Molly Crockett: Beware neuro-bunk

Translator: Joseph Geni Reviewer: Morton Bast

Translator: Socorro Rodríguez Holguín Reviewer: Serv. de Norm. Lingüística U. de Santiago de Compostela

I'm a neuroscientist, and I study decision-making.

Son unha neurocientífica, e estudo a toma de decisións.

I do experiments to test how different chemicals

Estudo como as substancias químicas do cerebro

in the brain influence the choices we make.

inflúen nas decisións que tomamos.

I'm here to tell you the secret to successful decision-making:

E veño contarvos o segredo

dunha boa toma de decisións:

a cheese sandwich.

un bocadillo de queixo.

That's right. According to scientists, a cheese sandwich

Así é. Segundo os científicos, un bocadillo de queixo

is the solution to all your tough decisions.

é a solución para todas as túas decisións complicadas.

How do I know? I'm the scientist who did the study.

Que por que o sei? Son a científica que fixo ese estudo.

A few years ago, my colleagues and I were interested

Hai uns anos, os meus colegas e mais eu estabamos interesados

in how a brain chemical called serotonin

en como unha substancia química do cerebro

would influence people's decisions in social situations.

chamada serotonina inflúe na toma de decisións en contextos sociais.

Specifically, we wanted to know how serotonin would affect

En concreto, queriamos saber como afecta a serotonina

the way people react when they're treated unfairly.

ao xeito en que reacciona a xente cando recibe un trato inxusto.

So we did an experiment.

Así que fixemos un experimento.

We manipulated people's serotonin levels by giving them

Manipulamos os niveis de serotonina dos participantes

this really disgusting-tasting artificial lemon-flavored drink

dándolles a beber esta limoada artificial de sabor noxento,

that works by taking away the raw ingredient for serotonin

que extrae do cerebro o precursor da serotonina,

in the brain.

This is the amino acid tryptophan.

un aminoácido chamado triptófano.

So what we found was, when tryptophan was low,

E atopamos que, cando o nivel de triptófano estaba baixo,

people were more likely to take revenge

a xente tiña máis tendencia a desquitarse

when they're treated unfairly.

cando era tratada inxustamente.

That's the study we did, and here are some of the headlines

Este foi o estudo que fixemos,

e aquí tedes algúns titulares

that came out afterwards.

que apareceron a continuación.

("A cheese sandwich is all you need for strong decision-making")

[Só precisas un bocadillo de queixo para tomar decisións adecuadas]

("What a friend we have in cheeses")

["O queixo: o noso mellor amigo"]

("Eating Cheese and Meat May Boost Self-Control") At this point, you might be wondering, did I miss something?

Agora estarédesvos preguntando "que me perdín?"

("Official! Chocolate stops you being grumpy") Cheese? Chocolate? Where did that come from?

[Oficial: o chocolate sácache o cabreo ] Queixo? Chocolate?

De onde sae todo isto?

And I thought the same thing myself when these came out,

Iso pensei eu cando apareceron,

because our study had nothing to do with cheese or chocolate.

porque o noso estudo nada tiña que ver co queixo nin co chocolate.

We gave people this horrible-tasting drink

Dabámoslle á xente unha bebida noxenta

that affected their tryptophan levels.

que afectaba os niveis de triptófano.

But it turns out that tryptophan also happens to be found

Pero resulta que tamén hai triptófano

in cheese and chocolate.

no queixo e no chocolate.

And of course when science says cheese and chocolate

E, por suposto, se a ciencia di que o queixo e o chocolate

help you make better decisions, well, that's sure to grab people's attention.

axudan a tomar mellores decisións, seguro que captamos a atención do público.

So there you have it:

Así que aquí o tedes:

the evolution of a headline.

A evolución dun titular.

When this happened, a part of me thought, well,

Cando pasou isto, por un lado pensei,

what's the big deal?

vaites, que máis ten?

So the media oversimplified a few things, but in the end,

Os medios simplifican algo as cousas, pero total,

it's just a news story.

só e cousa das noticias.

And I think a lot of scientists have this attitude.

E penso que así o ven moitos científicos.

But the problem is that this kind of thing happens all the time,

Pero o problema é que este tipo de cousas pasan continuamente,

and it affects not just the stories you read in the news

e non só coas historias que les nas noticias

but also the products you see on the shelves.

tamén cos produtos que ves nos andeis.

When the headlines rolled, what happened was,

Cando se espallaron estes titulares,

the marketers came calling.

empezaron a chamar os publicistas.

