Salience: what matters when everything or nothing does | Livia De Picker | TEDxLeuvenSalon

Human brains are superbly built to intuitively filter and differentiate relevant and meaningful signals from background noise in the continuous stream of
information reaching our senses at any given moment. The capacity to attach a particular importance to certain stimuli, crucial to the survival of our
species, was developed and enhanced throughout our entire evolutionary history, and remains one of the last unique features of human intelligence
which A.I. struggles to replicate. In psychiatry, distinct clinical problems emerge when something goes wrong in this system, providing us with unique
insights into the mechanisms involved. In patients with schizophrenia – one of the most severe and chronic mental disorders – dopaminergic neurons
in the limbic area of the brain become dysregulated, leading to a disruption in the mechanism which attributes importance or meaning to certain stimuli.
As it becomes harder and harder to differentiate meaningful from non-meaningful stimuli, delusional ideas can start to take root and patients become
increasingly detached from reality during a psychotic break. Yet an even worse situation occurs when the salience system is blocked, and everything
in life becomes bleak. Livia de Picker is a Psychiatrist & Postdoctoral Researcher, respectively at the University Hospital Duffel and the University of Antwerp.

She is also a lecturer on the topic of Psychopathology and Psychopharmacology" in module Acute Psychiatry. Her specialties include personality disorders, borderline and general psychiatric problems. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx