Search Results (25)

We present a unifying thesis which posits that the biological resolution of uncertainty is a fundamental adaptation to entropy’s negative impact on the highly ordered molecular structures required to maintain the living state. These molecular biological adaptations are highly conserved and play a critical role in the survival of the earliest multicellular organisms and the vertebrates thereafter. The imperative to reduce cognitive uncertainty is effected through the dopaminergic Medial Forebrain Bundle (MFB) Reward Prediction Error (RPE) mechanism, or its homologous equivalents, to compute a biological valuation of information. This hypothesis is supported by the central role of the MFB seeking system as the neural substrate of exploratory behavior that leads to the reduction of uncertainty when information is apprehended and cognitively assimilated. We define the human experience of intellectual beauty as the subjective emotional reward that is activated by the MFB seeking system. Accordingly, humans experience intellectual beauty when a high-entropy state of confusion is suddenly resolved into a low-entropy state of insight. In humans, the neuroanatomical substrates of inductive reasoning, inquiry, and the intellectual beauty to which they lead are present at birth. What develops postnatally is synaptic plasticity in the connections among these neurons that is activated in the loving didactic relationship that is established between mother and child during infancy. This dynamic is critically dependent on observational learning on the part of the child. It is supported by the joyful engagement and emotional support of the mother. This provides a paradigm of joy in learning that we propose is the developmental origin of intellectual beauty. This is the reinforcement that maintains inquiring behavior in the search for information that is needed to resist the adverse effects of entropy on life. This paper traces the continuous thread of uncertainty resolution from its phylogenetic origins in associative learning to the intuitive science of early childhood, and ultimately to the highest levels of human inquiry in science, as well as literary, musical and visual arts. The intuitive scientific method gives rise to the collective intelligence of groups, an evolved trait that likely contributed to the success of our hominin ancestors. At the societal level, this collective intelligence scales into the institutional working of markets, driving the macroeconomic price discovery of new information to counter entropy. Importantly, we compare the cost of information across the disparate domains of pharmaceutical drug discovery and the contemporary art market to demonstrate that the imperative to reduce uncertainty manifests as a universal, falsifiable mechanism for the “price discovery” of information. Full article

Breast cancer is the most prevalent malignancy among women. The disease and its treatments often lead to physical and psychosocial impairments, compromising quality of life. While exercise and music-based interventions have individually demonstrated benefits on these symptoms, the advantages of their combination remain unexplored. This study evaluates whether a concurrent exercise program, including aerobic and strength training performed while listening to music based on individual preferences, is more effective than the same exercise program without music in improving self-esteem, body image, cancer-related fatigue, physical function (upper and lower limb strength and cardiorespiratory endurance), quality of life, sleep quality, and intolerance of uncertainty in female breast cancer survivors. A single-blind, two-arm, parallel-group, randomized controlled trial will be conducted including 42 women who completed primary treatment for stage 0–III breast cancer at least six months before enrollment. Participants will be randomly assigned to a music-listening concurrent exercise training group (MLTG), or a no music exercise training group (NMLTG), both performing the same 8-week exercise program. The primary outcome will be self-esteem (Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale). Secondary outcomes include body image, fatigue, upper and lower limb strength, cardiovascular endurance, quality of life, sleep quality, and intolerance of uncertainty. Measurements will be collected using validated and reliable questionnaires and standardized functional tests at baseline, post-intervention, and at 6 months. Data will be analyzed under the intention-to-treat principle. Music listening, particularly when based on individual preferences and synchronized with movement, may enhance mood and exercise performance while modulating reward-related neural pathways. This trial will provide new evidence on a feasible and low-cost strategy to enhance supportive care and physical and psychosocial outcomes in breast cancer survivors. ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT07045961). Ethics Committee code: 2025-0855. Full article

