posted by Emily
I just got around to reading the February issue of Wired. It features an article called "Buddha on the Brain: The hot new frontier of neuroscience: meditation!" It is a fabulous read if you're interested in the discussion of religion vs. science and whether the two exclude each other.
Researchers at the University of Wisconsin stuck electrodes on some Buddhist monks and told them to meditate on compassion. They discovered that the monks' brain functions altered, particularly in the area of the brain that governs positive emotions. "Perhaps these signals indicated that the meditators attained an intensely compassionate state of mind. If so, then maybe compassion could be exercised like a muscle; with the right training, people could bulk up their empathy." Not to mention giving people the means to self-help afflictions like depression.
The kicker is that the Dalai Lama is so freakin' on board with the study.
The March issue is no doubt full of similarly thought-provoking material. I'll let you know in April.
