This project aims to investigate the dynamics of the human mind based on knowledge of Asian humanities, represented by Buddhism, and brain informatics and apply our investigations to society. We will construct models of mental-state personalities from large-scale surveys and detailed examinations of small groups, and develop technologies that accurately estimate and visualize brain dynamics. Our models and technologies will contribute to the development of meditation methods and their social applications that will enable people to understand themselves deeply, enhance the peace and vitality of their minds, and achieve a society which has compassion towards others as one of its most cherished values.

This project aims to develop a "Jizai Hon-yaku-ki (At-will Translator)" supporting people's communications in various situations, which may be useful in realizing an inclusive society. Neuroscienctists, molecular biologists, and VR/AR and robotics engineers will collaborate to develop technologies to quantify states of mind, and methods for perceptual, cognitive and motor interventions. The Jizai Hon-yaku-ki will be produced by combining these technologies and methods, and facilitate the communication of individuals and small groups.

This project aims not only to improve "happiness" at the level of individuals, but also to achieve aggregation and equality at the level of society. To this end, we will provide innovative technology to measure interpersonally comparable indicators of "happiness" from brain/neural activity. "Happiness" is enhanced not only by the experience of “well-being,” which benefits each person’s life, but also by the recognition of “agency,” a way of life that each person has individually decided. We will study “well-being” and “agency” in future society using humanities and social science methods and virtual reality technology. Moreover, we will also achieve individual comparison of well-being and agency by elucidating brain indicators of subjective feelings “pleasure” and “aspiration”. In doing so we will bridge neuroscience studies and real-world activities, such as evaluating mobility policies in smart cities.

This project aims to realize a society in which people can live "forward-looking" lives even in the midst of adversity. To this end, we will clarify the diverse and multifaceted components of "positivity," calculate positivity indices by measuring physical posture and brain/physiological reactions, and establish technologies to assist, train, and educate people on positivity factors tailored to their individual situations through positivity support technologies.

As urbanization and the rise of nuclear families increase the burden of child-rearing on parents, Japan is also facing a rapidly declining birthrate. In response to these social challenges, the concept of socializing child-rearing—distributing the responsibility of raising children across society—has become increasingly important. The "Child Care Commons 2.0" project focuses on building social capital that includes children and aims to develop new systems that enable trusted third parties—those without blood ties to the child—to participate meaningfully in child-rearing. By integrating insights from sociology, psychology, neuroscience, education, information science, medicine, and robotics, the project designs and implements both environments and technologies that foster diverse social relationships for children. Through this work, the project seeks to create a sustainable child-rearing environment where all children can build rich and diverse social capital. Ultimately, it contributes to improving children's and society's well-being in an age of declining birthrates.

By using our proprietary data resource for the biological aging of abused children and young suicide decedents, as well as novel AMPA receptor recognition technology for human brain and information presentation technologies, we aim to: 1) develop biological indicators that visualize child and young people's abuse, depression, and suicide risks, as well as their recovery; 2) elucidate the biological mechanisms that determine stress and resilience caused by adverse experiences; 3) develop intervention and support systems that adjust mental problems in children and young people to healthy-positive states based on scientific evidence and indicators; and 4) precisely depict the ethical, legal, and social barriers to implementing cutting-edge technology in society, and finally contribute to the realization of a society with zero child abuse, depression, and suicide.

This project aims to defend freedom of mind and promote value co-creation to strengthen both democracy and economic performance. Currently, centralized AI (CAI) and the attention economy threaten freedom of mind and democracy, and inhibit the creation of value from personal data (PD). This problem can be solved through decentralized management of PD, by which each individual's PD is fully utilized only by their personal AI (PAI). We will demonstrate that PAI creates much higher value than CAI, and will promote the replacement of CAI with PAI along with its democratic governance. We will also assist people to enhance the authenticity and diversity of information they utilize.

