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Enhance Your Learning Speed & Health Using Neuroscience Based Protocols | Dr. Poppy Crum

In this episode, Dr. Poppy Crum explores how emerging technologies are reshaping the human brain and transforming the way we learn, communicate, and interact with our environment. Drawing from neuroscience, AI, and sensory research, she reveals how tools like wearables, digital twins, and smart environments can harness neuroplasticity to enhance cognitive performance and well-being.
Dr. Poppy Crum discusses how neuroplasticity allows the brain to continuously reorganize in response to technology and experience, updating traditional models like the homunculus. Everyday interactions with smartphones and digital communication repurpose neural circuits, altering perception and social behavior. Video games and real-time feedback systems improve sensory processing and motor skills through closed-loop training. The concept of digital twins—dynamic digital replicas of physical activities or environments—enables personalized learning, health monitoring, and environmental optimization. AI can augment cognition but risks reducing germane cognitive load when overused, potentially undermining deep learning. Wearables and 'hearables' offer low-cost ways to track physiological states like stress via pupillometry or voice analysis, enabling early detection of health issues. Gamification fosters habit formation by leveraging feedback loops, while adaptive AI systems could soon tailor environments to individual cognitive states. However, rapid AI adoption demands caution to preserve critical thinking. Insights from evolutionary biology, such as bat-moth acoustic competition and spider web resonance, illustrate how organisms adapt perception to survive—paralleling human technological evolution. Ultimately, intentional use of technology can amplify human potential.
05:38
05:38
Technology use directly influences brain structure and function.
11:01
11:01
Absolute pitch is not fixed; the standard for musical notes like A has changed over time due to aesthetic and technical evolution.
21:20
21:20
A dead phone leaves users feeling drained, while a powered one brings a sense of being alive through connection.
23:19
23:19
Texting acronyms act like lossy compression, triggering rich cognitive experiences with minimal data.
37:09
37:09
Playing 40 hours of Call of Duty improves contrast sensitivity and probabilistic inference.
43:25
43:25
AI can democratize access to high-end performance data, making elite-level analytics available to everyday athletes.
51:46
51:46
AI identifies learning gaps and tailors tests to improve memory through targeted feedback
58:44
58:44
LLMs reduce germane cognitive load, impairing schema formation
1:08:01
1:08:01
Heating at the end of night boosts REM sleep, cooling at start increases deep sleep
1:15:54
1:15:54
Autonomous vehicles can resolve traffic issues caused by human behavior
1:16:38
1:16:38
CO2 in breath can indicate emotional state, demonstrated through stress responses during movie watching.
1:25:48
1:25:48
Earbuds can measure heart rate, blood oxygen, and attention levels.
1:32:11
1:32:11
Training can be fun and effective when merged with technology to optimize learning.
1:38:19
1:38:19
AI agents may increase revenue but reduce workforce cognitive skills over time.
1:47:05
1:47:05
Digital twins are about digitizing relevant data for decision-making, not replicating people.
1:57:27
1:57:27
Voice patterns can reveal early signs of diabetes, heart disease, and neural degeneration
2:06:52
2:06:52
Auditory neurons' dendrites realign in owls when visual input is shifted by prisms, proving cross-modal neuroplasticity
2:10:02
2:10:02
The brain's plasticity under pressure enables rapid formation of new neural maps in response to technological change.
2:19:43
2:19:43
Oliver Sacks imagined being a bat to better understand patients with severe neurological conditions
2:21:17
2:21:17
Orb spiders tune their webs to 880 hertz to detect echolocating bats
2:31:45
2:31:45
Neuroplasticity is the key interface between inputs and humans