BRAINLAND

In this wide ranging conversation we talk about current views on the subject of 'aesthetics', as covering judgements well outside of the arts (choosing a partner, home etc..) and why studying brain and other physiological responses to individually meaningful poems can be a valuable research tool. We talk about the importance of piloerection responses (goosebumps-shivers) across a wide range of species and the tool Eugen and his colleagues have developed and used to measure this, alongside a range of more traditional measures, some of the studies undertaken, and their results.Participants:Eugen Wassiliwizky, Post-doctoral Researcher, Department of Cognitive Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Empirical Aesthetics, Frankfurt am Main,Germany. https://www.aesthetics.mpg.de/institut/mitarbeiterinnen/eugen-wassiliwizky.htmlKen Barrett, visual artist, writer and former neuropsychiatrist.http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/Some of Eugen and his colleague's papers:Wassiliwizky, E., & Menninghaus, W. (2021). Why and How Should Cognitive Science Care about Aesthetics? Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 25(6), 437–449.https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S136466132100067X?via%3DihubWassiliwizky, E., Koelsch, S., Wagner, V., Jacobsen, T., & Menninghaus, W. (2017). The emotional power of poetry: Neural circuitry, psychophysiology and compositional principles. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, 12(8), 1229–1240.https://academic.oup.com/scan/article/12/8/1229/3778354Wassiliwizky, E., Jacobsen, T., Heinrich, J., Schneiderbauer, M., & Menninghaus, W. (2017). Tears falling on goosebumps: Co-occurrence of emotional lacrimation and emotional piloerection indicates a psychophysiological climax in emotional arousal. Frontiers in Psychology, 8, Article 41.https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00041/fullOpening and closing music: Prelude to 'Brainland', the opera by Stephen Brown.Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.ukFollow us us on Instagram:#brainlandcollective #brainlandthepodcast

If you want to get a clear view of a subject ask a philiosopher who has thought deeply about it. In this podcast, philosopher Owen Flanangan speaks frankly about his experience of addiction to alcohol and tranquillisers, 18 years on, and why he felt compelled to write about his experience and analysis of the problem. We talk about substance use and creativity, identity, social cohesive, marker of major life events and as a way to make life more interesting or tolerable. We talk about AA and NA and why, during his first period of recovery he avoided them, but also why they have been so useful to him subseqeuntly. Finally, Owen discusses why a broad 'ecumenical' approach to management of addiction offers the best chance of recovery (rather than a narrow psychological, social or neurological model). Participants:Owen Flanagan Professor Emeritus of Philosophy and Neurobiology, Duke University, North Carolina, https://www.neuro.duke.edu/profile/owen-flanaganKen Barrett, visual artist, writer and former neuropsychiatrist.http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/Owen's book WHAT IS IT LIKE TO BE AN ADDICT?: https://academic.oup.com/book/59281?login=falseOpening and closing music: Prelude to 'Brainland', the opera by Stephen Brown.Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.ukFollow us us on Instagram:#brainlandcollective #brainlandthepodcast

Tricia is a dancer, teacher and the author of two historical novels based around dance and dancers. In this podcast she talks about the experience of dancing solo and in a group and her writing. Her most recent book, and a related performance piece, is a memoir/journal of the final days of her parent that also tracks her regular attendance at a circus school alongside memories of her childhood and youth. We discuss her route into dance and the seminal influence of time spent learning contemporary in Amsterdam in the 1970s. She tell us about 'The Green Table', a dance created by Kurt Jooss in Germany that satirised powerful elites, and the inspiration behind her first novel. She incorporates extracts from her most recent book 'Upside down in a hoop' with newly acquired circus hoop skills in a performance peice that deals with the loss of her parents to dementia, and her surprise at the very warm response it has provoked. Tricia concludes by telling us about her next writing project. Participants:Tricia Durdey, contemporary dancer, teacher, writer Tricia's websiteKen Barrett, visual artist, writer and former neuropsychiatrist.http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/Tricia's books:Upside down in a hoop:The Green Table:The dancer at the world's end:Extracts prom Tricia's performance piece and more conversationOpening and closing music: Prelude to 'Brainland', the opera by Stephen Brown.Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.ukFollow us us on Instagram:#brainlandcollective #brainlandthepodcast

Adrian Look, London-based choreographer and specialist in German 'Tanztheatre', talks about the origin of Tanztheatre within the 1920s Germany expressionist movement, tand aken to the next level by Pina Bausch in the modern era. Adrian talks about his unusual entry into dance, after a background of sport and philosophy. He discusses his reasons for coming to London, to be free of the over-respectful approach to the Bausch legacy, his experience as a dancer and his approach to choreography. We talk about his work on the 'Brainland' project, as an example of his working method (working with dancers of a wide range of ages). We concludes by talking about his current projects and material he would like to work with in future.Participants:Adrian Look, Teacher and Choreographer, Director of Tanztheatre Adrian Look. https://tanztheateradrianlook.com/ ; http://www.lookatmovement.co.uk/Ken Barrett, visual artist, writer and former neuropsychiatrist.http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/For more on Adrian's choreography: https://tanztheateradrianlook.com/productions/For more on his teaching: http://www.lookatmovement.co.uk/locations/For more on Pina Bausch: https://www.pinabausch.org/en/post/biographyFor more on the history of Tanztheatre: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TanztheaterOpening and closing music: Prelude to 'Brainland', the opera by Stephen Brown.Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.ukFollow us us on Instagram:#brainlandcollective #brainlandthepodcastKen Barrett, visual artist, writer and former neuropsychiatrist.http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/

