Very little is currently known about the cerebral characteristics that underlie the complex processes of meditation as only a limited number of studies have addressed this topic. Research exploring structural connectivity in meditation practitioners is particularly rare.
We knew already that meditation changed the concentration of neurotransmitters and blood flow in the brain, but not that it changed the white matter. At least, that’s what I gather from the abstract; I don’t care enough to pay for the full article.
It’s new science. Hence news.
EDIT: This is the same distinction gwern made in their analogy below, but perhaps more explicit.
We knew already that meditation changed the concentration of neurotransmitters and blood flow in the brain, but not that it changed the white matter. At least, that’s what I gather from the abstract; I don’t care enough to pay for the full article.
It’s new science. Hence news.
EDIT: This is the same distinction gwern made in their analogy below, but perhaps more explicit.