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Topic One: How old are emotions? Where are they located in the brain?
from: https://www.britannica.com/science/limbic-system
In evolutionary terms, the limbic system is considered to be among the oldest parts of the human brain, as parts of it has been identified in fish, amphibians, and reptiles as well as early mammals. The cells of the limbic system are also less complex than those in the cerebral cortex.
AI Overview
The limbic system evolved in early mammals, with structures appearing around 150 million years ago. Much earlier component parts can be identified in early mammals, reptiles, and fish. The concept of the limbic system was first introduced by Paul D. MacLean in 1952 to describe the "paleomammalian" complex, which was responsible for emotions and motivation in early mammals.
Topic Two: The Biology of Fear
Joseph LeDoux's research on the biology of fear . His work shows that threat detection circuits, involving the amygdala, are a basic survival mechanism, while the experience of fear is a cognitive interpretation built in the cortex, which is a conscious, subjective experience. He introduced the "high road" and "low road" pathways for threat processing, where the low road provides a rapid, automatic response and the high road allows for slower, more detailed analysis through the cortex.
Threat detection vs. conscious fear
Threat detection: LeDoux argues that the brain has evolved a defense system to detect and respond to danger, which is a survival mechanism present in many organisms, like bacteria.
Conscious fear: He posits that the feeling of fear is a conscious, cognitive state that is assembled by cortical circuits, not a direct, automatic response.
Interaction: The subcortical threat response (e.g., the amygdala's reaction) can intensify the conscious experience of fear by sending signals to the cortex, but it does not determine the content of the experience.
The "high road" and "low road"
Low road: A fast, automatic pathway from the thalamus directly to the amygdala. This allows for a quick, unconscious reaction to a potential threat.
High road: A slower pathway that travels from the thalamus to the cortex and then to the amygdala. This allows for more conscious, detailed processing of the stimulus before a response is initiated.
Threat conditioning
Mechanism: LeDoux is known for his work on "threat conditioning" (originally "fear conditioning"). This process shows how a neutral stimulus can become associated with a threat through classical conditioning.
Example: If a tone is played at the same time as an electric shock, the tone can eventually trigger a fear response on its own. This is mediated by the amygdala and becomes a learned, automatic response to a specific stimulus.
Implications for disorders
LeDoux's work has significant implications for understanding pathological fear and anxiety.
His research suggests that rather than being biologically wired, fear and anxiety are the result of cognitive processes that can be modified.
Where is it in the brain?
Topic Three: Microexpression of Facial Emotions
The Duchenne smile: Emotional expression and brain physiology: II.
By Ekman, Paul,Davidson, Richard J.,Friesen, Wallace V.
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol 58(2), Feb 1990, 342-353
Abstract
Abstract
Facial expression, EEG, and self-report of subjective emotional experience were recorded while subjects individually watched both pleasant and unpleasant films. Smiling in which the muscle that orbits the eye is active in addition to the muscle that pulls the lip corners up (the Duchenne smile) was compared with other smiling in which the muscle orbiting the eye--the orbicularis oculi--was not active. As predicted, the Duchenne smile was related to enjoyment in terms of occurring more often during the pleasant than the unpleasant films, in measures of cerebral asymmetry, and in relation to subjective reports of positive emotions, and other smiling was not. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved)
What is cerebral asymmetry? Cerebral asymmetry is the structural and functional difference between the left and right hemispheres of the brain. This asymmetry means that certain cognitive functions, like language (primarily left hemisphere) and spatial skills (primarily right hemisphere), are not equally distributed between the two sides. In this particular case, we can assume that are true Duchenne smile and a false smile can be detected by QEEG.
Is it possible to control the Duchenne smile?
So, what is a Duchenne smile? It's a twinkle in your eye.
A Duchenne smile is named after French neurologist Guillaume Duchenne, this type of smile is associated with true enjoyment and involves the corners of the mouth turning up while the cheeks also lift, causing crinkling around the eyes. It is also known as "smizing," or smiling with your eyes.
Characteristics of a Duchenne smile:
Mouth movement: The corners of the mouth are pulled up by the zygomaticus major muscle.
Eye movement: The orbicularis oculi muscle contracts, raising the cheeks and causing "crow's feet" wrinkles at the corners of the eyes.
Cheek elevation: The cheeks are lifted, creating a slight bunching of the skin below the eyes.
Duchenne smile vs. non-Duchenne smile:
Duchenne smile:
Engages both the mouth and eye muscles, signaling authentic, positive emotion.
Non-Duchenne smile:
Often called a "fake" or "polite" smile, it only involves the mouth muscles, typically for social politeness.
The muscles involved are primarily the zygomaticus major, left and right, that pull the cheeks up.
Trustworthiness:
People who display Duchenne smiles are often perceived as more trustworthy.
Emotional well-being:
Studies have linked frequent Duchenne smiles to greater marital happiness, personal well-being, and longevity.
Mood and connection:
The act of smiling with your eyes can help lift your own mood, calm you down, and foster a stronger connection with others.
Topic Four: Can a person be trained to create such real emotional expressions? Yes.
The Stanislavski method, which uses physical actions to trigger emotional states,
Arp-Dunham, Joelle Ré . University of Georgia ProQuest Dissertations & Theses, 2020. 28025445
Neuroscience supports this by showing that physical actions can stimulate the brain's emotional centers, similar to how neuroplasticity works, allowing an actor to achieve emotional truthfulness on stage through a process of doing, rather than just thinking.
