Random Thoughts

[no one]

I've always been mistrustful of people.

[Ahriman]

I've always been mistrustful of people.

......Why?

[brewer]

I've always been mistrustful of people.

......Why?

Really....... holy sheep shit!

[Ahriman]

......Why?

Really....... holy sheep shit!

That wasn't even an argument.

[brewer]

Really....... holy sheep shit!

That wasn't even an argument.

Nope, just an observation.

[Ahriman]

That wasn't even an argument.

Nope, just an observation.

Great. But you can't actually explain why it's appropriate to not trust people?

[Angrboda]

I've always been.
















Prove me wrong!

[brewer]

Nope, just an observation.

Great. But you can't actually explain why it's appropriate to not trust people?

JFC

[Ahriman]

I trust people a lot. Probably more than I should. But it's better than the alternative.

[Angrboda]

Dopamine isn’t just a “feel good” chemical: New study reveals its role in reversal learning

Participants engaged in a computer-based task while undergoing brain scans using two advanced techniques: positron emission tomography (PET) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). This task was a reversal learning paradigm, a method used to explore how individuals adjust their decisions based on changing rewards.

The task was a game of guessing whether a hidden number was above or below five, with correct guesses rewarded and incorrect ones not. Unbeknownst to the participants, the rules for rewards changed during the task, creating periods of stability and volatility that mimicked real-life situations where the ‘right’ choice can suddenly become ‘wrong.’

The PET scans were used to detect changes in dopamine levels in the brain by measuring the binding of a radioactive compound that competes with dopamine for the same brain receptors. The fMRI scans, on the other hand, provided insight into brain activity by detecting changes in blood flow, offering a glimpse into which parts of the brain were working harder during different phases of the task.

The researchers observed significant findings through the PET scans, particularly in the striatum, a brain region known for its role in reward processing. They found that dopamine release increased in this area when participants faced the switch from stable to volatile rules, suggesting dopamine’s key role in signaling the need for a strategy change. This dopamine release correlated with the participants’ ability to adapt their decisions based on new information, with higher dopamine levels linked to quicker adjustment and better performance on the task.

“I think the general view of dopamine is that it is a kind of reward molecule but here we show that dopamine is also released when we learn from errors,” Grill told PsyPost. “Individuals that were very sensitive to their errors released more dopamine. However, these individuals were not necessarily best at the task. Instead, individuals that released a medium amount of dopamine had best performance.”

The fMRI data complemented these findings by showing increased brain activity in areas associated with attention and decision-making, especially after the rule change. This activity pattern suggests that the brain engages a network of regions to process unexpected outcomes and to adapt decisions accordingly.

“Seeing a rather strong brain–behavior correlation is quite surprising,” Grill remarked. “I hope I will get surprised again in the future.”

While the study’s results are compelling, they come with their share of limitations. For instance, the design of the brain imaging study meant that researchers could not compare their findings against a baseline of brain activity without the task, potentially overlooking how individual differences in dopamine levels might influence adaptability. Furthermore, the complexity of human behavior and brain chemistry means that dopamine is not the only player in this adaptive process. Future research could benefit from exploring how other neurotransmitters interact with dopamine and contribute to our ability to learn and adjust to new information.