The Biggest Lie Your Brain Ever Told You (And How to Finally See Reality) | Jonas Kaplan (Fan Fav)
Neuroscientist Jonas Kaplan discusses how the brain constructs perceived reality through predictions and beliefs rather than objective truth, explaining why people resist contradictory information and how understanding brain mechanisms like confabulation and the default mode network can help individuals become more open-minded learners.
Summary
Jonas Kaplan, a neuroscientist, explores the fundamental mechanisms by which the brain constructs our perception of reality. He explains that the brain evolved primarily to keep our bodies alive by creating models of the world that guide behavior. Rather than passively recording reality, the brain actively makes predictions and inferences about what exists, which is why optical illusions demonstrate that identical sensory inputs can produce different perceptions depending on the brain's expectations about context.
The conversation covers how beliefs form through both evolved perceptual biases and learned associations, often absorbing cultural or familial beliefs unconsciously. Kaplan discusses split-brain patients—individuals who had their corpus callosum severed as an epilepsy treatment—who demonstrate that the brain's drive for consistency is so strong it will confabulate explanations to maintain a coherent narrative, even when one hemisphere has information the other cannot access.
A central theme is that the brain treats beliefs as part of identity, making challenges to those beliefs feel like existential threats. The insular cortex, evolved to reject spoiled food through disgust, gets repurposed to reject threatening information. This protective mechanism, combined with people's tendency to surround themselves with others who share their beliefs, creates echo chambers where evidence against those beliefs is rarely encountered.
Kaplan discusses how meditation and mindfulness can help by creating awareness of the automatic thought patterns and emotional reactions triggered by belief challenges, allowing people to choose responses rather than react habitually. The default mode network, which generates self-narrative and meaning-making, becomes hyperactive in states of rumination and depression, but can be modulated through practice.
The transcript explores how narrative functions as a compression mechanism—the brain distills reality into stories to make it comprehensible and shareable with others. Filmmaking emerges as an application of neuroscience, with editors using knowledge of how the brain predicts motion and makes connections to create seamless storytelling. The brain's prediction-making ability allows audiences to fill in gaps and interpret implied information.
Emotions are revealed as constructed through interoception—the brain's interpretation of bodily signals—which can be redirected through embodied cognition. Kaplan describes research showing that stimulating or inhibiting specific brain regions through transcranial magnetic stimulation can alter behaviors like generosity by modulating inhibitory control mechanisms. The discussion touches on how mirror neurons enable imitation, but this impulse is normally dampened by prefrontal control mechanisms that can be damaged or disrupted.
Finally, the conversation addresses psychedelics' ability to temporarily dissolve the narrative self, creating experiences of interconnection and dissolution of the boundary between self and other, which Kaplan suggests can increase empathy and provide perspective on the constructed nature of identity.
About this episode
<p>Fan Favorite: This episode originally aired on November 25, 2021. It was reported that roughly 1 in 20 people report having at least one hallucination in a lifetime. Maybe it was drug induced or simply a dream. Either way, how is it that you can have vivid imagery about what feels like reality in the moment? </p> <p><br /></p> <p>Dr. Jonas Kaplan joins Tom in this conversation to discuss all the ways your brain is filling in the gaps of its own break in knowledge. The brain is truly fascinating to study and so important to understand when you want to be more open-minded and question your beliefs or get a better perception of and understanding of what reality truly is. Part of seeing reality as it really is versus how your brain predicts it to be is coming face to face with information that challenges the beliefs you hold. Jonas and Tom explore research studies that reveal the freaky nature of how our brains really work and ways you can hack your way past the overprotective nature of your brain. </p> <p><br /></p> <p><strong>SHOW NOTES:</strong></p> <p>0:00 | Introduction Jonas Kaplan</p> <p>0:21 | Brain Illusions vs Reality</p> <p>10:37 | Split Brain Confabulation</p> <p>22:39 | Executive Function Network</p> <p>26:04 | Changing Your Beliefs</p> <p>32:20 | When Identity Is Challenged</p> <p>41:37 | Mindfulness & Self Narrative</p> <p>53:02 | Dissolution of Self</p> <p>1:02:19 | Meaning Making & Stories</p> <p>1:08:27 | Filmmaking & Neuroscience</p> <p>1:13:51 | Hacking Your Brain</p> <p>1:19:39 | Brain Body Malfunction</p> <p>1:22:48 | Homunculus Sensory Map</p> <p>1:28:23 | Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation</p> <p><br /></p> <p><strong>Follow Jonas Kaplan:</strong></p> <p>Website: <a href="http://www.jonaskaplan.com/" target="_blank">http://www.jonaskaplan.com/</a></p> <p>Podcast: <a href="https://floatpodcast.libsyn.com/" target="_blank">https://floatpodcast.libsyn.com/</a></p> <p>Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/jonas_kaplan" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/jonas_kaplan</a></p> <p><br /></p> <p><strong>CHECK OUT OUR SPONSORS</strong></p> <p><strong>ButcherBox: </strong>Ready to level up your meals? 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Key Insights
- The brain constructs perception through active inference and prediction rather than passive recording, meaning identical sensory inputs can result in different perceptions depending on contextual assumptions (e.g., the blue/gold dress illusion).
- Beliefs become incorporated into identity over time, causing the brain to treat challenges to those beliefs as existential threats worthy of the same defensive mechanisms used for physical survival.
- The brain's drive for consistency is so powerful that when information is missing or contradictory, it will unconsciously confabulate explanations—making up stories—rather than acknowledge gaps, even when the person knows they've had surgery separating brain hemispheres.
- People tend to arrange their social environments so they encounter information confirming their beliefs and rarely face contradictory evidence, meaning the brain's biases are reinforced by deliberate social choices.
- The insula cortex, which evolved to trigger disgust at spoiled food, is repurposed to reject information that threatens core beliefs, creating a visceral negative feeling when encountering contradictory ideas.
- The default mode network, responsible for self-narrative and rumination, becomes hyperactive in anxiety and depression, but can be modulated through meditation to create distance between the observing consciousness and the narrative self.
- A narrative or story functions as a compression mechanism that allows the brain to distill complex reality into comprehensible, shareable meaning, but this compression necessarily distorts and omits details.
- Emotions are constructed by the brain's interpretation of bodily signals (interoception) rather than being direct responses to external events, meaning the same physical sensation can be interpreted as different emotions depending on context.
- Through transcranial magnetic stimulation, researchers can temporarily inhibit or activate specific brain regions to change behavior, revealing that some behaviors like generosity are regulated by inhibitory control rather than direct activation.
- Mirror neurons enable automatic imitation of others, but this impulse is normally suppressed by prefrontal control mechanisms that can be damaged, causing uncontrolled mimicry of others' actions.
- Filmmaking techniques—like cutting on action or the juxtaposition of images—work because the brain's predictive machinery automatically fills in gaps and connects pieces based on expectation, not explicit visual continuity.
- Psychedelics can temporarily dissolve the narrative self and the sense of boundary between self and other, creating experiences of interconnection that appear to increase empathy and reveal the constructed nature of identity.
Topics
Transcript
This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Do you ever think about switching insurance companies to see if you could save some cash? Progressive makes it easy to see if you could save when you bundle your home and auto policies. Try it at Progressive.com. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and Affiliates. Potential savings will vary. Not available in all states. Jonas Kaplan, welcome to the show. Thank you. Happy to be here. I am very happy to have you. As I was saying before we started rolling, anything about the brain, beliefs, like all that stuff is my absolute sweet spot, my total obsession. Right. And as somebody who studies this for a living, I want to start…
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