April 11, 2008
Remarkable presentation on the nature of the brain and consciousness
This video was sent to me by my meditation teacher. It's a talk by neuroanatomist Jill Bolte Taylor. Having a stroke the thought hits her, "This is so cool."
As the caption reads on the TED Talks page:
Neuroanatomist Jill Bolte Taylor had an opportunity few brain scientists would wish for: One morning, she realized she was having a massive stroke. As it happened — as she felt her brain functions slip away one by one, speech, movement, understanding — she studied and remembered every moment. This is a powerful story about how our brains define us and connect us to the world and to one another.
From a public speaking / presentation skills standpoint:
- Dr. Taylor uses movement extremely effectively.
- Her use of a very surprising prop may shock you but will certainly compell you to pay attention.
- Her expressive (though thin and reedy) voice expresses her emotional journey very effectively.
- She also demonstrates great humor, vulnerability, and passion.
She also offers her personal and scientific observations about how the two halves of the brain function:
- She uses an ineresting metaphor comparing the Right to a Parallel Processor and the Left to a Serial Processor.
She says that the Right:
- Is concerned with This Present Moment.
- Thinks in pictures.
- Learns kinesthetically.
- Unites and connects us with others.
Meanwhile, the Left:
- Thinks linearly and methodically.
- Is focused on the past and the future.
- Picks out details, categorizes and organizes.
- Thinks in language.
- Is the voice that says, "I am" and, hence, separates us from others.
It's a compelling and powerful story - well worth watching. BTW, this is an 18 minute video and it takes awhile to load. Or you can go directly to the TED Talk video here.
Comments on Remarkable presentation on the nature of the brain and consciousness »
I read "My Stroke of Insight" in one sitting - I couldn't put it down. I laughed. I cried. It was a fantastic book (I heard it's a NYTimes Bestseller and I can see why!), but I also think it will be the start of a new, transformative Movement! No one wants to have a stroke as Jill Bolte Taylor did, but her experience can teach us all how to live better lives. Her TED.com speech was one of the most incredibly moving, stimulating, wonderful videos I've ever seen. Her Oprah Soul Series interviews were fascinating. They should make a movie of her life so everyone sees it. This is the Real Deal and gives me hope for humanity.
Thank you for that. Jill Bolte Taylor's My Stroke of Insight is one of the most incredible stories I've heard in a long time. Her TEDTalk video blew my mind wide open to new possibilities. On the one hand, there's what she went through and how she emerged from it. On the other hand, there's what she can teach all of us.
I saw the 4 part Oprah interview on Oprah dot com Soul Series and I did learn a lot from that, but I'd like to find our more of how to do what Dr. Taylor did, without having a stroke of course!
Thin how many of us are living too much in the head, and not the heart. And of course, you can't get more left brain than a Harvard Brain Scientist. Isn't it ironic that she should be the one to have the stroke and transform from the quintessential left brainer into this ""seen the light"" disciple of finding inner peace?
I hope this movement keeps going. Maybe there will be My Stroke of Insight classes where we can practice what Jill Bolte Taylor is preaching.
Ross & Gino,
Thank you both for your generous, candid remarks. Yes, this is a remarkable story. It has deep personal meaning for me both because of my work focused on communication skills and my personal meditation and spiritual practice. I also find it very hopeful and inspiring, Ross.
Yes, Gino, the irony of the left-brain demonstrating the power of the right is amusing and gratifying.
BTW, have you read "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell? It's another book that examines the nature of brain function and suggests that emotion is a form of thought; a form of sophisticated patter recognition. Fascinating stuff!