Brain Basics – Page 2 – Knowing Neurons

Neuro Primer: Cerebral Organoids

June 27, 2018April 18, 2019 Caitlin Aamodt 3 Comments Biology, Brains in a dish, Cell, Cell cultures, Cell signaling, Cells, Chimeras, Microcephaly, Nature, Neuroscience, Organoids, Rodent, Rodents, Sentience, Zika, Zika virus

t may sound like something Dr. Frankenstein himself would be envious of, but scientists can now create miniature “brain” organoids in a dish.… Read more

Brain Basics Culture Sleep

The Wisdom of the Sloth: Is Sleep a Lost Virtue?

June 14, 2018October 8, 2019 Joel Frohlich 10 Comments Alzheimer’s disease, amyloid plaques, beta-amyloid, circadian rhythm, dreams, Health, PET, Positron emission tomography, Sleep, sloth

In the sixth century, Pope Gregory I compiled an infamous list of seven deadly sins. Of these seven, sloth is the only sin named for an animal in English. But… Read more

Brain Basics Consciousness Neuro Primer

Neuro Primer: Attention

May 31, 2018March 3, 2019 Sean Noah 3 Comments Attention, Brain, Brain Basics, Consciousness, Focus, Perception, Vision

magine suffering through a 2pm class on a sweltering day in early June. Summer’s almost arrived, and it’s hard not to let your mind wander away from the dull information… Read more

Brain Basics Sensation and Perception

Tick, Tock: Your Brain’s Inner Clock

April 25, 2018April 25, 2018 Jenn Tribble 0 Comments circadian rhythm, David Eagleman, Dopamine, Einstein, emotional state, five senses, Perception, Sensation, stress, temporal pattern, Time

ime: one syllable, four letters, but one of the nebulous constructs of our world. Many bright scholars and philosophers have attempted to understand time as a primary sense, including Albert… Read more

Brain Basics Did You Know?

No, You’re Not Left-Brained or Right-Brained

February 15, 2018February 15, 2018 Joel Frohlich 1 Comment Cerebral, Cerebral hemispheres, Expierments, Fibers, fMRI, Functional MRI, Harry Potter, Hemisphere, Hogwarts, Lateralization, Left, Left brain, Nerve, Nerve fibers, Neuroanatomy, Neuroimaging, Right, Right brain, Split brain, Visuospatial abilities, VS Ramachandran

At the fictional Hogwarts school for witchcraft and wizardry in the Harry Potter series, students are sorted into different school houses by a magic hat based on their personalities. Similarly,… Read more

Brain Basics Neuro SciFi

The Life and Times of the 10% Neuromyth

February 13, 2018February 13, 2018 Gabrielle Torre 3 Comments Black Mirror, Brain, Brain boosters, Default mode network, Epilepsy, fMRI, Functional MRI, Human, Human Brain, Human potential, Humans, Movies, MRI, Myth, Neuroimaging, Neuromyth, Neuroscience, Neuroscientist, Pop Culture, Science Fiction, Seizure, TV

How much of your brain are you using right now? The science fiction answer would be “10%.” And, if you’ve watched enough bad sci-fi, using 100% of your brain would… Read more

Brain Basics Did You Know? Sensation and Perception

Neuronal Communication: Electricity and Neurotransmitters

January 24, 2018January 23, 2018 Jenn Tribble 0 Comments Brain, Dopamine, GABA, glutamate, Network, Neuron, Neurons, neurotransmitter, Perception, Receptor, serotonin, Synapse

ith approximately 86 billion neurons in the human brain, it is a complex piece of machinery in charge of movement, sensation, decision-making, and more. Behaviors cannot arise from the work… Read more

Brain Basics Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders Sleep

The inescapable nightmare of fatal familial insomnia

October 31, 2017October 31, 2017 Sean Noah 1 Comment Brain, Cortex, Disease, Disorders, Fatal Familial Insomnia, FFI, Genetics, Insomnia, Molecular neuroscience, Neuroscience, Prions, Psychiatry, Sleep, Sleep disorders

A family curse During the early 1980’s, an Italian physician was investigating a mysterious and dreadful disease that had long plagued his family. In earlier generations, this disease had killed… Read more

Brain Basics Did You Know? Movement Sensation and Perception

What is the cerebellum?

October 23, 2017October 22, 2017 Cari Ritzenthaler 2 Comments balance, Brain, Cerebellum, Coordination, granule cell, Infographic, Knowing Neurons, Movement, Neuroscience, Proprioception, Purkinje cell, Vestibular system

Learn about the mini brain you have at the base of your skull!… Read more

Brain Basics Neuroscience Technologies

The Brain’s Building Blocks: Of Protons and Voxels

September 27, 2017September 27, 2017 Gabrielle Torre 0 Comments Alzheimer’s disease, Autism, Biology, Computational Biology, Computer Science, Electromagnetic Forces, Interdisciplinary, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Magnets, Morphometry, MRI, Neuroimaging, physics, Proton Spin, protons, Radio-frequency Waves, stroke, Voxels

hat’s in a brain? That which we call a voxel by any other name would sound far less confusing. Imagine all of the atoms in your brain. Now imagine how… Read more

Brain Basics Neuro News Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders Neuroscience Technologies Videos

Lighting Up The Brain With Optogenetics

September 22, 2017September 22, 2017 Brainfacts.org 0 Comments Algae, Biomimicry, BrainFacts.org, Channelrhodopsin, Deep Brain Stimulation, Optogenetics, Parkinson's Disease, Retina, Video

Scientists studying pond scum discovered its peculiar ability to sense light, even without eyes. This discovery would eventually lead to a technique called optogenetics, one of the most powerful techniques… Read more

Brain Basics Brain Development Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders Sensation and Perception

Schizophrenia in a Vial? The Story of Ketamine

September 20, 2017September 24, 2017 Joel Frohlich 2 Comments Anesthesia, Antidepressant, Antipsychotic drugs, Brain, cognitie symptoms, depression, Dissociation, Dopamine, glutamate, Ketamine, negative symptoms, neurotransmitter, PCP, Perception, phencyclidine, positive symptoms, Schizophrenia, Sensation, Synaptic Connections

Note: Ketamine is a controlled substance in the US and many other countries. Do not use ketamine illicitly. magine an injection that briefly gives you schizophrenia. Now imagine that this… Read more