How the Brain Creates Culture - Mind Brain Behavior Distinguished Lecture

Explore the intricate relationship between the brain and culture in this Harvard University Mind Brain Behavior Distinguished Lecture by Chris Frith. Delve into how observing others' behavior shapes our understanding of the world, often influencing us more than direct experiences. Discover the implicit nature of knowledge gained through observation and its subconscious impact on our actions. Examine fascinating topics such as the automatic mimicry of facial expressions, the contagious nature of actions, and the brain's Bayesian model for action perception. Investigate the role of prediction errors in intention understanding and the interplay between bottom-up and top-down processes in vision and action experience. Learn about optimal group decision-making through weighted confidence sharing and ponder cultural differences in agency perception. Gain insights into the potential special role of the frontopolar cortex in cultural creation. The lecture concludes with post-talk commentary by Mahzarin Banaji, offering additional perspectives on this captivating exploration of brain function and cultural development.

Intro
Sticklebacks use publicly available information from observing others
We automatically mimic the facial expressions of others
Expression of fear enhances perception, while expression of disgust dampens it
Actions are contagious
Activity in PSTS reflects intention prediction errors
A Bayesian account of action perception
Bottom-up & top-down effects on the experience of action
A hierarchical Bayesian model of the brain A discrepancy between sensory evidence & prior expectation generates a prediction error This error is the evidence for the next level of the hierarchy
Bottom-up & top-down experiments on vision
Discussions of the experience of action can alter subsequent behaviour
experimental design
Optimally interacting minds discussion is necessary for optimal interaction, but feedback knowledge of results is not necessary
Weighted confidence sharing Decision & confidence are communicated
group advantage is predicted from the weighted confidence sharing model
Are there cultural differences in the experience of agency?
Does frontopolar cortex have a special role in the creation of culture?