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I’ve decided that it’s pretty much a waste of time to blog about posters considering 1) My comments will likely be posted after the poster session has ended; and 2) You could probably just read the abstract to get the gist, anyway. So unless there’s some exceptionally compelling reason (flawed design, keen insight, updated results, etc), I’ll probably stay away from covering posters.
This one, however, I’ve got to share, not only because I find it rather provocative and novel, but because It will be presented again tomorrow, so you can actually swing by to see for yourself.
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I didn’t plan on seeing this poster in advance. In fact, after exhausting myself with poster after poster of arcane topics, I was ready to call it quits. But the sight of a guy holding a large mirror in front of a poster titled, ‘Can one observe one’s own free will?’ was more than enough to draw me in. I mean, WTF? Free will? At SfN? Do neuroscientists still believe in such a thing? I had to engage. And then I see one of the authors is VS Ramachandran, which further intrigued me (if you somehow don’t know who this is, you must watch this). The idea behind the study is basically to combine the whole phantom limb mirror box phenomenon with out of body experiences and, arguably, free will. But instead of watching yourself being stroked or physically stimulated, the object of the experiment is to witness yourself (as a detached observer) as you “willfully” attempt to change your perception of a necker cube. So, instead of a phantom limb mirror box, it’s more like a cognitive mirror box. Caveats? God yes. But a pretty damn interesting concept, nonetheless. And one that I’d love to experience for myself. Unfortunately, the proper equipment was lacking at today’s presentation. But, I’ve been promised this won’t be the case tomorrow. So, if any of you are as curious about this as I am, pay him a visit tomorrow. Don’t know exactly when he’ll be by his poster, but it’s over in the educational section (at the end of the long maze of posters – GG55 if it’s in the same place tomorrow). Let me know what you think!
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