Tripping on magic mushrooms causes brain activity to become less organized and more random, with these effects lasting for several weeks. Having observed this phenomenon in action, the authors of a new brain-imaging study suggest that this scrambling of connectivity patterns may lead to more flexible cognition, which could explain how psychedelics help to alleviate depression and other mental health conditions.The researchers recruited seven people to take a high dose of either psilocybin - the psychoactive compound in shrooms - or methylphenidate, the generic form of Ritalin. Participants had an average of 18 MRI brain scans in the weeks before and after their trip, as well as during the experience, in order to reveal the acute and persistent effects of the drug.Initially, the study authors found that each person had a highly defined and completely unique pattern of network connectivity, like a kind of neural fingerprint that could be used to identify any given individual. Immediately after taking psilocybin, however, connectivity patterns became more chaotic, to the point that participants could no longer be distinguished from one another based on their brain activity.“The brains of people on psilocybin look more similar to each other than to their untripping selves,” explained study author Nico Dosenbach in a statement. “Their individuality is temporarily wiped out. This verifies, at a neuroscientific level, what people say about losing their sense of self during a trip.”Such a finding is not new, and numerous previous studies have suggested that psychedelics work by triggering an “entropic” brain state whereby the rigid patterns of communication between brain networks breaks down. This effect has predominantly been observed in relation to the default mode network (DMN), which controls our everyday cognition and coordinates activities such as daydreaming, introspection, and autobiographical recall.Analyzing their scans, the study authors found that the DMN becomes radically desynchronized under the acute effects of psilocybin, before largely re-establishing itself once the drug wears off. However, in comparison to its pre-psilocybin state, connectivity within this fundamental network remained looser for three weeks after the psychedelic trip had finished. “The idea is that you’re taking this system that’s fundamental to the brain’s ability to think about the self in relation to the world, and you’re totally desynchronizing it temporarily,” explains study author Joshua Siegel. “In the short term, this creates a psychedelic experience. The longer-term consequence is that it makes the brain more flexible and potentially more able to come into a healthier state.”The persistent weakening of connectivity patterns within the DMN has previously been linked to the so-called psychedelic afterglow effect, whereby people often notice a reduction in their habitual mental chatter and an increased capacity to reshape their thought patterns after taking psilocybin, LSD, or other similar drugs. According to the study authors, this subtle yet lasting desynchronization of brain networks may underlie the reported therapeutic effects of psychedelics. “That’s exactly what you’d want to see for a potential medicine,” says Dosenbach. “You wouldn’t want people’s brain networks to be obliterated for days, but you also wouldn’t want everything to snap back to the way it was immediately. You want an effect that lasts long enough to make a difference.”The study is published in the journal Nature.

The authors of the scientific article believe that there are very few extraterrestrial civilizations in the Universe. The greatest mystery of our time is the question of the existence of intelligent aliens, that is, developed extraterrestrial civilizations. Some scientists continue to insist that they exist and just need to be found. Others believe that we are alone in the Universe. The authors of a new article published in the International Journal of Astrobiology believe that the answer to the question of whether extraterrestrial intelligent life exists in space may be an either/or proposition, writes Forbes. Life either has to appear or it doesn’t In their article, scientists argue that on planets like ours, life should either arise over a long period of time or not arise at all. That is, space can be either empty or overcrowded, while values ​​in between seem far-fetched. In ecological systems, be it a planet or a galaxy, populations develop from some initial value to a stable state of equilibrium, when the average number of births and deaths per unit time is the same, researchers say. This equilibrium point is a function of the birth and death rates, and the basis for the existence of the ecological system. According to the authors, they took a classic statistical result and applied it to the question of life in the universe. If you conduct a series of experiments for which the answer is binary (yes/no), and if there is no information about the experiments, then you can expect that almost all of the experiments will give a positive result, or almost all will give a negative result. It is unlikely that intermediate, mixed results will be obtained, they say. This idea was first proposed by Edwin Jaynes, the originator of probability theory, which was based on the work of biochemist John Haldane. The Milky Way is a barred spiral galaxy around 13.6 billion years old with large pivoting arms stretching out across the cosmos. Our home galaxy’s disk is about 100,000 light-years in diameter and just 1000 light-years thick, according to Las Cumbres Observatory. The chance of finding aliens is zero Despite this, many searchers for extraterrestrial intelligence insist that life in space is common. But Haldane believed that identical results should be expected under identical conditions, the authors say. That is, one would expect that if life probably exists, then it will be everywhere, and if it is very rare, then it will not be anywhere. According to scientists, it would be strange if half of all planetary systems had technologically advanced civilizations. This would mean that small changes in the properties of these planetary systems would greatly alter the prospects for the emergence of technological civilizations. Researchers have come to the conclusion that if there is only one extraterrestrial intelligent civilization, then the chance of detecting it is zero. If advanced extraterrestrial civilizations arose, they would likely be visible in the infrared spectrum of light, thanks to structures such as Dyson spheres. But nothing of the kind was found, scientists say. Aliens are very far away Even if we assume that extraterrestrial intelligence is very rare, then there are approximately a trillion galaxies in the Universe, and therefore it is almost impossible to find aliens. The authors of the article believe that developed extraterrestrial civilizations, if they exist, are most likely very, very few and they are very far from each other. Thus, scientists admit the possibility that aliens may live in another galaxy, but they simply do not exist in our galaxy. That is, Earth may be the only inhabited world in the Milky Way. The post Where Are the Intelligent Aliens? Scientists Have a New Answer appeared first on Anomalien.com.

