Non-linear Dynamics and Chaotic Trajectories in Brain-Mind Visual Experiences during Dreams, Meditation, and Non-Ordinary Brain Activity States
OBM Neurobiology June 11, 2020 Tania Simona Re, Giuseppe Vitiello 6 citations
Visual experiences that occur when the brain is less open to the environment—such as during dreaming, meditation, coma, or under psychoactive substances—are termed brain-mind visual experiences, distinct from ordinary waking vision. A dissipative many-body model proposes that enhanced criticality in these low-openness brain states generates movie-like sequences of images. Chaotic trajectories through memory space account for abrupt shifts between image patterns. The felt truthfulness and realism of these experiences are explained using an algebraic doubling of degrees of freedom. The discussion applies this framework to a subject's visual experiences during an Amazonian Ayahuasca ceremony.