In another reality I'm a scientist.
In another reality I'm a scientist. In this reality I could never master statistics, thank you for all the help after school Mrs. Griffith, but we both knew it was never going to compute. Quantum physics has always fascinated me, though. I will never be an astrophysicist like my niece aspires for herself, but I’m captivated by the connection between science & stories. Stories are our main mode of information processing. Stories are our introduction to our world. It is how our first caretakers, typically our parents, communicate with us. When we are very young we are told stories by association. A is for apple. B is for ball. As we grow we are exposed to more of the story. A is for apple. Apples grow on trees. Apples are a fruit. These narratives give way to more details and eventually our own experiences with apples. They evolve into anecdotes about when our parents were young or our grandfather’s heroics in the war. Our world is taking shape. Our identity is emerging. From stories. We associate more than letters with objects now, we associate our own experiences with those of our peers. Compare. Contrast. Judge. Explore. Others’ stories start to affect us. We listen and something happens in our brains. Our auditory cortex activates when we focus on who is speaking. Our visual cortex activates when they share details of who, what, when, where. Our motor cortex explodes when they describe a harrowing tale of being thrown from a horse. When they explain they broke their leg from the impact, our empathy areas are activated. There is a chemical reaction in the brain with the release of oxytocin, which is a neurochemical in the brain that elicits the “it’s safe to approach others” signal in the brain. What this means for someone listening to a story, is that they trust the situation and the storyteller. They are connected. In mind and body to what is being shared. This is why we cry when we are immersed in a movie, or a book, whose characters we identify with, even if they are experiencing something we have never, nor will ever experience. We still connect, because our core identifying factors of needing love and understanding are being expressed. Stories and science are not mutually exclusive. They are interconnected. Not just from a physiological perspective, but an emotional, psychological one. Stories are our first forms of communication and connection. They continue to bond us. Regardless of how the story is told. Whether with words, painting, sculpture, a knit blanket. Stories are our ties. It’s not just me saying this, it’s science!
Below is a great presentation on the power of stories and their connection to science.
With a grateful heart <3