Adolescent tobacco use remains a critical public health challenge, requiring innovative early prevention strategies. This study participatively evaluated a medium-fidelity prototype of the No le entres app, designed to prevent tobacco use among adolescents. The prototype was developed based on user-centered design and gamification frameworks, with the aim of ensuring cultural relevance and active user engagement. Qualitative design with content analysis was employed. Four focus groups were conducted in Xalapa, Veracruz: two with health professionals from Medical Specialty Units—Community Mental Health and Addiction Centers (UNEME CECOSAMA), and two with secondary school students. Nineteen professionals and twenty-two adolescents participated. Data were analyzed using MAXQDA 2022, applying both a priori and emergent categories. Professionals valued the app’s innovative approach but recommended improvements in navigation speed, visual design, message clarity, and cultural validation. Adolescents emphasized the need for more engaging features, such as music, rewards, team competitions, and updated graphics. Both groups highlighted the importance of interactivity, personalization, and contextualized content. Findings underscore the value of participatory methods in designing digital health interventions and confirm that involving end users enhances usability and acceptability. The app demonstrates potential for integration into school settings as a preventive tool, with implications for influencing adolescent knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors regarding tobacco use. Full article

Background/Objectives: Music engages multiple brain networks simultaneously, yet most studies examine these networks in isolation. Methods: We investigated functional connectivity among the auditory, motor, and reward networks during music listening in different contexts using fMRI data from two samples (N = 39 each): focused music listening and background music during cognitive tasks. ROI-to-ROI, seed-based, and graph theory analyses examined connectivity patterns among 46 regions spanning the three networks. Results: Both contexts showed enhanced within-auditory network connectivity compared to rest, suggesting that this is fundamental to music processing. However, between-network patterns diverged markedly. Background music listening during cognitive tasks preserved reward-motor coupling while reducing auditory-motor and auditory-reward connectivity. Focused music listening produced widespread negative correlations between motor regions and both the auditory and reward networks, potentially reflecting motor suppression in the scanner environment. Graph theory measures revealed context-specific hub reorganization: reward regions (nucleus accumbens, caudate) showed increased centrality during background music listening, while the amygdala and frontal orbital cortex were selectively enhanced during focused listening. Conclusions: These findings demonstrate that music engagement involves context-dependent network reorganization beyond simple attention effects. The same musical stimulus engages different neural mechanisms depending on concurrent cognitive demands, motor requirements, and listening goals. Enhanced within-auditory connectivity appears consistent across contexts, but between-network interactions are shaped by the broader cognitive-behavioral context. These results highlight the importance of considering ecological context when studying music processing and designing music-based interventions, as network connectivity patterns during music listening reflect complex interactions between task demands, attentional resources, and musical engagement rather than music processing alone. Full article

Music is a near-universal anthropological and sensory phenomenon that engages distributed brain networks and peripheral physiological systems to shape emotion, cognition, sociality, and bodily regulation. Evidence from electrophysiology, neuroimaging, endocrinology, randomized controlled trials, and longitudinal training studies indicates that both receptive and active musical experiences produce experience-dependent neural and systemic adaptations. These include entrainment of neural oscillations, modulation of predictive and reward signaling, autonomic and neuroendocrine changes, and long-term structural connectivity alterations that support affect regulation, cognition, social functioning, motor control, sleep, and resilience to neuropsychiatric illness. This narrative review integrates mechanistic domains with clinical outcomes across major conditions, such as depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, dementia, and selected neurodevelopmental disorders, by mapping acoustic and procedural parameters onto plausible biological pathways. We summarize how tempo, beat regularity, timbre and spectral content, predictability, active versus passive engagement, social context, dose, and timing influence neural entrainment, synaptic and network plasticity, reward and prediction-error dynamics, autonomic balance, and immune/endocrine mediators. For each condition, we synthesize randomized and observational findings and explicitly link observed improvements to mechanistic pathways. We identify methodological limitations, including heterogeneous interventions, small and biased samples, sparse longitudinal imaging and standardized physiological endpoints, and inconsistent acoustic reporting, and translate these into recommendations for translational trials: harmonized acoustic reporting, pre-specified mechanistic endpoints (neuroimaging, autonomic, neuroendocrine, immune markers), adequately powered randomized designs with active controls, and long-term follow-up. Contextual moderators including music education, socioeconomic and cultural factors, sport, sleep, and ritual practices are emphasized as critical determinants of implementation and effectiveness. Full article

