Ever notice how easy it is to feel connected to someone if they're wearing your team's jersey or a t-shirt of your favorite band? You might think it's cause it's familiar or you found something in common, but in truth, it's another way we find belonging. In this mini-episode of Brain Blown, we explore how our brains create powerful connections beyond human relationships: Discover how our brains attach to ideas and symbols as strongly as to people Learn how these attachments can trigger reactions as intense as physical disgust Uncover how our deep-seated need to belong shapes our behavior and morality Join us for a quick dive into the fascinating world of belonging, where your brain treats logos and ideologies with the same intensity as human connections. For more ways to get involved with the Brain Blown Community, head to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.patreon.com/brainblownpodcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to learn about our offers!  If you have any topic suggestions for future episodes, don't hesitate to reach out! Send us an email at [email protected]. We'd love to hear from you. REFERENCES "The Emerging Neuroscience of Social Media" Dar Meshi, Diana I. Tamir, and Hauke R. Heekeren "Social Influence on Positive Youth Development: A Developmental Neuroscience Perspective" Eva H. Telzer, Jorien van Hoorn, Christina R. Rogers, Kathy T. Do "The neuroscience of social feelings: mechanisms of adaptive social functioning" Paul J. Eslinger, Silke Anders, Tommaso Ballarini, Sydney Boutros, Soren Krach, Annalina V. Mayer, Jorge Moll, Tamara L. Newton, Matthias L. Schroeter, Ricardo de Oliveira-Souza, Jacob Raber, Gavin B. Sullivan, James E. Swain, Leroy Lowe, Roland Zahn "Brain and Social Networks: Fundamental Building Blocks of Human Experience" Emily B. Falk and Danielle S. Bassett "Mind the Gender Gap" Gina Rippon "Change: How to Make Big Things Happen" Damon Centola