Would I be willing to provide a scientific endorsement

Estaría disposta a proporcionarlle soporte científico

of a mood-boosting bottled water?

a unha botella de auga que levante o ánimo?

Or would I go on television to demonstrate,

Podería ir a un programa de TV amosarlle

in front of a live audience,

á audiencia, en directo,

that comfort foods really do make you feel better?

que alimentos axudan a sentirse mellor?

I think these folks meant well, but had I taken them up on their offers,

Creo que estes tipos entenderon ben; pero se aceptase as súas propostas,

I would have been going beyond the science,

estaría indo alén da ciencia,

and good scientists are careful not to do this.

e os bos científicos cóidanse de facer tal.

But nevertheless, neuroscience is turning up more and more in marketing.

No entanto, a neurociencia está cada vez máis presente nos mercados.

Here's one example: Neuro drinks,

Aquí tedes un exemplo: as neurobebidas,

a line of products, including Nuero Bliss here,

unha liña de produtos, que inclúe este Neuro Bliss,

which according to its label helps reduce stress,

que segundo a etiqueta reduce o estrés,

enhances mood, provides focused concentration,

levanta o ánimo, axuda a concentrarse,

and promotes a positive outlook.

e promove o optimismo.

I have to say, this sounds awesome. (Laughter)

Teño que dicir que soa estupendo.

(Risas)

I could totally have used this 10 minutes ago.

Puiden tomado hai 10 minutos.

So when this came up in my local shop, naturally I was

Cando vin isto na tenda do meu barrio,

curious about some of the research backing these claims.

pregunteime pola investigación que sustentaba esas afirmacións.

So I went to the company's website looking to find

Así que entrei na web da empresa na procura

some controlled trials of their products.

dalgún ensaio controlado con estes produtos.

But I didn't find any.

Pero non atopei nada.

Trial or no trial, these claims are front and center

Con ou sen ensaios, as afirmacións aparecían

on their label right next to a picture of a brain.

no centro da etiqueta, ao lado do debuxo dun cerebro.

And it turns out that pictures of brains have special properties.

E resulta que as imaxes de cerebros teñen propiedades especiais.

A couple of researchers asked a few hundred people

Un par de investigadores pedíronlles a uns centos de persoas

to read a scientific article.

que lesen un artigo científico.

For half the people, the article included a brain image,

Para a metade deles, o artigo incluía unha imaxe cerebral,

and for the other half, it was the same article

A outra metade leu o mesmo artigo

but it didn't have a brain image.

pero sen imaxe do cerebro.

At the end — you see where this is going —

Ao rematar, xa supoñedes por onde vou,

people were asked whether they agreed

preguntábanlles se estaban de acordo

with the conclusions of the article.

coas conclusións do artigo.

So this is how much people agree with the conclusions

Este é o grao de acordo coas conclusións

with no image.

sen imaxe.

And this is how much they agree with the same article

E este o acordo co mesmo artigo

that did include a brain image.

cando incluía unha imaxe cerebral.

So the take-home message here is,

Así que a conclusión é

do you want to sell it? Put a brain on it.

Queres vender algo? Ponlle un cerebro.

Now let me pause here and take a moment to say that

Deixádeme agora parar un pouco, para dicirvos

neuroscience has advanced a lot in the last few decades,

que a neurociencia leva avanzado moito nas últimas décadas,

and we're constantly discovering amazing things

estamos constantemente descubrindo cousas sorprendentes

about the brain.

sobre o cerebro.

Like, just a couple of weeks ago, neuroscientists at MIT

Por exemplo, hai un par de semanas, uns neurocientíficos do MIT

figured out how to break habits in rats

descubriron como eliminar hábitos nas ratas

just by controlling neural activity in a specific part of their brain.

controlando a actividade neural nunha parte concreta do seu cerebro.

Really cool stuff.

Realmente interesante!

But the promise of neuroscience has led to some really

Pero a promesa da neurociencia está a dar lugar

high expectations and some overblown, unproven claims.

a expectativas algo infladas e a afirmacións esaxeradas e sen contrastar.

So what I'm going to do is show you how to spot

Así que vos vou amosar como identificar

a couple of classic moves, dead giveaways, really,

un par de clásicos, evidentes, en realidade,

for what's variously been called neuro-bunk,

do que se vén chamando neuroparvadas,

neuro-bollocks, or, my personal favorite, neuro-flapdoodle.

neurocaralladas ou, o meu favorito, neurobabecadas.