Stanislavski method and neuroscience
Mind-body connection: Stanislavski's later work, the Method of Physical Action, suggests that a series of physical actions can lead to the necessary emotions. This aligns with neuroscience, which has shown that physical actions can trigger emotional responses in the brain, making emotions more accessible through direct physical experience.
Repetition and habit: The method relies on repetition to make character objectives habitual, which can improve performance. Neuroscience supports this through the concept of neuroplasticity, which explains how repeated actions and thoughts can create new neural pathways, making certain behaviors and emotional responses more natural over time.
Concentration and flow: Stanislavski believed that concentration on the character's actions could overcome fear and lead to a "performing flow" where the actor is fully absorbed in the moment. Neuroscience recognizes the "flow state" as a desirable psychological and neurological state of complete absorption, which can be achieved through focused engagement with a task.
Emotional truth: The method aims for emotional truthfulness, which Stanislavski initially sought by having actors recall personal memories to generate real emotions. Neuroscience supports the link between memory and emotion, demonstrating how the brain's emotional and memory centers are interconnected. Back to the limbic system.
Indirect path to emotion: Stanislavski sought an "indirect route to the unconscious" because emotions were hard to access on demand. He found that by focusing on physical actions, actors could bypass self-consciousness and access deeper, more authentic emotions, which is consistent with neuroscience principles of how the brain connects physical actions to emotional states.
Topic Five: What is the Gen Z Stare?
APA reference: Stock, Nicole (July 14, 2025).
The Gen Z stare is a phrase coined by social media users to describe a "blank stare that members of younger generations give in situations where a verbal response would be more common".[2] Kalhan Rosenblatt of NBC News says, "[w]hile there are several definitions for the stare, the most common meaning is a vacant expression a Gen Zer gives in response to a question. The stare occurs in classrooms, restaurants, at work and more settings."[1] The term "Gen Z stare" garnered widespread coverage in the mainstream media in July 2025.[a] The concept of the "Gen Z stare" was first explored in research conducted by Kaiden Jones, who proposed that while the stare shares some similarities with the nonverbal responses of both deadpan humor and stonewalling, it can signal social critique and a refusal to conform to social scripts.[11]
Professors have reported encountering the stare in college classrooms when trying to elicit engagement from students.[1]
Regarding the possible root causes of the Gen Z stare, a University of Alabama professor said the look became more prevalent on campus following the COVID-19 lockdowns, noticing an "increasing amount of silence" after asking questions in class.[1] The stare may be an expression of authentic boredom and resistance to "performative positivity."[12] Suzy Welch, an NYU business professor, argued the stare could be coming from zoomers ranking "achievement" as a bottom-tier value, linking the stare to quiet quitting.[13] While deadpan has been around for generations, the blank stare might also be a manifestation of social anxiety developed during the enforced isolation of the COVID pandemic period.[1] Social isolation during the pandemic led to increased mental health issues for many students, such as anxiety and depression. When offline interactions were scarce, social media filled a socialization gap. The influence of social media has also led to a fear of being judged or "cancelled" online. Not wanting to be "cringe" is additionally a common theme.[1]
Do you think the Gen Z stare is as far as it goes? BrainNet has not hit mainstream use yet.
Topic six: And how about gender differences in reading body language?
APA reference: Sokolov, 2011
From the Abstract:
Body motion is a rich source of information for social cognition. However, gender effects in body language reading are largely unknown. Here we investigated whether, and, if so, how recognition of emotional expressions revealed by body motion is gender dependent. To this end, females and males were presented with point-light displays portraying knocking at a door performed with different emotional expressions. The findings show that gender affects accuracy rather than speed of body language reading. This effect, however, is modulated by emotional content of actions: males surpass in recognition accuracy of happy actions, whereas females tend to excel in recognition of hostile angry knocking. Advantage of women in recognition accuracy of neutral actions suggests that females are better tuned to the lack of emotional content in body actions. The study provides novel insights into understanding of gender effects in body language reading, and helps to shed light on gender vulnerability to neuropsychiatric and neurodevelopmental impairments in visual social cognition.
Topic Seven: What then do we mean by emotional labels?
Cognitive Labeling of Emotion: Schacter, 2023
Cognitive labeling is the process of identifying and naming an emotion based on a combination of physical arousal and the context of the situation. It is a key part of the Schachter-Singer two-factor theory of emotion, which states that an emotion is a result of both physiological changes (like a racing heart) and a cognitive interpretation of why that change is occurring. For example, the same physiological state of a pounding heart could be labeled as "fear" if you are being chased, or as "excitement" if you are on a thrilling roller coaster.
How it works
Physiological arousal: An emotional event triggers a physical response, such as increased heart rate, sweating, or shallow breathing.
Cognitive appraisal: The brain analyzes the external environment and the internal physical sensations to determine the cause of the arousal.
Labeling: Based on this appraisal, the brain assigns a label to the emotion. The same physical arousal can be interpreted as different emotions depending on the context. For instance, a racing heart can be labeled as fear if you are walking alone at night or as excitement if you are watching a thrilling movie scene.
Emotional experience: The combination of the physiological arousal and the cognitive label creates the conscious experience of emotion
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