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SIDARTA RIBEIRO, PH.D., neuroscience professor and director, Brain Institute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil
“Seeing with the Eyes Shut: Neural Basis of Enhanced Visual Imagery following Ayahuasca Ingestion”
In this talk, Dr. Ribeiro will discuss results obtained with functional magnetic resonance imaging, showing that Ayahuasca “visions” stem from the concerted activation, during voluntary imagery, of an extensive network of cortical areas involved with vision, memory, and intention.
Biography
Sidarta Ribeiro, Ph.D. holds a Bachelors degree in Biological Sciences from the University of Brasilia (1993), a Masters in Biophysics from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (1994), and a Ph.D. in Animal Behavior from the Rockefeller University (2000). He performed post doctoral studies in Neurophysiology at Duke University (2000-2005). Currently he is full professor of Neuroscience at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), and director of the Brain Institute of UFRN. He has experience in the areas of neuroethology, molecular neurobiology, and multi-electrode neurophysiology, and works mainly in the following areas: sleep, dreaming and memory; immediate genes and neuronal plasticity; vocal communication in birds and primates; and symbolic competence in non-human animals. He is greatly interested in the study of the neural bases of consciousness and its alteration, including the investigation of the ayahuasca experience. He has also been involved in the public debate on the medicinal uses and the legalization of cannabis in Brazil