from National Academy of Sciences
That still small voice in our brain that suggests we could get hurt if we do what the rest of our mind is contemplating—really exists. And it’s not called conscience. It’s called habenula—about half the size of a pea. New research at the University College of London published by the United States National Academy of Sciences shows for the first time that the evolutionarily ancient habenula tracks expectations about nasty events. For instance, it helps us learn from bad experiences, like painful electric shocks. Researcher Dr. Jonathan Roiser says previous research has linked the habenula to depression, and this study may explain that because a hyperactive habenula could cause us to make disproportionately negative predictions.