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Zebra
Skeptic Friend
USA
354 Posts |
 Posted - 03/09/2009 : 20:28:51
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Interesting report today on NPR, on a recent study using functional MRI to examine which sections of the brain are in play when people think of God. In part:
Grafman was part of a team that used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to study the brains of 40 people as they read statements that either supported or challenged religious belief. Participants were asked whether they agreed or disagreed with statements such as, "God is angry at human behavior," or "There is no higher purpose."
The statements caused heightened activity in areas of the brain involved in empathy, and in deciphering what other people might be thinking. Scientists often refer to this ability as "theory of mind" or "theory of other minds." Humans are extremely good at it. Some other species, including great apes, appear to have a less advanced theory of mind.
When a person encounters a statement about God's presence, Grafman believes, "That's making an inference about God as a being of some kind, so you're making an inference about an entity and their relationship with you. That would activate the same areas in the brain as if you were making an inference about a friend's intentions."
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Grafman says there were some differences between religious and nonreligious people.
Those who said they believed in God had a negative emotional response to statements like, "There is no higher purpose." Nonbelievers had the same reaction to statements that assumed God exists.
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Grafman says the new study says nothing about whether God exists. But it does suggest that religious belief uses a brain system that evolved quite recently.
"Some of the same underlying abilities that support other sorts of complex human social behavior also support the behavior that we're terming 'religious belief,' " he says. |
I was going to put it in SFN's neurotheology section, but that section must be down for repairs ;)
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I think, you know, freedom means freedom for everyone* -Dick Cheney
*some restrictions may apply |
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To the brain, God is just another guy
