Aphantasia: The Mind's Eye and Its Absence - Scientific American Podcast

The podcast discusses a condition called 'aphantasia,' which affects approximately 1% of the population and prevents people from visualizing anything in their mind's eye. Professor Joel Pearson and his team at the Future Minds Lab in Australia have been studying mental imagery and cognition, trying to find ways to accurately measure it. They have found that people with aphantasia have a different response to stressful situations and their pupil does not contract when imagining bright objects. However, they have also found that people with aphantasia can still have good memories, just in a different way. The podcast also addresses the misconception that aphantasia hinders creativity, which is not supported by the data. Finally, the podcast discusses the benefits of aphantasia for those living with anxiety disorders.