A TED talk by Rebecca Sax on “How We Read Each Other’s Minds”
As I was scrolling through the TED talk options, one in particular caught my eye. It was titled “How We Read Each Other’s Minds” by Rebecca Sax and it was about how someone can interpret a situation, infer a person’s thoughts or emotions, and come up with a moral conclusion. It also included ways of measuring a person’s response to a situation and actually changing the person’s moral conclusion. I was intrigued by this because the brain is so complex and it is amazing that scientists have created a way to measure and control a part of the human body.
Sax goes on to explain the method in which they can control a person’s response. Using a Functional MRI (f MRI), magnetic currents are directed to a specific part of the brain called the RTP and can alter a person’s response to a moral situation.
The RTP solely focuses on moral decisions. A young child does not have a fully developed RTP, therefore can not make certain moral conclusions based on situation given. The speaker measured this as well with giving an identical test to a three, five and seven year old. Each one had a different response but as the age increased, the more the child understood the situation and could come up with a moral conclusion.
The research was extensive but Sax did not have statistical support to demonstrate her data. The charts and graphs Sax used were poorly constructed. She had words and arrows, not numbers and outcomes. I think that the idea is very interesting and could be used in the future with court systems and more specifically the Jury. I do not think her researched is supported enough therefore I do not think the presenter or the information is trustworthy.
I really like the idea of monitoring the brain when it responds to data it is given. I would want to do a research study focused around that were I have 50 participants all over the age of 25. I want people from different cultures because I believe that an unethical solution to one person from a certain culture is actually ethical to another. I would monitor the RTP while I give the a scenario and while they say their moral solution. I would then give them a second test but while using the f MRI. The reason I want people to be over the age of 25 is because I do not want young children or teenagers as their brains are not fully developed.
Ally'sCollegeBlog 
Alley, I think you make a lot of great points with the weaknesses of how the research is presented. I agree that if there is not statistical evidence in the data, it makes it hard to be believable and replicated, a very important factor of an experiment. I think Sax maybe was trying to make some opening claims to be further researched, and wanted her graphs to be simple and easy to follow to allow a public audience to understand.
Your possible research experiment was strong in gathering a sample that including different cultures and ages above 25. In addition, It’s great that you would do the two different tests for the best results possible. My only critique is that you should do a random sample test group as well. I understand you want to get different cultures in the mix, so as long as the samples taken from the different locations are random assignment. Awesome post, I loved all the points you made!
-Jess Principe
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