Meditation may rewire the brain and heat the body — a brain-scanning study puts it to the test.

This study investigates whether different types of meditation can alter brain structure and function. Healthy adults will be trained in mindfulness meditation, compassion meditation, or a health education class, and undergo brain scans before and after training. A separate group of experienced Tibetan gtummo meditators will have their body temperature mapped with MRI during the practice. The goal is to see if compassion meditation produces the largest brain changes and whether gtummo meditation can measurably raise body temperature.