How neurons use crowdsourcing to make decisions
From the Santa Fe Institute press release: How do we make decisions? Or rather, how do our neurons make decisions for us? Do individual neurons have a strong say or is the voice in the…
Brain imaging reveals neural roots of caring
From the Cell Press press release: When others suffer, we humans empathize. Our feelings of empathy take different forms, such as distress when we imagine and internalize someone’s pain and compassion as we sympathize with…
Researchers pinpoint ‘attention disengagement’ lag as cause for impaired driving when talking on cell phone
From the University of Iowa press release: We all know that talking on a cell phone impedes your driving ability. But new research from the University of Iowa is helping us understand how even a…
Amygdala activity predicts posttraumatic stress disorder
From the Elsevier press release: Neuroimaging measures of emotional brain function after acute trauma may help predict whether a person will develop posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to a new study in Biological Psychiatry. Led…
Human brain tunes into visual rhythms in sign language
From the University of Chicago press release: The human brain works in rhythms and cycles. These patterns occur at predictable frequencies that depend on what a person is doing and on what part of the…
Study suggests cognitive tests can detect early Alzheimer’s disease in older adults without symptoms
From the Keck Medicine of USC press release: Long before symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease become apparent to patients and their families, biological changes are occurring within the brain. Amyloid plaques, which are clusters of protein fragments,…
Auditory perception: Where microseconds matter
From the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München press release: In the mammalian auditory system, sound waves impinging on the tympanic membrane of the ear are transduced into electrical signals by sensory hair cells and transmitted via the auditory nerve…
Vision keeps maturing until mid-life
From the McMaster University press release: The visual cortex, the human brain’s vision-processing centre that was previously thought to mature and stabilize in the first few years of life, actually continues to develop until sometime…
Study suggests oxytocin reduces cravings for methamphetamine
From the Elsevier press release: Many people have suggested that addiction hijacks the body’s natural drives in the service of compulsive drug use. A new study now suggests that hijacking another natural system in the…
Uncovering why playing a musical instrument can protect brain health
From the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care press release: A recent study conducted at Baycrest Health Sciences has uncovered a crucial piece into why playing a musical instrument can help older adults retain their listening skills…