Portuguese civil wind bands have operated as voluntary, non-profit organisations since the 19th century and serve as presentational and communal platforms for amateur music-making. Their core mission centres on providing music instruction and practical training for amateur musicians. This study examines the motivational factors driving adult musicians’ participation in civil wind bands. The research involved 617 adult wind band musicians nationwide who completed an online questionnaire. The findings indicate that fellowship consistently ranks as the primary motivator for participation, regardless of gender, age, and formal music education level. Musicianship emerged as the second most influential factor, with younger and older musicians placing substantial value on personal musical growth. Conversely, conductor leadership was the least important motivator, particularly among older musicians and those with higher levels of formal music training. These findings highlight the multidimensional nature of motivations for sustained participation in civil wind bands. The implications suggest that music directors and organisational managers can leverage insights from motivational studies to foster inclusive, self-rewarding, and intergenerational participation. Full article

Background/Objectives: Musical pleasure is considered to be induced by prediction errors (surprise), as suggested in neuroimaging studies. However, the role of temporal changes in musical features in reward processing remains unclear. Utilizing the Information Dynamics of Music (IDyOM) model, a statistical model that calculates musical surprise based on prediction errors in melody and harmony, we investigated whether brain activities associated with musical pleasure, particularly in the θ, β, and γ bands, are induced by prediction errors, similar to those observed during monetary rewards. Methods: We used the IDyOM model to calculate the information content (IC) of surprise for melody and harmony in 70 musical pieces across six genres; eight pieces with varying IC values were selected. Electroencephalographic data were recorded during listening to the pieces, continuously evaluating the participants’ subjective pleasure on a 1–4 scale. Time–frequency analysis of electroencephalographic data was conducted, followed by general linear model analysis to fit the power-value time course in each frequency band to the time courses of subjective pleasure and IC for melody and harmony. Results: Significant positive fits were observed in the β and γ bands in the frontal region with both subjective pleasure and IC for melody and harmony. No significant fit was observed in the θ band. Both subjective pleasure and IC are associated with increased β and γ band power in the frontal regions. Conclusions: β and γ oscillatory activities in the frontal regions are strongly associated with musical rewards induced by prediction errors, similar to brain activity observed during monetary rewards. Full article

Background/Objectives: Understanding movement development in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is critical for creating effective intervention strategies. This study aims to explore parental perspectives on the movement development of children with ASD, focusing on identifying common challenges and successful strategies. The objective is to analyze the experiences of parents to highlight the most effective approaches to support motor, communication, and social skills development in these children. Methods: Using a qualitative approach, we conducted in-depth interviews with parents of children with ASD. The data were analyzed using open and selective coding to identify key themes related to movement development challenges and strategies. The analysis included cross-referencing with the existing literature to support parental insights. Results: This study identified several key themes, including communication barriers, social interaction difficulties, and the importance of personalized movement programs. Parents reported significant challenges in understanding and addressing their children’s movement needs, particularly in group settings. However, activities such as water programs, music and dance, and animal-assisted therapies were found to be highly engaging. Motivation was a critical factor, with rewards and active parental involvement enhancing participation. Conclusions: This study highlights the crucial role of a supportive environment, including professional guidance and family support, in the success of movement development programs. Full article

