Frontal Dopamine and Religious Experience (2006-present)
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- Published on 10 October 2006
- Written by Wesley Wildman
- Hits: 671
Institute fellow Erica Harris's dissertation addresses the evolution of religion by investigating the proximate mechanisms of the brain. Her key hypothesis concerns the role of frontal dopamine in religious experience. She investiagates this hypothesis in relation to neurological populations with frontal dysfunction and dopamine dysfunction (e.g. with Parkinson’s disease patients).
Weekly Journal Club (2005-present)
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- Published on 10 October 2006
- Written by Wesley Wildman
- Hits: 722
Each week, Patrick McNamara and other interested persons meet to discuss publications on the evolution of religion, ritual, emotions, and related topics. Participants include graduate students and IBCSR fellows.
Human Relation Area Files Project (2006-present)
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- Published on 10 October 2006
- Written by Wesley Wildman
- Hits: 407
The Human Relation Area Files consists of a large electronic database that has been coded according to various actions that are or have been present in the world’s cultures. Patrick McNamara and Wesley Wildman are in the planning stages of a major study to examine the neurophysiology of religious behaviors, beliefs, and experiences using the Human Relation Area Files.
Science, Philosophy, and Religion Doctoral Program (1997-present)
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- Published on 10 October 2006
- Written by Wesley Wildman
- Hits: 387
This is one of the most important multidisciplinary educational programs uniting the sciences and the humanities while maintaining a focus on religion. Developed from an older program within Boston University’s Graduate School by Wesley Wildman, this doctoral program involves intensive training in both the sciences and the humanities, with a focus on religion. A number of students within this program are pursuing research in the scientific study of religion allied with IBCSR’s goals.
More information about this unique graduate program is available here.
Templeton Lectures Program in Religious and Psychological Well-Being (2007-present)
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- Published on 07 October 2006
- Written by Wesley Wildman
- Hits: 477
This project, funded by a JTF grant administered by Metanexus, brings together a multidisciplinary working group of experts to study the neurological, social, psychological, and clinical conditions for religious and psychological well-being. Wesley Wildman is the public lecturer for the first year of this project in (2007-8). The second-year (2008-9) lecturer is psychologist of religion Don Browning.
More information about the lectures and associated program can be found at the Danielsen Institute's Research Center website.
Intense Experiences and Ultimate Reality (2006-present)
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- Published on 29 September 2006
- Written by Wesley Wildman
- Hits: 421
Patrick McNamara and Wesley Wildman won a planning grant from the STARS program of the Center for Theology and the Natural Sciences to design an extensive study on the theme of intense experiences and ultimate reality. This is a study, equal parts neuroscience and philosophy, designed to evaluate the hypothesis that intense experiences tell us something relevant about ultimate realities, whatever they may be.
