Presence: The science of mindfulness and meditation

• This event is a production of the Atlanta Science Tavern.
• It is free and open to the public.
• Seating is on a first-come basis.
• RSVPs are not required to attend nor do they reserve you a seat.
• Gather for dinner by 7:00 pm.
• The evening's presentation gets under way around 7:45.
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Presence: The science of mindfulness and meditation

Paul Verhaeghen, Professor
School of Psychology
Georgia Institute of Technology

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Mindfulness and one of the roads to it, meditation, have become increasingly popular as a way to promote health and well-being. Meditation can create mindfulness in daily life, which becomes an ingrained habit if applied consistently--it can boost immune function; lower levels of stress, anxiety, or depression; lift affect; regulate emotion more easily; and make you happier.

In this presentation, Professor of Psychology at Georgia Tech, Paul Verhaeghen, will give an overview of what goes on inside the brain during meditation, how it leaves telltale lasting traces in brain structure, and how it impacts important areas of life such as well-being, stress, and health.

Paul's most recent book on the subject, Presence: How Mindfulness and Meditation Shape Your Brain, Mind, and Life (https://www.amazon.com/Presence-Mindfulness-Meditation-Shape-Brain-ebook/dp/B06XSNK9LR), was released this past March.

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About our speaker
Paul Verhaeghen is professor in Psychology at the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he mainly studies attention, memory, aging, and their interfaces, as well as the link between rumination, depression, and creativity. He is a long-term meditator and occasional mindfulness teacher. He is also the author of the award-winning novel Omega Minor (https://www.amazon.com/Omega-Minor-Professor-Psychology-Verhaeghen/dp/1564784770) (2007).