Close people become part of our consciousness.

When we let someone in our lives, we just let him in our brain - researchers from the University of Virginia found out how other people are "woven" into our consciousness at the neuronal level.

According to the information received, the human brain separates the idea of ​​strangers and the people we know well, in different departments. Projections of people from a close circle of friends are intertwined with our identity at the neuronal level. "Friends and family are a part of us" - says psychology professor James Koan. In his work, he used images of magnetic resonance imaging to justify the fact that people strongly associate themselves with their loved ones.


In the evolution of our consciousness has become part of the "neural tapestry", which turned out to be woven into those people to whom we are indifferent. Coan explains this by saying that in order to survive, we need friends and allies with whom we can look at the world with his eyes. The more time people spend with each other, the more alike they become.

To test this hypothesis, the researchers attracted to the study of 22 young people. Using MRI, scientists recorded brain activity change when the threat to get a small discharge current by the respondents themselves, their friends or strangers. It was found that the departments responsible for the response to such stimuli - the front part of the insula cortex, shell and supramarginal gyrus - activated because of the threat to yourself or a friend. In both cases, the activity of the brain was largely identical. If the threat was directed toward the stranger, these brain regions hardly have been involved.

"The connection between the relationship to others and to self was obvious - said Coan. Studies indicate a remarkable ability of the brain to simulate consciousness towards others. People close to us have become part of us, and it's not a metaphor, not poetry, it is a reality. We literally feel threatened when our partner is at risk. And this does not happen when danger threatens some stranger. "