# brain behav: a hypothesis of 'loss of self' when they have to assume a 'fictional perspective'

In a functional MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) study, AA << sought to identify brain regions preferentially activated when actors adopt a Fic1P (fictional first-person) perspective during dramatic role playing. >>

<< Compared to responding as oneself, responding in character produced global reductions in brain activity and, particularly, deactivations in the cortical midline network of the frontal lobe, including the dorsomedial and ventromedial prefrontal cortices. Thus, portraying a character through acting seems to be a deactivation-driven process, perhaps representing a 'loss of self'. >>

Steven Brown, Peter Cockett, Ye Yuan. The neuroscience of Romeo and Juliet: an fMRI study of acting. Royal Society Open Science. Mar 13, 2019 doi:.10.1098/rsos.181908

https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsos.181908

<< It is often said that great actors lose themselves in their roles, and now a brain activity study shows that is more than just a turn of phrase. >>

Chelsea Whyte. Brain scans reveal actors lose their sense of self when acting a role. March 13, 2019.

https://www.newscientist.com/article/2196303-brain-scans-reveal-actors-lose-their-sense-of-self-when-acting-a-role/amp/

# phys: a base-level fuzziness; black holes and strange metals go to extremes in some common way

<< black holes and strange metals go to extremes in some common way (..)  electrons inside a variety of ceramic crystals called "cuprates" seem to dissipate energy as quickly as possible, apparently bumping up against a fundamental quantum speed limit. >>

<<  ħ is the quantum unit of uncertainty:  an inescapable, base-level fuzziness in nature >>

Natalie Wolchover. Universal Quantum Phenomenon Found in Strange Metals.   Nov 19, 2018.

https://www.quantamagazine.org/universal-quantum-phenomenon-found-in-superconductors-20181119/

https://twitter.com/QuantaMagazine/status/1104730889500745731

A. Legros, S. Benhabib, et al. Universal T-linear resistivity and Planckian dissipation in overdoped cuprates. Nature Physics. volume 15, pages 142–147 (2019).

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41567-018-0334-2

# behav: a "Snack Friends Effect" (to get some pulses) also among spotted Hyenas

<< When it comes to advancing social status, it's not what you know, it's who you know-for humans and spotted hyenas alike. >>

Layne Cameron.  For hyenas, there's no 'I' in clan. Michigan State University.  Mar 11, 2019.

https://m.phys.org/news/2019-03-hyenas-clan.html

Eli D. Strauss, Kay E. Holekamp. Social alliances improve rank and fitness in convention-based societies.  PNAS Mar 11, 2019. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1810384116.

https://www.pnas.org/content/early/2019/03/05/1810384116

Also

# life: the "Snack Friends Effect" on careers to get some pulses, by Matthew. Mar 13, 2019.

https://flashontrack.blogspot.com/2019/03/life-friends-effect-on-careers-to-get.html

# life: the "Snack Friends Effect" on careers to get some pulses, by Matthew

<< To understand why people succeed or fail, look at their circle of friends. Like it or not, said Stanford economist Matthew Jackson, people's fates are closely connected to their human networks. >>

Melissa De Witte. How human networks drive inequality, social immobility. Stanford University. Mar 6, 2019.

https://m.phys.org/news/2019-03-human-networks-inequality-social-immobility.html  

FonT

verosimile, tuttavia possono emergere  eccezioni; invece sara' interessante osservare (per gli ipotetici sopravviventi) come una AI (entita' a intelligenza artificiale) sapra' gestire il potere di cooptazione, in parallelo oppure in sostituzione degli "human networks" ...

Also

<< Furono proprio il carattere fondamentalmente allegro, l'esuberanza vitale, il senso dell'umorismo, l'intelligenza vivace e realistica, che permisero a Dizzy [Dizzy Gillespie] di superare meglio di ogni altro musicista del suo entourage le difficolta'  (..) >>

2110 - sbecchi di prua. Jan 18, 2007.

https://inkpi.blogspot.com/2007/01/2110-sbecchi-di-prua.html

# ai.bot: adaptive robotics, the beginning

<< The goal of Zhao's lab is to create small, lightweight robots that can reconfigure themselves in response to a need. "In general, if you have a robot, its mechanical structure is fixed," says Zhao [Jianguo Zhao], an assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. "If we can change the mechanical structure on the fly, without redesigning the robot, this is pretty useful, especially if the robot is very small … I don't think many people are trying to do that." >>

Anne Manning. These robots are small, shape-shifting, and they adapt to their surroundings. Colorado State University. Mar 6, 2019.

https://m.phys.org/news/2019-03-robots-small-shape-shifting.html 

https://engr.source.colostate.edu/these-robots-are-small-shape-shifting-and-they-adapt-to-their-surroundings/

# behav: how to gain a competitive advantage over larger rivals by teaming up with another species (among the beetles Nicrophorus vespilloides)

AA << report that conflict within burying beetles Nicrophorus vespilloides influences the fitness that can be gained from interacting with the mite Poecilochirus carabi. Beetles transport these mites to carrion, upon which both species breed.  >>

Syuan‐Jyun Sun, Nicholas P.C. Horrocks,  Rebecca M. Kilner. Conflict within species determines the value of a mutualism between species. Evolution Letters. Mar 6, 2019. doi: 10.1002/evl3.109.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/evl3.109

<< In a study featuring a miniature 'gym' for beetles (complete with beetle treadmills), [AA] found that beetles who consistently lose out to members of their own species have the most to gain by forming a mutually-beneficial cross-species partnership. >>

Mighty mites give scrawny beetles the edge over bigger rivals. University of Cambridge. Mar 5, 2019.

https://m.phys.org/news/2019-03-mighty-mites-scrawny-beetles-edge.html

# gst astro: approaches to hack a black hole (to distinguish scrambled information from noise)

paper.1

Adam Mann. Physicists May Have Found a Way to 'Untangle' Information Trapped in a Black Hole. Mar 6, 2019

https://www.livescience.com/64935-black-hole-information-paradox.html

K. A. Landsman, C. Figgatt, et al. Verified quantum information scrambling. Nature. volume 567, pages 61–65 (2019) Mar 6,  2019.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-019-0952-6

paper.2

Mike McRae. Physicists Want to Use Quantum Particles to Find Out What Happens Inside a Black Hole. Mar 6, 2019.

https://www.sciencealert.com/entangled-particles-could-help-reveal-the-hidden-workings-of-black-holes

Beni Yoshida, Norman Y. Yao. Disentangling Scrambling and Decoherence via Quantum Teleportation. Phys. Rev. X 9, 011006. Jan 9, 2019

https://journals.aps.org/prx/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevX.9.011006