Certified music therapists use music within therapeutic relationships to address human needs, health, and well-being with a variety of populations. Palliative care and music therapy are holistic and diverse fields, adapting to unique issues within end-of-life contexts. Palliative care music therapy has been formally practiced since the late 1970s and affords a variety of benefits, including pain and anxiety reduction, enhancement of quality of life, emotional expression, and relationship completion. The training of music therapists varies around the globe, but clinical supervisors play a key role in skill acquisition. Clinical supervisors support pre-professionals as they realize the application of their training, foundational competencies, and authentic therapeutic approaches in end-of-life care, while navigating the challenges and rewards of this work. This article is a narrative review which offers background information on palliative care music therapy, and reports the authors’ viewpoints and reflections on supervision strategies and models employed with music therapy interns in palliative care settings based on their experiences. Approaches are shared on supporting pre-professionals as they begin working in palliative care contexts, as well as implications for supervision practices. Full article

A central question in behavioural neuroscience is how different rewards modulate learning. While the role of monetary rewards is well-studied in decision-making research, the influence of abstract rewards like music remains poorly understood. This study investigated the dissociable effects of these two reward types on decision making. Forty participants completed two decision-making tasks, each characterised by probabilistic associations between stimuli and rewards, with probabilities changing over time to reflect environmental volatility. In each task, choices were reinforced either by monetary outcomes (win/lose) or by the endings of musical melodies (consonant/dissonant). We applied the Hierarchical Gaussian Filter, a validated hierarchical Bayesian framework, to model learning under these two conditions. Bayesian statistics provided evidence for similar learning patterns across both reward types, suggesting individuals’ similar adaptability. However, within the musical task, individual preferences for consonance over dissonance explained some aspects of learning. Specifically, correlation analyses indicated that participants more tolerant of dissonance behaved more stochastically in their belief-to-response mappings and were less likely to choose the response associated with the current prediction for a consonant ending, driven by higher volatility estimates. By contrast, participants averse to dissonance showed increased tonic volatility, leading to larger updates in reward tendency beliefs. Full article

The metaphor of being touched by music is widespread and almost universal. The tactile experience, moreover, has received growing interest in recent years. There is, however, a need to go beyond a mere metaphorical use of the term, by positioning the tactile experience within the broader frame of embodied cognition and the experiential turn in cognitive science. This article explores the possible contribution of a science of touch by defining music as a vibrational phenomenon that affects the body and the senses. It takes as a starting point the clinical findings on the psychological and physiological value of tender touch with a special focus on the method of kangaroo mother care, which is a method for holding the baby against the chest of the mother, skin-to-skin. It is seen as one of the most basic affiliative bondings with stimuli that elicit reward. Via an extensive review of the research literature, it is questioned as to what extent this rationale can be translated to the realm of music. There are, in fact, many analogies, but a comprehensive theoretical framework is still lacking. This article aims at providing at least some preparatory groundwork to fuel more theorizing about listening and its relation to the sense of touch. Full article

The piano fingering annotation task refers to assigning finger labels to notes in piano sheet music. Good fingering helps improve the smoothness and musicality of piano performance. In this paper, we propose a method for automatically generating piano fingering using a model-based reinforcement learning algorithm. We treat fingering annotation as a partial constraint combinatorial optimization problem and establish an environment model for the piano performance process based on prior knowledge. We design a reward function based on the principle of minimal motion and use reinforcement learning algorithms to decide the optimal fingering combinations. Our innovation lies in establishing a more realistic environment model and adopting a model-based reinforcement learning approach, compared to model-free methods, to enhance the utilization of samples. We also propose a music score segmentation method to parallelize the fingering annotation task. The experimental section shows that our method achieves good results in eliminating physically impossible fingerings and reducing the amount of finger motion required in piano performance. Full article

