Hidden Brain

How Nature Heals Us

November 3, 2025

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  • Spending time in nature, even in unpleasant weather (provided basic comfort is met), can restore depleted directed attention resources, as demonstrated by improved performance on cognitive tasks like the backwards digit span task. 
  • Natural environments, characterized by 'soft fascination' (like ocean waves) and features such as curved edges and fractal patterns, are more easily processed by the brain than harshly stimulating urban environments, leading to mental restoration. 
  • The benefits of nature exposure are not solely dependent on subjective enjoyment; cognitive improvements can occur even when participants report disliking the specific nature experience, suggesting an objective mechanism at play. 

Segments

Tour Announcements and Show Intro
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(00:00:00)
  • Key Takeaway: The Hidden Brain Perceptions Tour has added 2026 dates in Philadelphia and New York City, with a pre-sale for listeners using the code BRAIN.
  • Summary: The host announced upcoming live shows for the Hidden Brain Perceptions Tour in Los Angeles (November 22nd), Philadelphia (March 21st), and New York City (March 25th). Hidden Brain listeners receive first access to tickets for the 2026 shows during a pre-sale running from November 3rd through November 5th. The episode then transitions to the main topic, contrasting conventional mental health treatments with the potential relief offered by nature.
Nature’s Effect on Jackson Pollock
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(00:05:36)
  • Key Takeaway: Moving Jackson Pollock to a quieter, natural environment in Long Island appeared to reduce his volatility and depression, potentially inspiring his organic painting style.
  • Summary: Artist Jackson Pollock suffered from extreme depression and alcoholism while living in New York City. His partner, Lee Krasner, moved him to Long Island to remove him from city influences and expose him to a quieter, natural setting. While nature was not a complete cure, his volatility and depression lessened, and his famous paint-splattering technique seemed inspired by the organic properties of nature.
Surf Therapy for Veterans
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(00:10:06)
  • Key Takeaway: A six-week surf therapy program for military veterans suffering from PTSD and depression resulted in decreased symptoms and improved mood.
  • Summary: The Naval Health Research Center in San Diego implemented a six-week surf therapy program for veterans dealing with PTSD, TBI, and depression. The therapy involved group surfing sessions, combining nature exposure (ocean sights, smells, textures) with social activity and physical exercise. Participants showed decreased severity of PTSD and depression symptoms, along with improved overall mood.
Scientist’s Personal Nature Solace
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(00:12:47)
  • Key Takeaway: Confronting personal heartbreak by confiding in a majestic, long-lived oak tree helped the scientist gain perspective by realizing he was part of something larger across time and space.
  • Summary: Psychologist Mark Berman sought comfort from a breakup by visiting a large oak tree at Barton Park, anthropomorphizing it as a listener. Sharing his sorrows with the awe-inspiring tree made his problems feel smaller by placing them in the context of the tree’s long history and the vastness of nature. This temporal and spatial perspective shift offered healing, even if not immediate relief.
Roger Ulrich’s Hospital Recovery Study
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(00:20:38)
  • Key Takeaway: Patients recovering from gallbladder surgery in rooms overlooking modest nature recovered about a day faster and used less pain medication than those viewing a brick wall.
  • Summary: Roger Ulrich, who found comfort looking at a pine tree while recovering from illness as a teen, conducted a seminal study on hospital recovery views. Patients randomly assigned to rooms with views of nature recovered approximately one day faster and required less pain medication than those viewing a brick wall. Ulrich theorized that nature interactions remediate stress responses, explaining these physical benefits.
Attention Restoration Theory Explained
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(00:25:05)
  • Key Takeaway: Attention Restoration Theory posits that directed attention (used for focus) is fatiguable, but natural environments restore it by engaging involuntary attention without fully depleting resources.
  • Summary: Stephen and Rachel Kaplan developed Attention Restoration Theory, distinguishing between fatiguable directed attention (used at work/school) and involuntary attention (captured by interesting stimuli). Natural environments are restorative because they activate involuntary attention softly, allowing directed attention to replenish without being fully captured or fatigued, unlike hyper-stimulating settings like Times Square.
Curved Edges and Fractal Geometry
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(00:31:29)
  • Key Takeaway: Natural settings are rich in curved edges and fractal (scale-free) patterns, which humans aesthetically prefer and which may be easier for the brain to process fluently.
  • Summary: Nature is filled with curved edges (branches, waves) that people tend to prefer, even in built images. Fractals, characterized by repeating patterns across different spatial scales (like a tree’s branching structure), may also be easier for the brain to process fluently than complex, rectilinear urban structures. This ease of processing contributes to nature’s restorative effects.
Nature Walk Cognitive Benefits Study
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(00:35:29)
  • Key Takeaway: A 50-minute walk in nature significantly improved performance on a directed attention task by about 20%, regardless of whether the participant enjoyed the walk (even in cold January weather).
  • Summary: Participants performed a difficult backwards digit span task (measuring directed attention) before and after walking either in the Ann Arbor Arboretum or busy downtown Ann Arbor. Those walking in nature improved their performance by about 20% (roughly one digit span), while the urban walkers did not. This cognitive benefit occurred even when participants walked in freezing January weather and disliked the experience, provided basic comfort needs were met.
Naturizing Indoor Spaces
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(00:55:34)
  • Key Takeaway: Bringing elements of nature indoors, including artificial plants, nature sounds, or architecture mimicking natural patterns, can yield similar cognitive and restorative benefits.
  • Summary: Even simulated nature, such as artificial plants or nature sound machines used for children’s sleep, can provide psychological benefits. The host noted an airport hotel lobby in Detroit using fake bamboo and water features that felt restorative. Furthermore, architecture that mimics natural fractal patterns and curved edges, like the gothic buildings at the University of Chicago, may also induce cognitive benefits.
Designing Green Routes and Architecture
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(01:01:05)
  • Key Takeaway: New tools like the Retune app aim to route pedestrians via the most nature-filled paths, while architecture that incorporates natural patterns may enhance psychological well-being.
  • Summary: The Retune app is being developed to map walking routes that maximize exposure to natural stimulation (trees, reduced noise) even if the path is slightly longer. Research also shows that buildings with more curved edges and fractal qualities are preferred by people and perceived as more natural. This suggests that designing the built environment to mimic nature’s patterns could yield psychological benefits.