In this podcast philosopher Walter Veit outlines five elements of conscious experience he believes can be scientifically explored,why and when, in evolutionary terms, those elements first appeared. He explains his concept of 'pathological complexity', which of those five may have appeared first, and the ethical imperatives that underpin animal consciousness research. After talking about slugs, octopuses and corvids we end with a discussion on how his approach may assist in creating machines that are in some sense conscious.Participants:Walter Veit, Lecturer in Philosophy, University of Reading, UK. External Member at the Munich Center for Mathematical Philosophy' Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich.https://walterveit.com/Ken Barrett, visual artist, writer and former neuropsychiatrist.http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/Walter's book, 'A PHILOSOPHY FOR THE SCIENCE OF ANIMAL CONSCIOUSNESS': is here: https://www.routledge.com/A-Philosophy-for-the-Science-of-Animal-Consciousness/Veit/p/book/9781032343617#:~:text=This%20book%20aims%20to%20advance%20a%20true%20Darwinian,integrate%20consciousness%20into%20an%20evolutionary%20view%20of%20life.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 #brainlandthepodcast

In this podcast, Nick Lane talks about his path to research in the rarefied field of evolutionary biochemistry, before describing some of the pioneers of biochemistry and the aesthetic pleasure he takes in their experimental designs. He gives a jargon free account of the Krebs cycle, the central metabolic pathway of life and the basis of his most recent book 'Transformer'. We discuss the origin of mitochondria, the mind boggling number of chemical reactions that takes in them each second and the possibly far reaching consequences of electrical and magnetic fields they generate (a possible source of the EEG!). Nick concludes by talking about his work on the mode of action of anaesthetic agents. Great conversation.Participants:Nick Lane, Professor of Evolutionary Biochemistry, University College, London. https://nick-lane.net/Ken Barrett, visual artist, writer and former neuropsychiatrist.http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/Nick's book,'Transformer': https://nick-lane.net/books/transformer-the-deep-chemistry-of-life-and-deathA diagram of the Krebs (citric acid): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citric_acid_cycle#/media/File:Citric_acid_cycle_with_aconitate_2.svgOpening and closing music: Prelude to 'Brainland', the opera by Stephen Brown.Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.ukFollow us us on Instagram:#brainlandcollective #brainlandthepodcast

In this podcast we complete the series on memory and cinema with an in-depth look at the way Alzheimer's disease/progressive cognitive impairment has been depicted in the movies this century. Raquel discusses her unusual route to studying and writing about this subject, via the work of a contemporary Spanish poet, then, before focussing on the three very different films listed below, we talk about the way different cultures represent the subject and the marked and predictable gender differences is the cinematic representation of cognitive decline. We explore the way several biopics, including 'Iris' and 'Still Alice' highlight disability, loss and burden, whereas more recent films focus on surprising positives, including deepening love, new creative departures and coping strategies. We also explore the idea of historical memory of traumatic national events and how this has been woven into films, The Eternal Memory being one example.ParticipantsRaquel Medina, Dean of Area Studies & Assistant Dean of Faculty, IES Abroad, Barcelona, Spain. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Raquel-MedinaKen Barrett visual artist, writer and former neuropsychiatrist.http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/Raquel's book 'Cinematic Representaions of Alzheimer's Disease': https://link.springer.com/book/10.1057/978-1-137-53371-5The films discussed:The Father(2021): https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10272386/The Eternal Memory (released in 2024 in the UK and available in the UK on BBC iPlayer, in January 2025) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt24082488/?ref_=fn_all_ttl_1Poetry (2010): https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1287878/?ref_=fn_all_ttl_1Opening and closing music: Prelude to Brainland the opera by Stephen Brown.Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.ukFollow us us on Instagram:#brainlandcollective

Film historian and science fiction specialist Mark Bould discusses the Lem novel and Tarkovsky film 'Solaris'. After an in depth exploration of the life and work of Lem and Tarkovsy, Mark outlines the plot discusses the unusual way in which Tarkovsky tells the story. We discuss traumatic memory and the links to earlier gothic stories and hauntings. We take a detour into the role of the EEG in the story and the possible origins of that before exploring Tarkovsky's use of sound in the film. We conclude with a brief discussion of the 2002 Soderburgh remake of Solaris, it's place in that director's work and how it contrasts with the original.Participants:Mark Bould, professor of Film and Literature, University of the West of England: https://westengland.academia.edu/MarkBouldKen Barrett visual artist, writer and former neuropsychiatrist.http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/Mark's book on Solaris:https://shop.bfi.org.uk/solaris-bfi-film-classics.htmlSolaris the Lem novel: https://www.abebooks.co.uk/book-search/title/solaris/author/stanislaw-lem/pics/?ref_=ps_ms_363834005&cm_mmc=msn-_-uk_dsa_srp-_-naa-_-naa&msclkid=958c7519f54a1dc330fc12926fc0d005Solaris the Tarkovsky film: Solaris the Tarkovsky film: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0069293/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