TINY BLUE DOT FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES THE FUNDING OF 11 NEUROSCIENTIFIC RESEARCH PROJECTS RELATED TO "THE SCIENCE OF PERCEPTION BOX™"

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Jun 06, 2023, 13:00 ET

Awarding of Funding Comes Following an Open Process That Draws Hundreds of Innovative and Forward-Thinking Applications From Research Teams From Around the Globe

Recipients Include Studies Ranging From Effects of Psychedelics, Breathwork, Mindfulness, Heated Yoga, Mindfulness Interventions for Treating Chronic Pain, and Reducing Bias by Building Relationships Among Police and Black Community Members

LOS ANGELES, June 6, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Eleven major neuroscientific research projects related to "The Science of Perception Box" are being funded by the Tiny Blue Dot Foundation, each project receiving three consecutive years of funding for up to $900,000. The projects include a wide-range of empirical investigations studying the effects of psychedelics, breathwork, mindfulness, heated yoga, mindfulness interventions for treating chronic pain and, in a very relevant study for our current times, reducing bias by building compassionate relationships among police and Black community members. The studies, which will be conducted by researchers from many corners of the world including the United States, Israel, Germany, Austria, and Taiwan, were selected from more than two hundred applications during an open call for proposals which kicked off in October 2022. The final decision was made in a lengthy, double blind review process: judges did not know the identity of the applicants and applicants did not know the identity of the judges. Details and scope of the projects as well as the researchers were announced by Elizabeth R. Koch, the Co-Founder of Tiny Blue Dot Foundation, and Christof Koch, the Chief Scientist at Tiny Blue Dot Foundation.

Tiny Blue Dot Foundation announces the funding of 11 neuroscientific research projects related to “The Science of Perception Box™” following an open process that draws hundreds of innovative and forward-thinking applications from research teams from around the globe.

"We were overwhelmed by the unexpectedly large interest in the Science of Perception Box™ RFP," said Christof Koch. "Our team had its work cut out for them to determine which projects to fund as there were so many that were worthwhile. There is great enthusiasm to understand the footprints of the Perception Box™ in the brain and to measure the effectiveness of techniques and interventions to broaden its boundaries in neurotypicals and/or clinically defined populations to help them lead happier lives."

"We were shocked and thrilled by not only the number of responses, but the imagination, creativity and range of submissions," said Elizabeth R. Koch. "Each of the proposals we've chosen could on its own have a meaningful impact on helping people understand the nature of their Perception Box™. Coupled with all the other projects and partnerships Unlikely Collaborators is creating and cultivating, this research has incredible potential to ease suffering and bring more joy and collaborative engagement to our world."

Grants are being awarded to recognized Internal Revenue Code section 501(c)(3) research organizations located within the United States as well as qualifying international research institutions. The Principal Investigators are clinical, applied, or basic science researchers at the Applicant Institution with a MD, PhD, or an equivalent degree.

Below is a brief summary of each of the funded projects along with the originating organization and principal investigator.

Courageous Connection: Changing Perceptions and Reducing Bias by Building Mindful Awareness and Compassionate Relationships among Police and Black Community Members
Institution: Brown University, Crim Fitness, and Mindful Badge
Principal Investigator: Jeffrey Proulx
Co-Investigator(s): Erin Woo (Brown University)
Country: USA
Overview: This project aims to address the broken trust and violent encounters between police officers and Black community members in the United States, by developing mindfulness-based interventions for both police officers and Black community members.
Study Details

Does breathing resistance training relax the body and calm the mind?
Institution: The Regents of the University of California, UCLA
Principal Investigator: Paul Macey
Co-Investigator(s): Prabha Siddarth (UCLA)
Country: USA
Overview: This project aims to investigate the effects of five minutes of daily Inspiratory muscle training (IMT) on mental and physical states and determine if these changes are sustained over time.
Study Details

Examining the Impact of Heated Yoga on Rumination and Mindfulness
Institution: Massachusetts General Hospital
Principal Investigator: Maren Nyer
Co-Investigator(s): Louisa Sylvia (MGH)
Country: USA
Overview: This study will examine how doing yoga in a heated room can expand an individual's mindfulness and decrease rumination.
Study Description: Examining the Impact of Heated Yoga on Rumination and Mindfulness
Study Details

