@Garwboy@ohai.social
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

Garwboy

@Garwboy@ohai.social

Neuroscientist, author, science bod, vague wit, moderately prominent Twitter person. Tend to chime in with all things brain and mental health related.

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

Garwboy, to mentalhealth
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

"Employers care too much about mental health now"

What? Most employers approach to #MentalHealth is still basically handing out pamphlets that say "suck it up" in the friendliest possible language, and tying a yellow balloon to your termination notice when you can't.

Garwboy, to Depression
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

This government cutting off benefits for #depression and #anxiety is like being sued for damage to property because your face has left a dent in the sole of the boot of the guy who spends every day stamping on it

Garwboy, to random
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

Why Captain America is Problematic
(In the neuropsychiatric sense)

https://thecosmicshamblesnetwork.substack.com/p/why-captain-america-is-problematic?r=3ltz5p&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&triedRedirect=true

My first post for the @cosmicshambles new Substack, in which I needlessly take a beloved superhero to task for his poor grasp of appropriate neurological care

Garwboy, to random
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

[Goes online for the first time today]

"'Trump's pick for VP boasted about killing her own dog'?

Come ON, people, there's plenty of actual reasons to criticise him/them without making up cartoonishly awful claims"

[Reads further]

"... oh my giddy Christ..."

Garwboy, to Podcast
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A smorgasbord of terribly thought out 'luxury items' on the latest "Why Does This Thing Exist?" [Podcast]

Ep 94: "Well cool, real cool"

https://shows.acast.com/why-does-this-thing-exist-podcast/episodes/episode-94-well-cool-real-cool

From needlessly dangerous lighters to overly-ornate sofas, it's all there for your weekend entertainment

Garwboy, to random
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A perfect example of how people will default to an egocentric worldview

In this case, "I don't do anything useful and still get paid, so obviously everyone else is doing the same"

Garwboy, to Podcast
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Why does this thing exist? (Podcast)

Episode 94: "Well cool, real cool"

In the latest episode, Dean tries to be all cool with a pretend pistol, Simon covets a safari sofa, and both have little to say about an old Tarzan film

#Podcast #Humour

https://shows.acast.com/why-does-this-thing-exist-podcast/episodes/episode-94-well-cool-real-cool

Garwboy, to random
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Is it just me, or does coffee with some but insufficient milk taste stronger than straightforward black coffee?

Wondering if it's worth putting a research proposal together, is all

Garwboy, to Seinfeld
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Episode 93: "Classic Mellor"

https://shows.acast.com/why-does-this-thing-exist-podcast/episodes/episode-93-classic-mellor

This week, our hosts Dean and Simon ponder a mislabelled Seinfeld clip, plumb the depths of human depravity in haunted houses, and catch up with Coronation Street

#Seinfeld #Podcast #Humoue #Horror #Swans

Garwboy, to random
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By the end of the day, I will have been in 4 different countries by train.

More a reflection of just how small and cramped Europe is than how fast trains are. But still!

Garwboy, to random
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Even though I'm in Brussels right now speaking to members of the European Commission, I assure you this is a coincidence

Garwboy, to random
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

Me, before watching [#Xmen97 ]

"Gambit? Oh yeah, the French-ish guy. He's OK. Bit over the top at times, but not the worst side character]

Me, after watching [#Xmen97 ]

"GAMBIT IS THE MOST EPIC BADASS TO EVER GRACE THE SCREEN AND I'LL PHYSICALLY FIGHT ANYONE WHO ARGUES!"

Garwboy, to science
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

I had the rare honour of providing the cover story for the latest issue of BBC Science Focus magazine.

No jokes or ironic self-deprecation this time. I just think it's cool whenever a talented artist lends their skill to my efforts.

#science #Art #cover

Garwboy, to Brussels
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

If anyone is a follower/friend/casually interested stranger in Brussels, I'll be in the city for a few days this week, for several talks and appearances.

Check out links for details

https://fullcircle.eu/event-5686061

https://fullcircle.eu/event-5661979

#Brussels #Brains #Europe #Talk

Garwboy, to random
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

When we first became parents, wife and I would regularly say "We'll be less stressed and strung out as soon as we catch up on sleep"

12 years later... well, that might still be the case. We wouldn't know.

Garwboy, to random
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"If you're under 25 your brain isn't fully developed, so you can't be trusted to make informed decisions"

I'm seeing this a LOT lately, especially today with the Cass Review fallout. And it's utter guff, based on hearsay, misunderstandings of neuroscience, or wilful ignorance.

Why? I'll tell you why

/1

Garwboy,
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

We make teenaged school students choose GCSEs and A-Levels that will likely DETERMINE THE COURSE OF THEIR ENTIRE LIFE. If their brains are underdeveloped, how is this allowed? They need at least another decade before they can be allowed to make these decisions.

/15

Garwboy,
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

If under-25s are too neurologically underdeveloped to make decisions that affect their body and wellbeing, then that rules out all career athletes under that age. You can't possibly let a 18 year old take up a sport that comes with significant concussion risk, surely?

/16

Garwboy,
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

Also, let's follow the logic to its conclusion

If having a brain functioning at its peak is a requirement of making important decisions, then it's probably more important to have a maximum age limit than a minimum. Because the older you are, the more your brain wears out

/17

Garwboy,
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

Thanks to basic entropy, if you're at retirement age, your brain will likely be losing fluid intelligence, the ability to reason, solve problems etc.

Can you trust such people to make important decisions? If you insist and a peak-performance brain, then technically no

/18

Garwboy,
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

That's not my stance, in the slightest. But if you're going to make rigid rules that insist on individual's brains having the capability of a 'fully developed' one, then you can't ignore the fact that this development can be 'reversed' due to the consequences of age.

/19

Garwboy,
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

In any case, if we're going to insist on adulthood being determined by this sort of biological absolutism, then in the biological sense, an 'adult' organism is one that is capable of reproducing. So, humans are adults as soon as puberty its. I.e. 11-12 years old.

/20

Garwboy,
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

No, I don't think any rational person in modern society would consider an 11yo an adult. There are countless other factors to consider

But that's tacit acknowledgement of the fact that hard biological boundaries as a decider of human development are a bad idea

[Hint hint]

/21

Garwboy,
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

Point is, it honestly doesn't matter what issue it's being applied to, the whole 'Those under 25 have underdeveloped brains' argument doesn't hold up any way you slice it.

It's often just an easy way of dismissing the valid perspective of younger people. Which isn't good.

/end

Garwboy,
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

If you'd like to know more about how we deal with emotions and how they affect our thinking at all stages of life, my latest book is about exactly that

https://amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/1783351748/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?ie=UTF8&dib_tag=se&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.x8EUTCo6HwzmqJyIDdOMP7ZfGZy5xkCvJi0BihkKNZkInWHDyi4iA09xSCB4js__RgU8cgiY_XFNe9DIU27tu_Fh-rT-TZlAt4MR6EXVcZdO2rHYH-A6PCHnuGlPubKDvKrq6oYoyhMeIjoK1u6QFNBNxHn1o3MycmBims6cS9o3_QZ60qguxP3DcgfLhM_68HrOQ_K8kMLnGn22K64l2g.srVsQrp9hKvx_t9LeBXs1S9eu5lAo5GBZMwLjjUd-TU&qid=1712779520&sr=1-6

Am I exploiting a popular thread to sell books? Yes

Do my kids still need to eat? Also yes

Garwboy,
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

@ashguy in fairness, I would very much like this to be introduced to the Olympics

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