Microdose  Neuro. Art

The Secret that Einstein, Curie, JFK, Ford & Tesla All Knew...

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Einstein did it. So did Marie Curie, JFK, Tesla, Edison, and Henry Ford.

They all doodled.

Not as idle distraction, but as a way of thinking on paper. Scribbles, loops, and abstract lines became gateways to insights that changed the world.

And here’s the fascinating part: modern neuroscience now proves what history’s great minds knew intuitively—doodling and art are survival tools.
 

Art Is Not Decoration—It’s Biology

For tens of thousands of years, humans have made art. Every culture, everywhere. That’s not coincidence—it’s evolution.

Art helps us process, connect, and create. It sparks intuitive leaps, builds new systems, and binds us in community.

In Your Brain on Art, Susan Magsamen and Ivy Ross argue that just 20 minutes of daily art can help billions flourish, learn better, and build stronger communities.

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Why? Because art doesn’t just “entertain” us. It rewires us.

Brain scans show that making or perceiving art lights up the frontal cortex (our learning and meaning-making hub) and the default mode network—the system tied to imagination, self-awareness, compassion, and emotional regulation.

This is also where serotonin, dopamine, and oxytocin flow. (If you know Parkinson’s, you know dopamine is life-changing—and patients treated with dopamine related prescriptions often see their creativity bloom.)

Art doesn’t only touch the eyes. It balances emotions, stirs empathy, and reshapes identity.

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That’s why:

• Doctors prescribe museum visits.

• Hospitals build art installations.

• Veterans heal PTSD through mask-making.

• Firefighters doodle to lower job anxiety.

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The body has 11 million sensory receptors. Ten million are dedicated to sight. No wonder visual art is becoming medicine.

Another voice shaping this work is Dr. Lisa Feldman Barrett, one of the most cited neuroscientists alive and author of How Emotions Are Made. Her research upends what we thought we knew: emotions aren’t universal reflexes. They’re predictions your brain constructs, based on past experience and energy efficiency—a process she calls body budgeting.

Stress or anxiety? That’s your body running a deficit. Depression? A bankrupt budget.

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Barrett shows that when our emotional vocabulary is limited—say, everything gets labeled as either awful or awesome—we lose nuance. That lack of emotional granularity keeps the brain stuck. Expanding emotional language literally creates new neural options.

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And here’s the bridge: art is emotional granularity in action. Daily doodling, mindful lines, coloring—it all teaches the brain to reframe and expand.

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Enter Neurographica, technique developer and author of the same title of the book written by Dr. Pavel Piskarev. It’s an 8-step abstract, self help drawing method designed to promote deep self reflection and transformation via the concept of neuroplasticity.

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And then there’s The Doodling Revolution written by Sunni Brown.  Her message, “There is no such thing as a mindless doodle.” Her work reframes doodling as a legitimate cognitive tool. Studies back her up: in one 2009 experiment, doodlers recalled 29% more boring information than non-doodlers. Far from distraction, doodling enhances focus, reduces rumination, and sparks creativity.

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Brown’s research also supports microdosing: small, regular bursts of doodling are more powerful than occasional long sessions. Over time, doodles become a barometer of inner life—a journal in visual form.

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So What Is Microdose Neuro.Art?
 

It’s a co-creative coloring book series I developed, designed to deliver all these benefits in a simple, joyful practice.

Here’s what makes it different:

• Hand-drawn images (not AI). Your brain knows the difference. Built-in imperfection models the letting go of perfectionist tendencies, allowing us to hold on to our collective humanity!

• Art prompts that stretch emotional vocabulary and invite doodling, rounding, and coloring.

• Open pages for sketching, scribbling, or journaling.
   

Seven Core Benefits of Microdose Neuro.Art
 

1. Activates and helps maintain fine motor skills – engaging in fine line drawing rounding and coloring, stimulates areas of the brain, responsible for hand eye coordination, and improves cognitive function

2. Encourages the flow state- rhythmic motion of rounding helps your brain enter a deep state of relaxation similar to meditation promoting mindfulness and focus

3. Enhances neuroplasticity – research state that just 20 minutes of creative engagement per day, a true “microdose”, can strengthen connections between brain regions, responsible for memory, cognition, mental clarity, emotional resilience. The brain has the ability to rewire and heal itself through creative expression, purportedly enhanced further by the phenomenon of “mirror neurons,” represented by neuro lines. 

4. Maximizes the benefits of Neuroaesthetics – the emerging science of neuroaesthetics confirms that simply engaging with triggers positive chemical changes in the brain, enhancing the production of various “happy chemicals.”

5. Boosts self-esteem, mood and provides extra healing manifestation tools- Book 1 contains simple images that are designed to tap into feelings of familiarity, nostalgia, and warmth, often from a first-person perspective, enhancing the brains release of oxytocin, the “connection” hormone. The anatomically based images and specific art prompts in Book 2 are designed to open the aperture of your senses while fine-tuning your ability to create a healthful reality for yourself, or a loved one! This has a potential of enhancing the brains release of powerful healing hormones.

6. Doodling specifically supports emotional regulation, and so much more – repeated studies have shown that 20 minutes of doodling reduces burnout related distress, reduces “rumination” or cyclical nonproductive, thinking, serves as a legitimate, cognitive, emotional strategy, and not distraction, as well as creating a catalyst for conversation and professional therapy sessions. Drawing with the non-dominant hand is encouraged as well as bilateral hand drawing for deeper hemispheric brain balancing.

7. Softens perfectionist tendencies – having two identical images offers a “second chance” at fine-tuning what you would like to see as an end result of your very own piece of art! While the creation process is most important, your enjoyment with the end result matters. Allow the “imperfect” human touch to live in your creations, as a way to hold on to our collective humanity!
 

It’s not just doodling, it is not just coloring, and it is definitely not just an indulgence. It’s medicine disguised as play. It’s what we’re wired for. Einstein knew it. So did Curie and Tesla. Science now proves it.
 

And with MDNA, you can bring that same quiet genius into your own hands—one doodle at a time.