Expanding the Perception Box through neuromodulation-assisted ego-disengagement
Institution: Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System
Principal Investigator: Giulio Tononi
Co-Investigator(s): Melanie Boly (University of Wisconsin)
Country: USA
Overview: Using meditation and noninvasive tools, this study will seek to help people open their minds and let go of their self-centered thoughts, allowing them to see things in a new and broader way.
Study Details

Activating Neuroplasticity to Enhance the Perception Box Expanding Effects of Psilocybin
Institution: The Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System
Principal Investigator: Charles Raison
Co-Investigator(s): Christopher Nicholas (University of Wisconsin), Steven Garlow (University of Wisconsin), Stephanie Jones (University of Wisconsin), and Paul Hutson (University of Wisconsin)
Country: USA
Overview: This study will seek to link the effects experienced during the psychedelic state, such as mystical experiences, to long-term changes in Perception Box-related areas.
Study Details

Pointing beyond the pain Perception Box: Treating chronic pain by modulating phenomenological and psycho-physiological indices of self-transcendence
Institution: University of Utah
Principal Investigator: Adam Hanley
Co-Investigator(s): Eric Garland (University of Utah), Justin Hudak (University of Utah), and Gary Donaldson (University of Utah)
Country: USA
Overview: This project will determine if mindfulness training designed to encourage self-transcendence can lead to long-term pain relief.
Study Details

Neural and psychological evidence to shift mindsets from "me" to "we" using a scalable decentering curriculum
Institution: University of Oregon
Principal Investigator: David McCormick
Co-Investigator(s): Elliot Berkman (University of Oregon) and Megan Lipsett (University of Oregon)
Country: USA
Overview: This project aims to develop an entry-level college course on positive psychology and neuroscience focused on transforming students' mindset from a self-centered perspective to one that emphasizes a collective and pro-social focus.
Study Details

The role of transformative experiences and brain network dynamics in hedonic response to psychedelics: paving the way for broader utilization
Institution: University of Vienna
Principal Investigator: Julia Sophia Crone
Co-Investigator(s): Marie Spies (Medical University of Vienna) and Rupert Lanzenberger (Medical University of Vienna)
Country: Austria
Overview: This project aims to investigate whether the psychedelic experience is necessary for increased well-being and pleasure and how traits like openness affect this relationship.
Study Details

Exhaling the past: A comprehensive neuropsychological test of breathwork as a tool for trauma processing and mental well-being
Institution: Ernst Strungmann Institute for Neuroscience
Principal Investigator: Martha Nari Havenith
Co-Investigator(s): Isabel Dziobek (Humboldt University Berlin) and Christopher Timmermann (Imperial College London)
Country: Germany
Overview: This study aims to explore the potential of circular breathwork as a tool for trauma processing. Our goal is to understand whether circular breathwork and psychedelic therapy share similar psychological and neuronal mechanisms in participants with a history of childhood trauma.
Study Details

The Self, Unbound: Neurofeedback-assisted Meditation for Eliciting Transformative Self-Dissolution Experiences
Institution: University of Haifa
Principal Investigator: Aviva Berkovich-Ohana
Co-Investigator(s): Pedro Mediano (Imperial College London), Fynn-Mathis Trautwein (University Medical Center Freiburg), and Yair Dor-Ziderman (University of Haifa)
Country: Israel
Overview: Utilizing meditation and neuro-imaging, this study seeks to better understand altered states of consciousness and the potential for promoting well-being.
Study Details

Why do we feel that way: Elucidating the neural mechanisms underlying emotion perception and enhancing a noninvasive brain stimulation intervention.
Institution: Cognitive Intelligence and Precision Healthcare Research Center at National Central University
Principal Investigator: Chi-Hung Juan
Co-Investigator(s): Cheng-Ta Li (National Central University) and Wei-Kuang Liang (National Central University)
Country: Taiwan
Overview: This project aims to investigate the nature of emotion consciousness and develop potential methods to benefit individuals with conditions such as depression, anxiety, PTSD, and autism.
Study Details

About Tiny Blue Dot Foundation
Tiny Blue Dot Foundation strives to help people understand that they live in their own unique Perception Box™ whose walls can be expanded to minimize suffering, increase acceptance of self and others, and view trauma/other challenges as opportunities for growth. Our mission is to develop Perception Box™ modification techniques that are safe, effective, reliable, measurable, widely accessible, and easy to use.

SOURCE Tiny Blue Dot Foundation