is an exploration of the meaning of 'thatness', his attempt to, in his words, 'eff the uneffed'. Our circling alights on a number of thinkers who he believes oversimplify misrepresent being, how 'the blob and the brain' become 'the bloke' . Donald Hoffman, Phillip K. Dick and Martin Buber get a mention, not all favourable, as does the 'autocidal tendency in contemproary philosophy', as we work through the four section of his book. To close he reads the closing paragraphs and gives us a peek at what is coming next. Great conversation.Participants: Raymond Tallis, philosopher and former professor of geriatric medicine, http://www.raymondtallis.co.uk/pages/home.htmlKen Barrett, visual artist, writer and retired neuropsychiatrist: http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.ukRay's books: Circling around explicitness:https://cup.columbia.edu/book/circling-round-explicitness/9781788217903/ Black mirror: https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-black-mirror/raymond-tallis/9781848871298Also discussed: Martin Buber: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_and_ThouOpening and closing music: Prelude to the opera Brainland, composed by Stephen Brown. Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.ukSketch by KB.

Earlier this season we recorded an episode on poetry and neuroscience in which Eugen Wassiliwitzki pointed out that in German the grammar produces many more internal rhymes and rhythms. This is perhaps even more true of Italian. The leading Italian poet of the last century is probably Nobel Prize winner Eugenio Montale. Jonathan Galassi has been reading, researching and translating Montale for decades. In this podcast he talks about Montale's background, influences, politics, religion and love-life. Jonathan reads one of his most famous poems in Italian and in his translation and one of his own from his collection 'North Street'. We touch on his antipathy for fellow poet and film director Pasolini before concluding with a brief discussion of Italian poetry after Montale.Participants: Jonathan Galassi, poet, novelist, translator and publisher. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_GalassiKen Barrett, visual artist, writer and retired neuropsychiatrist: http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.ukJonathan's translations of Montale: http://www.everymanslibrary.co.uk/pocket-poets-author.aspx?letter=m&search=&firstname=Eugenio&surname=MontaleThe poem Jonathan reads, 'In limine' read in Italian by Montale: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6-JXcllsIwA sung version of the Montale poem 'Meriggiare pallido e assorto':https://open.spotify.com/artist/61zXi10WbO8ZCyCy9CyW0n?si=Upq_coi3TVq1TdOwR1sT-AExamples of Jonathan's own poetry: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/jonathan-galassiOpening and closing music: Prelude to the opera Brainland, composed by Stephen Brown. Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.ukSketch by KB.