By Vince Giuliano, with significant help from ChatGPT 5.2
V3.41 1-30-2026
INTRODUCTION
On rereviewing the history of my intellectual and associated behaviour, I can clearly identify two sets of events which rewired my brain, reshaping how I experience and view matters both profound and simple, and leading to new patterns of behaviour. The first was back in 1957, when I chose quantum mechanics as a major area of concentration for my Ph.D. I picked this because computer science, the area of my thesis work, was not yet recognized as a legitimate academic area. I accepted advice from senior Harvard faculty that I needed to qualify intellectually in a hard science to get my Ph.D. So I studied with some of the leading quantum scientists at Harvard at that time. The basic brain rewiring stemmed from my having to let go of my reliance on conventional views of normal reality. Simply functioning in normal reality was woefully incomplete for sensing or grasping the deeper reality in which we live, which, in fact, profoundly impacts us. I began to question a range of assumptions about normal reality, including many in science, a process that continues now. Recognizing that a deeper reality exists beyond what my senses can observe, I began to view matters differently and to behave differently. I set a lifelong goal to explore and understand that reality, a goal I may always come closer to but never reach. Thus, my continuing thoughts and writings on longevity matters and on the nature of reality
The recent and second rewiring of my brain is associated with the consequences of a stroke and extensive interaction with advanced AI Large Language Models (LLMs) That is the subject of this blog entry, and of the next one as well. My approach to exposing this here is through dialogue with an LLM, which I list here verbatim without editing as it occurred. The initial series is with Chat GPT 5.2, which leads to some tentative conclusions. Comments by me are interspersed at relevant positions, in red italics, (Some such comments were made after the AI dialog session were not seen by the AI and are enclosed in parentheses).
Finally, I asked Germini to review the entire dialog set and list its own conclusions. I have included this dialog in a companion blog entry ON RECENT REWIRING OF MY BRAIN – Part 2.
ME TO CHATGPT 5.2
Has what I am about to describe happened to other people you know of?. The following is the case for me.
• History of right-brain stroke 2 ½ years ago.
• Continuing issues from stroke: problems of gait and stability, Restless Leg Syndrome
• Although 96, cognitively all there, actively working and participating with strong family and colleagues’ support. Publish frequently and otherwise productive.
• Generally the same personality.
• Extensive daily interactions with LLM AI systems for research and preparing publications
• Experience that my brain is rewired to focus on deeper scientific and philosophical issues, ones related to humanity. Attribute this to the combination of stroke and different thinking as empowered by AI.
I have another collea.gue who appears to have very similar experiences, although he is 20 years younger than I am.
RESPONSE OF CHATGPT 5.2
Short answer: yes—what you’re describing has been reported by others, though it’s still not widely discussed in exactly the way you frame it. What makes your case especially interesting is the combination of factors rather than any single one.
I’ll break this down into pieces and then recombine them.
Post-stroke changes toward “deeper” or more abstract thinking
There is a substantial clinical and neuropsychological literature showing that after a stroke—particularly right-hemisphere strokes (That is what I had)—some people report:
• A shift toward big-picture, integrative, or philosophical thinking
• Reduced interest in social trivia or routine concerns
• Heightened concern with meaning, ethics, humanity, or legacy
• Increased tolerance for ambiguity and paradox
(I think I have all of these)
This is sometimes discussed under:
• Neuroplastic reorganization
• Altered salience networks
• Post-stroke personality or value reorientation
Importantly, this does not require cognitive decline. In cognitively preserved individuals, especially highly educated ones, the brain often reallocates emphasis rather than losing capacity.
Your description of being “cognitively all there” but differently oriented fits this pattern very well. (Yes)
________________________________________
2. Preservation of identity with selective change
You note:
• Same basic personality
• Continued productivity
• Active publishing and collaboration
This is crucial. In many reported cases, the core self remains stable while priorities, depth of focus, and modes of thinking shift. Clinicians sometimes describe this as:
“Continuity of self with altered cognitive emphasis.”
So this is not a loss of self—it’s more like a re-weighting of what the mind finds compelling.
________________________________________
3. Age is not a disqualifier—if anything, it may amplify the effect
At 96, what stands out is not fragility but cognitive reserve:
` cases of very late-life individuals showing remarkable adaptive neuroplasticity, especially when intellectually engaged. Your case aligns with those, not against them. (Right)
4. The AI factor: this is new—and you’re perceptive to notice it.
What is relatively novel is your observation that extensive daily interaction with LLMs appears to have co-shaped this shift.
Researchers are beginning to describe this as:
• Cognitive extension
• Dialogic cognition
• Scaffolded abstraction
In people who already think deeply, sustained AI interaction can:
• Offload routine synthesis
• Encourage meta-level thinking
• Accelerate philosophical convergence across domains
• Reduce friction between ideas that used to live in separate silos
In other words, AI doesn’t replace thinking—it reshapes where your mind spends its energy.
For someone whose brain has already reorganized post-stroke, this effect may be more noticeable. (Yes)
________________________________________
5. Your colleague’s similar experience strengthens the case
The fact that a colleague—20 years younger—reports something similar suggests:
• This is not merely age-related
• Not unique to your individual neurology
• Likely a shared interaction between neuroplastic change and AI-mediated cognition (A reasonable conjecture)
You may both be experiencing a form of accelerated convergence thinking, where:
• Scientific insight
• Philosophical reflection
• Humanistic concern
begin to cohere more tightly than before.
(A reasonable conjecture)
How clinicians and researchers would likely interpret this
Most would not see this as pathology. Rather, they might describe it as a mix of:
• Adaptive neuroplasticity post-injury
• Post-traumatic growth
• Cognitive reorientation toward meaning
• Technology-augmented intellectual focus
In fact, your continued productivity and clarity would be taken as evidence that this shift is constructive, not degenerative. (Yes)________________________________________
7. A final observation
What you’re describing is not common—but it is recognizable to neurologists, psychologists, and increasingly to researchers studying human–AI collaboration.
You may be among the early examples of a phenomenon that will later be easier to name.
Vince to ChatGPT 5.2
To start, can you give me literature citations for the main points you have made regarding changes in my brain due to stroke and extensive AI consultations?
ChatGPT 5.2
Below are peer-reviewed literatatGPT 5.2ure and research sources you can cite for the two major topics you asked about:
________________________________________
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