“Why is it that some people are more vulnerable to life’s slings and arrows and others more resilient?” In this eye-opening talk, Richard Davidson discusses how mindfulness can improve well-being and outlines strategies to boost four components of a healthy mind: awareness, connection, insight, and purpose.

Richard Davidson is researching how mindfulness changes the emotional life of our brains and what we know about people’s brains of individuals showing more resilience than others. Davidson is Wiliam James and Vilas professor of psychology and psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison as well as founder and director of the Center for Healthy Minds. His research is focused on the neural bases of emotion and emotional style and methods to promote human flourishing, including meditation and related contemplative practices. #Neuroscience #Wellbeing #MentalHealth Richard Davidson is Research Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry and Founder & Director of the Center for Healthy Minds, University of Wisconsin-Madison.Davidson’s research is focused on the neural bases of emotion and emotional style and methods to promote human flourishing including meditation and related contemplative practices. He has published more than 400 articles and is the co-author of “The Emotional Life of Your Brain” and “Altered Traits: Science Reveals How Meditation Changes Your Mind, Brain, and Body”, both published by Penguin. Davidson has been recognized for his research through various awards, such as a National Institute of Mental Health Research Scientist Award and an Established Investigator Award from the National Alliance for Research in Schizophrenia and Affective Disorders (NARSAD). Davidson received his Ph.D. from Harvard University in Psychology and has been teaching psychology and psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison since 1984. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx
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Dr Neil Bailey, Monash Alfred Psychiatry research centre, describes how mindfulness changes our brain to prevent mental illness. Vote on Neil’s video for the 2015 Thinkable Award: http://thinkable.org/submission/2037
See more below or visit:
http://www.maprc.org.au/neil-bailey

Mindfulness is an effective and side effect free method to treat and prevent mental illness, and improve mental health. Our research will test the changes in brain activity that take place as a result of mindfulness, helping us further understand how mindfulness can be used to improve our lives. Eventually, we hope to establish mindfulness practice as part of the core curriculum in high schools, so that every teenager benefits from a reduced risk of mental illness.

Scientists think the benefits provided by mindfulness come from an improved ability to direct our attention, so we can focus on the moment, rather than being distracted by worries about the future or regrets about the past. This improved attention is almost certainly the result of neuroplastic change. However, no one has systematically examined the effect of these changes on brain activity during the direction of attention. The current research project will examine changes in neural inhibition (the brain’s ability to quiet non-relevant regions) as a result of mindfulness practice. Understanding these changes will help us understand how mindfulness works to improve attention.

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The unforgettable story of Great Britain’s 400m runner Derek Redmond, whose hamstring snapped during his event but was determined to finish the race at the Barcelona 1992 Olympic Games.

Subscribe to the Olympic channel: http://bit.ly/1dn6AV5

Derek Anthony Redmond didn’t win a medal at the Barcelona Olympics. In fact, the British 400m runner didn’t even make it past the semi-final stage. But it was his determination to finish that will live forever in the minds of millions. Injury forced the Briton to withdraw from the 1988 Seoul Games just ten minutes before the start of his 400m heat, so Redmond felt he had everything to prove in Barcelona four years later. Not to his peers, that is but, as he later admitted, to himself.

Redmond wanted a medal whatever the colour and he started well, qualifying for the semi-finals by clocking the fastest time in his heat. As the gun signaled the start of his semi-final, Redmond charged out of the blocks, making good speed over his first 250m. At that point his right hamstring snapped. The one time British 400m record holder pulled sharply up as the rest of his field ran away from him, leaving Redmond on his knees and crippled, his Olympic dream over.

What followed, however, is one of the most memorable moments in Olympic history. Redmond got back to his feet and tried to finish the race. In an act of true courage against adversity, Redmond could only hop on one leg towards the finish line. Pain etched on his face as each step became more painful than the last, Redmond would not give up. He had promised himself and his father, that he would finish the race ‘no matter what,’ and he would keep that promise.

Half way to the finish line on one leg and crying with desperation, Derek was joined by his father Jim. The moment Redmond crossed the finish line brought sixty-five thousand spectators to their feet in a standing ovation, many also in tears. Few can remember that Steve Lewis of the USA won the semi-final in a time of 44.50. But no one who saw it will ever forget Derek Redmond’s courage on the day he defined the essence of the human and Olympic spirit.

Find more about the Barcelona 1992 Olympic Games: http://www.olympic.org/barcelona-1992-summer-olympics
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