Neuroscience

Under the metaphors, the Inner Control Panel is a claim about systems-level brain function: five interacting neurobehavioral systems, each with specific circuits, neuromodulators, and evolutionary roles.

If you’re a neuroscientist, researcher, or scientifically curious reader, this section is for you.

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Structural map of the model

• The Five Dials
  High-level overview of the five systems and what they regulate.
• Methods & Frameworks
  The Didomi Behavioral Model (DBM) and how it frames Energy, Recovery, Status, Attention, and Connection as interacting systems.
• The Shared Language of the Inner Control Panel
  How a simple control-panel analogy sits on top of more complex neurobiological mechanisms.

Deep dives relevant to neuroscience

• Debunking “Motivation”: Replacing a Vague Construct with the Energy Management Imperative
  Argues for retiring “motivation” as a fuzzy construct and reframing it in terms of measurable energy allocation, cost–benefit evaluation, and evolutionary priorities.
• The Recovery System (RS): Neurobiological Mechanisms of Neuronal Protection
  Outlines the Recovery System as a set of mechanisms designed to protect neurons and networks from overload, stress, and metabolic damage.
• It’s Not Laziness, It’s the Stingy Energy CFO
  A more narrative piece, but grounded in the idea of an active Energy Management System that controls access to metabolic and cognitive resources.
• The Dirty Windshield
  Attention System as a gatekeeper with ECN / DMN / Salience-style dynamics and constraints on serial processing.
• The Connection System (CS)
  Connection as a regulation system for social safety, trust, and belonging—with implications for stress buffering, co-regulation, and resilience.

What this section aims to do

The goal here is not to add yet another brain diagram, but to:

• propose a usable systems abstraction you can evaluate and critique,
• connect phenomenology (“I feel wired but tired”, “I have no motivation”) to plausible mechanisms,
• suggest hypotheses that can be tested, refined, or falsified.

As more material is added, this section will include technical notes, literature pointers, and suggestions for research collaborations.