Mind Field

Technology isn’t just changing our lives. It’s literally changing our brains -- and maybe for the better. In this episode, I’m a human lab rat in a groundbreaking study at UC Irvine, where scientists test how playing 3D video games affects my spatial memory. Will 10 days of gaming improve my ability to physically navigate a giant, 60-foot maze? And will an fMRI machine detect any physical changes to my brain?

Psychology. Neuroscience. Drugs. All can be tools of interrogation. In this episode, an expert shows me how to coerce unsuspecting subjects into signing false confessions; a police psychologist questions me about my personal life after I am injected with a truth serum; and I match wits against a new brainwave-reading lie-detection method developed at Northwestern University.

Do psychedelic drugs really bring about self-healing and personal enlightenment? New research says they may. In this episode, I travel to the Amazonian jungle of Peru to experience the mind-expanding effects of the psychedelic brew Ayahuasca. I’m joined by Imperial College London’s Head of Psychedelic Research, Dr. Robin Carhart-Harris, who measures the impact of Ayahuasca on my brain.

Would you reroute a train to run over one person to prevent it from running over five others? In the classic “Trolley Problem” survey, most people say they would. But I wanted to test what people would actually do in a real-life situation. In the world’s first realistic simulation of this controversial moral dilemma, unsuspecting subjects will be forced to make what they believe is a life-or-death decision.

So you say you love your computer or smartphone...but can it love you back? As we become more dependent on technology, and our technology becomes more lifelike, where does the line between human and computer lie? And what happens when our relationships become romantic? In this episode of Mind Field, I look into Artificial Intelligence.

We humans love to build, create, and organize. So why do we also love to destroy things? Can violently breaking stuff really help to calm us down, or does it just make us more angry? In this episode of Mind Field, I take a hard look at our urge to destroy.

We are all unique individuals. We follow the beat of our own drum. We wouldn’t throw our own beliefs out the window just to fit in...or would we? In this episode of Mind Field, I demonstrate the strong, human urge to conform, and just how far people will go to fall in with the crowd.

What happens when your brain is deprived of stimulation? What effect does being cut off from interaction with the outside world have on a person? What effect does it have on Michael, when he is locked in a windowless, soundproof isolation chamber for three days? This episode of Mind Field is both an objective and a very intimate look at Isolation.

Michael discusses the philosophy of death, and its changing definition, with Dr. Max More, CEO of Alcor life extension.

Michael visits Alcor life extension and learns about the family behind – and preserved by – cryonics.

Michael visits Alcor life extension and learns about the first person to ever be frozen using cryonics.

Michael meets with psychologists Dr. Jeff Greenberg and Dr. Sheldon Solomon to discuss how death affects our world views.

Michael meets with Caitlin Doughty and learns about a death-positive culture in Indonesia, where relatives keep their dead loved ones in their homes.

Michael learns more about Ben Blum’s cousin Alex and his personal transformation after participating in an armed bank robbery

Michael learns the true story behind Stanford Prison Experiment guard Dave Eshleman’s “John Wayne” moniker.

Michael conducts his own version of the famous “jelly bean jar” experiment and reveals the statistical significance of the results.

Michael takes Dr. Chris Eliasmith on a tour through his high school, including his forensics team’s wall of fame.

Michael shares memories with his mom, who has saved everything from his childhood - from report cards to his space camp jacket.

Michael recruits local Vsauce fans for his Brain experiment, and fields questions in a Q&A setting.

Michael uses a series of coin flips and a large group of people to demonstrate the “wisdom of the crowd.”

Michael wrestles with two moral dilemmas in VR, designed by researchers Dr. Erick Ramirez and Dr. Scott LaBarge.

We edited the fake Los Angeles parks PSA from our Moral Licensing demonstration!

Michael and Dr. Terrence Deacon discuss the connection between language and the physical brain.

Kyoto University Ph.D. candidate Jie Gao shares her research involving Chimpanzees and the schoolyard game “Rock, Paper, Scissors.”

With the help of Cecile Sarabian, Dr. Andrew MacIntosh and some fake poop, Michael observes levels of disgust among Japanese Macaques.

I interview principal research statistician David Friedenberg about his role in analyzing all the data collected in a project aimed at helping a paralyzed man move again.

Research Physiatrist Marcie Bockbrader talks to me about a brain-computer interface project that is helping a paralyzed man move his arm.

Jazz pianist Dave O’Brien and his student Derek Paravicini play an impressive piano duet for me.

Derek Paravicini, a blind, autistic pianist and musical savant, sits down with me at the keyboard and shows off his incredible range of musical styles.

Let’s do a little test. I’ll play two tones and you see if you’re one of the few people who can notice a difference between them.

I attempt to discuss placebos, but my furry co-star keeps stealing the scene.

I go deeper into accessory-assisted placebos by discussing sham acupuncture—and getting stuck with a few needles in the process.

Check out the final stage of our power of suggestion test, where we try to convince our subjects that a brain scanner can implant a number in their minds.

In San Diego, real-life superheroes walk the streets as part of the Xtreme Justice League. I chat with Mr. Xtreme, one of the league’s most visible members, to discuss what it means to be a hero in today’s society.

I interview Shirley Dygert, a first time skydiver, and her tandem skydiving instructor, Dave Hartsock, about a treacherous skydive they both miraculously survived.

Check out this extended cut of my challenging experience as a human lab rat in a giant, 60-foot real-world maze.

I sit down with Jeffrey Deskovic, a real-life victim of a false confession conviction.

Expert Melissa Russano elicits a false confession from one of our test subjects in this fascinating, uncut session.

Is there a way to experience the effects of psychedelic drugs without having to ingest anything? Watch as I test out a few of these unconventional audio and visual files to see if their claims are true.

I explore how psychedelics can improve mental health in my interview with cancer survivor Gail Thomas, as we discuss her experience in a study involving psilocybin--or mushrooms.

With just seven days until my Ayahuasca ceremony, I fill out a recommended personality survey—which becomes a little revealing.

Watch as a Peruvian Shaman performs his icaro—or healing chant—in its entirety, from my Ayahuasca ceremony.

I get candid with Grayson Brulte, autonomous vehicle expert, as we discuss the potential ethical issues associated with driverless cars.