This project aims to realize an environment where everyone can grow up keeping their innate curiosity, thereby creating a society filled with active motivation and originality. Self-esteem damage in childhood can cause resilience to decline in later life, but by effectively preventing this type of problem we can realize a dynamic future society rich in intellectual curiosity. Specifically, we will use brain imaging technology to analyze children's brain characteristics, visualize the effects of interventions through optimized artistic activities, and implement them in society in collaboration with local governments.

This project aims to elucidate the mechanisms by which favorite foods induce positive emotions such as pleasure and empathy with others, and the mechanisms by which food values are changed depending on experience. Though bad eating habits can themselves be the cause of disease, stress and ill-health can also result when trying to a convert to a healthier diet. Therefore we will develop technologies to improve food preference and make it enjoyable to eat healthy food, using a rodent model from a neuroscientific viewpoint, and try to achieve the goal of "increasing mental comfort and vitality" using food as a tool.

This project aims to visualize mice's brain functional network dynamics in action by developing a virtual reality (VR) system. We will quantify the "state of mind" of mice communicating with each other in a social environment as changes in the functional brain network. Furthermore, we will develop a technology for optical manipulation of the functional brain network using optogenetics to artificially induce changes in the "mental" state and clarify how the functional brain network responds to changes in the ”mental" state and changes in behavior. Research on mice that allows direct manipulation of the brain will help develop a fundamental technology for elucidating the human mind.

This project aims to construct an objective and universal emotional state space across species by integrating AI technology with Internet of Things (IoT)-based measurements of biological signals in daily life. Furthermore, the project will develop a method to evaluate well-being and ill-being states based on the dynamics of state transitions in the constructed emotional space.

This project aims to examine what kind of difference will occur in the serotonin neural network, which has been shown to play a role in regulating patience for future rewards, when mice perform the same behavior but the purpose of the behavior is different for "attainment of reward" or "avoidance of punishment". We hypothesize that serotonin works to regulate "optimism / pessimism" toward achieving the goal and we will examine the serotonin neural network by neural recording and neural manipulation of task performing mice. By clarifying the neural mechanism of “the optimism that creates patience” or “the pessimism that leads to giving up”, we aim to realize a society in which people can improve their "ability to overcome the difficulties of life" and "vitality of the mind".

This project focuses on a haptic partner based on noncontact tactile reproduction technology that can replicate various tactile sensations in a wide skin area. The haptic partner is an AI partner that interacts with children through tactile senses in addition to visual and auditory senses. It influences emotions including pleasantness and arousal, stabilizing the children's minds and enabling them to achieve the desired mental response. The haptic partner's appearance and tactile feel change according to each child's preference and situation, becoming the optimum companion for each child.

This project aims to innovate in: 1) Awareness Music based on neuroscientific evidence to promote "awareness of one's own and others' hearts" by music and ultrasonic sounds; 2) awareness enhancing technology by Awareness Music using a wearable KANSEI visualization device; 3) technology for improving positive KANSEI such as healing, being moved and sense of unity by Neuro-Bio Feedback; 4) KANSEI communication technology that enhances empathy. We also aim to create new liberal arts through this transdisciplinary research collaboration. The "mental capital" strengthening method by integrating these technologies will be implemented in local communities, aiming to realize a peaceful society through mutual understanding and empathy - in which individuals can spend an active and happy life in the metaverse era of 2050.

This project aims to develop and implement breakthrough technologies to realize a society with zero childhood maltreatment and promote sound mental health for all.

• (1) We will develop and test the feasibility of an epigenomic panel (cross-sectional model) and brain imaging models that detect maltreatment and development in children.
• (2) Using longitudinal epigenetics, we will build a standard model of childhood development that reflects environmental influences for children up to age three.
• (3) We will conduct a clinical trial of robot-mediated remote-childcare support for families with childcare difficulties.

These technologies will assist parents in nurturing their children and prevent maltreatment through early detection and positive interventions.