Welcome to the Ideasicle Podcast, where our host, Will Burns, founder of Ideasicle, relentlessly untangles the mysteries of the elusive idea. In this second episode, Will interviews Gaurav Suri, author and fMRI specialist at Stanford University.
Mr. Suri is the author of “A Certain Ambiguity” (Princeton, 2007), an award winning novel that examines how we know what we know–and if we can be certain about it. His next novel, in progress, examines the mechanisms of the human brain. How do we decide? Where do ideas come from? What makes us who we are?
Mr. Suri is involved with several fMRI studies at Stanford University that seek to isolate the drivers of human preference in the brain. He has also driven significant research on the role of emotion and affect in decision making.
Show notes:
- We begin by discussing how Gaurav became interested in the brain in the first place, and his book “A Certain Ambiguity.”
- He discusses the mechanics of the brain – neurons, synapses, electric impulses, etc.
- He goes into fascinating detail about the difference between the cerebral cortex (the conscious brain) and the more primal brain (the unconscious).
- He gives us tips as to how to activate the primal brain to help us in our ideation.
- Gaurav invites any interested Creators out there to contact him with any questions or just to talk brain. You can reach him at: [email protected].