Microsoft was revealed to have quietly laid off a diversity, equity, and inclusion team after insiders leaked an email detailing the change at the company for the new fiscal year.While it is unclear how many employees Microsoft decided to let go, the move was reportedly made due to "changing business needs," starting on July 1, 2024."True systems-change work associated with DEI programs everywhere are no longer business critical or smart as they were in 2020," the email said, according to Business Insider.'D&I commitments remain unchanged.'Microsoft spokesperson Jeff Jones told the outlet in response that the company still has a deep commitment to DEI but failed to specifically confirm or deny the report."Our focus on diversity and inclusion is unwavering and we are holding firm on our expectations, prioritizing accountability, and continuing to focus on this work."He added that Microsoft's "D&I commitments remain unchanged."The cuts came at the typical time for Microsoft, which is nearing the end of its fiscal year. In 2023, the company's layoffs totaled around 10,000 as leaders cited economic uncertainty and inflation as the primary reason for letting employees go.It was only a few months prior to the DEI layoffs when Microsoft was accused of celebrating race- and sex-based discrimination in its annual "Diversity and Inclusion Report."In February 2024, Microsoft proudly declared in the document that its black, Asian, and Hispanic employees earned more than their white counterparts. It also noted that female employees earned more than male coworkers operating at the same level and in the same roles.As the Daily Wire reported, Microsoft began making significant investments into its DEI programs after the death of George Floyd, pledging to spend $150 million in DEI programs and double "the number of Black and African American people managers, senior individual contributors, and senior leaders in the United States by 2025."However, trends are moving in the other direction with companies like Zoom liquifying DEI departments. A competitor to Microsoft's Skype application, Zoom said in February 2024 that the company wanted to focus on working with external consultants instead of an internal team and fired a DEI team.The consultants will work to engage "all of our employees" with a focus on "inclusion," CEO Aparna Bawa told Bloomberg at the time.Zoom also launched its DEI programs after the death of George Floyd.The name of the person who leaked the internal Microsoft email was not released.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle refused to answer questions at the Republican National Convention about the attempted assassination of Donald Trump.Uproar over the failed assassination attempt is growing as more details slowly leak about what the Secret Service knew and what they did — or did not do — with that information in the hours leading up to a lone gunman opening fire on Trump at a campaign rally last Saturday.'She can run, but she cannot hide.'On Wednesday, it was revealed that law enforcement had identified the gunman as a suspicious person an hour before he opened fire. And despite the fact that a Secret Service counter-sniper team spotted the gunman 20 minutes before shots rang out, the Secret Service still allowed Trump to take the stage.It remains unclear how the 20-year-old gunman seemingly duped the Secret Service.But at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Republican senators tried on Wednesday to extract answers from the woman ultimately responsible for Secret Service operations.Video shows a group of Republican senators — including Sens. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), the No. 3 Senate Republican, and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) — dress down Cheatle. There was apparent frustration among the lawmakers after Cheatle reportedly allowed only four questions at a Senate briefing earlier in the day."Resignation or full explanation to us right now!" Barrasso told Cheatle."Why would anyone allow [Trump] to go on stage when you know you've got a potential threat?" Blackburn grilled. — (@) Cheatle, however, refused to answer the questions."I don't think this is the forum for this conversation," she told the lawmakers.The director claimed she is "happy" to answer their questions, but she answered none of them. She then tried to walk away, which angered the lawmakers. They quickly followed her and continued to grill her."This is exactly what you were doing today!" Barrasso screamed. "It's called stonewalling!""This was an assassination attempt! You owe the people answers! You owe President Trump answers!" Blackburn said. — (@) Cheatle has admitted the Secret Service "failed" its "no-fail mission" of protecting Trump, but she has thus far remained defiant.In a statement released after the tense confrontation with the senators, the Secret Service reaffirmed that Cheatle "has no intentions to step down."But that's not good enough, according to Blackburn."It is appalling that the Secret Service director refused to answer our questions. This is one of the greatest security failures in the history of the agency. She can run, but she cannot hide," the Tennessee Republican said in a statement shared with Blaze News."She is a failed leader, and she needs to immediately step down from her position," Blackburn added.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

In Episode 355 Jeff Belanger and Ray Auger explore the Narrow Gauge Volunteer Trail in Randolph, Maine, searching for the ghost of missing transient locals called Bicycle Larry. He went missing in October of 2004. In December of that year, a local man told his sister where they could find Larry’s body. Larry’s body was never found, but his bike-riding ghost has been seen on the old trail and around town. BECOME A LEGENDARY PATRON: https://www.patreon.com/NewEnglandLegends CREDITS: Produced and hosted by: Jeff Belanger and Ray Auger Edited by: Ray Auger Theme Music by: John Judd SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST FOR FREE: Apple Podcasts/iTunes | Spotify | Pandora | Amazon Podcasts | TuneIn | iHeartRadio JOIN OUR SUPER-SECRET: New England Legends Facebook Group

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