So the first unproven claim is that you can use brain scans

A primeira afirmación non probada é a que di que se poden usar as imaxes cerebrais

to read people's thoughts and emotions.

para ler os pensamentos e as emocións.

Here's a study published by a team of researchers

Aquí tedes un estudo publicado por un grupo de investigación

as an op-ed in The New York Times.

na sección de opinión do New York Times.

The headline? "You Love Your iPhone. Literally."

O titular? "Amas ao teu iPhone. Literalmente".

It quickly became the most emailed article on the site.

Converteuse decontado no artigo do xornal máis difundido nas redes.

So how'd they figure this out?

Como descubriron isto?

They put 16 people inside a brain scanner

Pasaron a 16 persoas por un escáner

and showed them videos of ringing iPhones.

e amosáronlles vídeos de iPhones soando.

The brain scans showed activation in a part of the brain

O escáner amosou activación nunha parte do cerebro

called the insula, a region they say

chamada a ínsula, unha rexión que, segundo explican,

is linked to feelings of love and compassion.

está asociada cos sentimentos de amor e compaixón.

So they concluded that because they saw activation in the insula,

Así que concluíron que a activación na ínsula

this meant the subjects loved their iPhones.

implica que os participantes amaban os seus iPhones.

Now there's just one problem with this line of reasoning,

O caso é que este razoamento ten un problema,

and that's that the insula does a lot.

e vén sendo que a ínsula fai moitas cousas.

Sure, it is involved in positive emotions

Certo, está implicada nas emocións positivas

like love and compassion,

como o amor ou a compaixón,

but it's also involved in tons of other processes,

pero tamén nunha chea doutros procesos.

like memory, language, attention,

como a memoria, a linguaxe, a atención,

even anger, disgust and pain.

mesmo a ira, o noxo ou a dor.

So based on the same logic, I could equally conclude

Así que, coa mesma lóxica, eu podería dicir

you hate your iPhone.

que odias ao teu iPhone.

The point here is, when you see activation in the insula,

O asunto nisto é que cando ves activación na ínsula,

you can't just pick and choose your favorite explanation

podes escoller a explicación que prefiras desta lista.

from off this list, and it's a really long list.

E é unha lista ben longa.

My colleagues Tal Yarkoni and Russ Poldrack

Os meus colegas Tal Yarkoni e Russ Poldrack

have shown that the insula pops up in almost a third

amosaron que a ínsula se activa en case un terzo

of all brain imaging studies that have ever been published.

dos estudos con imaxes cerebrais que hai publicados.

So chances are really, really good

Así que hai moitas, moitas probabilidades

that your insula is going off right now,

de que a vosa ínsula estea activa neste momento,

but I won't kid myself

pero non me vou enganar

to think this means you love me.

pensando que é porque me amades.

So speaking of love and the brain,

E falando de amor e cerebro,

there's a researcher, known to some as Dr. Love,

hai un investigador, coñecido como o Dr. Amor,

who claims that scientists have found the glue

que afirma que os científicos deron co pegamento

that holds society together,

para manter a sociedade unida,

the source of love and prosperity.

a fonte do amor e da prosperidade.

This time it's not a cheese sandwich.

Desta volta non é un bocadillo de queixo.

No, it's a hormone called oxytocin.

Non, é unha hormona chamada oxitocina.

You've probably heard of it.

Seguro que xa oístes falar dela.

So, Dr. Love bases his argument on studies showing

O Dr. Amor baséase en estudos que amosan

that when you boost people's oxytocin,

que cando lle xutas oxitocina á xente,

this increases their trust, empathy and cooperation.

aumentan a súa confianza, empatía e cooperación.

So he's calling oxytocin "the moral molecule."

Así que lle chama á oxitocina "a molécula moral".

Now these studies are scientifically valid,

Agora ben, estes estudos son cientificamente válidos,

and they've been replicated, but they're not the whole story.

e foron replicados, pero non contan toda a historia.

Other studies have shown that boosting oxytocin

Outros estudos amosan que o xute de oxitocina

increases envy. It increases gloating.

aumenta a envexa. Aumenta a vaidade.

Oxytocin can bias people to favor their own group

A oxitocina pode nesgar á xente en favor dos seus

at the expense of other groups.

a expensas dos outros.

And in some cases, oxytocin can even decrease cooperation.

E nalgúns casos, a oxitocina mesmo diminúe a cooperación.

