# What causes hallucinations?

- Institution: TED
- Department: TED-Ed
- Speaker: Elizabeth Cox
- Year: 2018
- Level: For everyone
- Language: English
- Subjects: Psychology and the brain
- Source: [TED](https://www.ted.com/talks/elizabeth_cox_what_causes_hallucinations)
- Licence: [CC BY-NC-ND 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/) (Non-commercial use only, and no changed versions.)
- Who can watch: Teens profiles and older (sources give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the source's own words)

A condition called Charles Bonnet Syndrome can cause blind patients to hallucinate scenes in vivid color. fMRI studies show that these hallucinations activate the same brain areas as sight — areas that are not activated by imagination. Other hallucinations also involve the same brain areas as real sensory experiences. What's going on? Elizabeth Cox details the science of hallucinations. \[TED-Ed Animation by Nerdo\].

## Lectures

1. [What causes hallucinations?](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/learn/ted/elizabeth_cox_what_causes_hallucinations/8b19a9810a3d), 6 min (TED's player)