Seven and a Half Lessons about the Brain

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Lisa Feldman Barrett is University Distinguished Professor of Psychology at Northeastern University. She had also holds appointments at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital. Barrett received the National Institutes of Health Director’s Pioneer Award for her research on emotions in the brain and has published over 200 peer-reviewed, scientific papers that have appeared in Science, Nature, Neuroscience and other top psychology and cognitive neuroscience journals.

The brain, a unified and intricate network of 128 billion interconnected neurons, thrives on efficiency and adaptability. Its plasticity allows neural connections to reshape throughout life, enabling functions to shift dynamically based on tasks. This complexity, while not unique to humans, is mirrored in other species like octopuses and birds, whose brains are uniquely adapted to their environments. Human brains, however, are deeply social, influencing and being influenced by others in a continuous interplay that shapes relationships, emotions, and even biology. Language, whether spoken or written, holds transformative power, affecting both mental and physical states. The brain’s development is a collaborative effort between genetics and environment, challenging the outdated notion of compartmentalized evolution. Instead, its structure reflects a reorganization to manage complexity. Anticipation, a cornerstone of human cognition, blends memory and sensory input to construct reality, often prioritizing survival over accuracy. This ability, combined with creativity, communication, mimicry, cooperation, and compression, enables humans to build shared societal realities. The brain’s versatility also fosters diverse mindsets, from mathematical brilliance to unique perspectives like those of Greta Thunberg, highlighting the spectrum of human mental capabilities. Mood, a fundamental and enduring aspect of the mind, shapes experiences and connections, while the brain’s adaptability facilitates seamless transitions across cultural and situational contexts, underscoring its remarkable flexibility.

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