So based on these studies, I could say oxytocin

Así que, de acordo con estes estudos, eu podería afirmar que a oxitocina

is an immoral molecule, and call myself Dr. Strangelove.

é unha molécula inmoral, e autoproclamarme a Dra. Antiamor.

(Laughter)

So we've seen neuro-flapdoodle all over the headlines.

Así que vemos neurobabecadas nos titulares,

We see it in supermarkets, on book covers.

nos supermercados, nas cubertas dos libros.

What about the clinic?

E que pasa coa clínica?

SPECT imaging is a brain-scanning technology

O SPECT é unha tecnoloxía de imaxe cerebral

that uses a radioactive tracer

que usa marcadores radioactivos

to track blood flow in the brain.

para rastrexar o fluxo sanguíneo no cerebro.

For the bargain price of a few thousand dollars,

Por unha ganga duns poucos miles de dólares

there are clinics in the U.S. that will give you

hai clínicas nos EEUU

que che fan un SPECT

one of these SPECT scans and use the image

to help diagnose your problems.

e usan a imaxe para diagnosticar os teus problemas.

These scans, the clinics say, can help

Din que estas imaxes poden axudar

prevent Alzheimer's disease,

a previr o alzhéimer,

solve weight and addiction issues,

solucionar os problemas de peso e de adiccións,

overcome marital conflicts,

superar os conflitos de parella

and treat, of course, a variety of mental illnesses

e, por suposto, tratar todo tipo de trastornos mentais

ranging from depression to anxiety to ADHD.

desde a depresión á ansiedade ou a hiperactividade

This sounds great. A lot of people agree.

Isto soa xenial. A moita xente llo parece.

Some of these clinics are pulling in tens of millions

Algunhas clínicas destas

moven decenas de millóns de dólares de negocio ao ano.

of dollars a year in business.

There's just one problem.

Só hai un problema.

The broad consensus in neuroscience

Na neurociencia hai amplo consenso

is that we can't yet diagnose mental illness

en que aínda non podemos diagnosticar os trastornos mentais

from a single brain scan.

cunha simple imaxe cerebral.

But these clinics have treated

Pero estas clínicas teñen tratado

tens of thousands of patients to date,

a decenas de miles de pacientes

many of them children,

moitos deles nenos,

and SPECT imaging involves a radioactive injection,

e a imaxe por SPECT require inxeccións radioactivas

so exposing people to radiation, potentially harmful.

por tanto, expoñer á xente a radiación, potencialmente nociva.

I am more excited than most people, as a neuroscientist,

Eu estou máis entusiamada cá maioría da xente, como neurocientífica,

about the potential for neuroscience to treat mental illness

co potencial da neurociencia para tratar os trastornos mentais

and even maybe to make us better and smarter.

e mesmo, tal vez, para facernos mellores e máis intelixentes.

And if one day we can say that cheese and chocolate

E se algún día podo dicir que o queixo e o chocolate

help us make better decisions, count me in.

nos axudan a tomar decisións,

contade comigo.

But we're not there yet.

Pero aínda non chegamos aí.

We haven't found a "buy" button inside the brain,

Aínda non atopamos un botón de “comprar” no cerebro,

we can't tell whether someone is lying or in love

non podemos dicir se alguén está mentindo ou está namorado

just by looking at their brain scans,

só mirando as súas imaxes cerebrais,

and we can't turn sinners into saints with hormones.

e non podemos converter aos pecadentos en santos dándolles hormonas

Maybe someday we will, but until then,

Se cadra algún día poderemos, pero até daquela,

we have to be careful that we don't let overblown claims

temos que ter coidado de non deixar que as esaxeracións

detract resources and attention away from the real science

resten recursos e atención da ciencia real

that's playing a much longer game.

que xoga un partido moito máis longo.

So here's where you come in.

Así que aquí chegamos.

If someone tries to sell you something with a brain on it,

Se alguén trata de vendervos algo cun cerebro

don't just take them at their word.

non vos confiedes.

Ask the tough questions. Ask to see the evidence.

Preguntádelle o que hai que preguntar. Preguntádelle polas probas,

Ask for the part of the story that's not being told.

preguntádelle pola parte da historia que non vos está a contar.

The answers shouldn't be simple, because the brain isn't simple.

As respostas non deberían ser simples, porque o cerebro non é sinxelo.

But that's not stopping us from trying to figure it out anyway.

Pero isto non nos frea para seguir tratando de comprendelo.

Thank you. (Applause)

Grazas.