Optimal Being

Summary:   A new study unveils how the brain enters the creative flow state, famously known as being “in the zone.” By analyzing jazz improvisations through EEGs, the research confirms that creative flow combines extensive experience with a conscious release of control, allowing for automatic idea generation. This “expertise-plus-release” model suggests that deep creative flow is more accessible to those with significant experience and the ability to let go. The findings offer a new understanding of flow, challenging previous theories and opening avenues for enhancing creativity through practice and relinquishment of control. Key Facts: The study supports the “expertise-plus-release” theory of creative flow, indicating that expertise and the ability to release control are essential for achieving deep creative states. High-flow states are associated with increased activity in the brain’s auditory and touch areas, and decreased activity in executive control regions, supporting the id...

 A volley of new insights reignites the debate over whether our choices are ever truly our own. You ’ re thirsty so you reach for a glass of water. It ’ s either a freely chosen action or the inevitable result of the laws of nature, depending on who you ask. Do we have free will? The question is ancient — and vexing. Everyone seems to have pondered it, and many seem quite certain of the answer, which is typically either “ yes ” or “ absolutely not. ” One scientist in the “ absolutely not ” camp is   Robert Sapolsky . In his new book,   Determined: A Science of Life Without Free Will , the primatologist and Stanford professor of neurology spells out why we can ’ t possibly have free will. Why do we behave one way and not another? Why do we choose Brand A over Brand B, or vote for Candidate X over Candidate Y? Not because we have free will, but because every act and thought are the product of “ cumulative biological and environmental luck. ” Sapolsky tells readers that th...