Mind blanking reports are mediated by altered arousal levels

During spontaneous thinking, experience is ongoing, dynamic, and rich in mental content. Interestingly, ongoing experience can also show moments of “blanks” during which there is a failure to report the content of thoughts. Here, I will discuss the possibility of entertaining contentless mental states during waking periods. I will show how experinee-sampling paired with biomedical imaging techniques (fMRI, EEG, peripheral physiological signals) underlies the phenomenology of mind blanking, pointing that arousal is a key mediator when reporting no mental content. Together, I will discuss how brain and peripheral physiology alter in conditions where reportability is diminished, therefore challenging the notion that the mind is a constant thought-oriented operator.