With the advent of the digital age, traditional lifestyle activities, such as reading books, referencing recipes, and enjoying music, have progressively transitioned from offline to online. However, numerous issues plague the conventional approach to digital copyright protection. This is especially true in the realm of recipe protection, where the rights and interests of original creators are inadequately safeguarded due to the widespread dissemination of a large number of recipes on the Internet. This primarily stems from the high costs of gathering evidence, incomplete coverage of evidence collection, and the inability to identify and halt infringement activities in a timely manner during the process of traditional digital copyright protection. Therefore, this study designs and implements a blockchain-based digital recipe copyright protection scheme to address the issues of insufficient legal evidence and cumbersome processes in traditional digital copyright protection. First, we enhance standard short text similarity calculation method SimHash, boosting the accuracy of text similarity detection. We then utilize the decentralization, immutability, time-stamping, traceability, and smart contract features of blockchain technology for data privacy protection. We employ the Interplanetary File System (IPFS) to store raw data, thereby ensuring user privacy and security. Lastly, we improve the proxy voting node selection in the existing delegated proof of stake (DPOS) consensus mechanism. According thorough evaluation and empirical analysis, the scheme effectively improves the accuracy of text similarity detection. Simultaneously, the enhanced DPOS mechanism effectively rewards nodes with excellent performance and penalizes nodes exhibiting malicious behavior. In this study, we successfully designed and implemented an innovative digital recipe copyright protection scheme. This scheme effectively enhances the accuracy of text similarity detection; ensures the privacy and security of user data; and, through an enhanced DPOS mechanism, rewards well-performing nodes while penalizing those exhibiting malicious behavior. Full article

According to the WHO (World Health Organization), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is an elective therapy to treat people with post-traumatic stress disorders (PTSD). In line with the personalization of therapeutic strategies, through this pilot study, we assessed in people suffering from the effects of trauma the feasibility, safety, acceptance, and efficacy of EMDR enriched with sound stimulation (by administering neutral sounds synchronized with the guided bilateral alternating stimulation of the gaze) and musical reward (musical listening based on the patients’ predisposition and personal tastes). Feasibility, quantified by the number of patients who completed the treatment, was excellent as this was the case in 12 out of the 12 enrolled people with psychological trauma. Safety and acceptance, assessed by self-compiled questionnaires, were excellent, with an absence of side effects and high satisfaction. Efficacy, quantified by the number of EMDR treatment sessions required to reach the optimal scores on the Subjective Units of Disturbance (SUD) and Validity of Cognition (VOC) scales typical of EMDR protocols, revealed an average duration of 8.5 (SD 1.2) sessions, which is well below the 12 sessions considered a standard EMDR treatment duration. EMDR+ appears to be a relevant personalization of EMDR, particularly in music-sensitive people, consolidating the therapeutic alliance through a multisensory communicative bond for trauma treatment. Full article

The aim of the study was to explore in depression the relationship between recent suicidal ideation and the different anhedonias taking into account the severity of depression. Recent studies have suggested that recent change of anhedonia and not state or trait anhedonia is associated with recent suicidal ideations even when the level of depression is controlled. Three samples were used (74 severe major depressives, 43 outpatients with somatic disorders presenting mild or moderate depression and 36 mild or moderate depressives hospitalized in the intensive coronary unit). Recent change of anhedonia was rated by the anhedonia subscale of the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II), state anhedonia by the Snaith–Hamilton Pleasure Scale (SHAPS), trait anhedonia by the TEPS (Temporal Experience of Pleasure Scale), musical anhedonia by the BMRQ (Barcelona Music Reward Questionnaire), social recent change of anhedonia by the SLIPS (Specific Loss of Interest and Pleasure Scale), the severity of depression by the BDI-II and the distinction between melancholic and non-melancholic was found using a subscale of the BDI-II. Bivariate and multivariate regression analyses were performed in each sample. In severe major depressives and, notably, in melancholia, recent suicidal ideation was associated with trait anhedonia; however, in mild or moderate depression, recent suicidal ideation was associated with recent change of anhedonia. Musical anhedonia and social recent change of anhedonia were not associated with recent suicidal ideation. Trait anhedonia could be, in severe depression, a strong predictor of recent suicidal ideation. Full article