Culture – Knowing Neurons

An Eternal Search For a “Cure”: How Real-World Diseases May Have Led to the Modern Vampire

octubre 31, 2022octubre 30, 2022 Ayushe Sharma Bat, Disease, Halloween, immortality, Myth, mitos de la neurociencia, photosensitivity, porphyria, rabies, stories, vampire

By Anastasiia Gryshyna and Ayushe Sharma Vampires have been a source of fascination for centuries. Whether portrayed as bloodthirsty killers, immortality-seeking psychopaths, or misunderstood romantics, these creatures of the night… Leer más

Brain Basics Culture Multilingual Sleep Spanish

La sabiduría del perezoso ¿Es el sueño una virtud perdida?

mayo 28, 2022mayo 24, 2022 Joel Frohlich beta-amiloide, el sueño, enfermedad de Alzheimer, perezoso, placas amiloides, ritmo circadiano, Salud, sueños, Tomografía por emisión de positrones

Artículo original: The Wisdom of the Sloth: Is Sleep a Lost Virtue? Joel Frohlich Traducido por Keya Vijapure En el siglo VI, el Papa Gregorio I recopiló una infame lista… Leer más

Bias Big Ideas Culture

How Political Bias Changes Our Understanding of Data

abril 5, 2022abril 5, 2022 Elizabeth Burnette Bias, Cognición, Data, Misinformation, Politics

Data literacy is the ability to understand the results and process of collecting, analyzing, interpreting, and reporting data. This skill is becoming increasingly relevant with internet-driven improvements to data accessibility… Leer más

Feature image depicting a brain in the center of a circle with a visual illusion background. On the left is a hand, palm up, holding a heart. On the right, another hand is tentatively reaching out to grab it. Designed by Alexa Erdogan.

Big Ideas Culture Philosophy Sensation and Perception

Understanding Visual Illusions Can Make Us More Empathetic

abril 8, 2020abril 8, 2020 McKenna Becker Bias, Blind spot, Cognición, Empathy, Illusion, Neuroplasticity, Optic nerve, Percepción, philosophy, Photoreceptor, Politics, R.L. Gregory, Reality, Retina, Stroop Test, Top-Down Processing, V.S. Ramachandran, Visual Illusions

Philosophers and neuroscientists agree that if there is an objective reality, human beings can’t perceive it: philosophers refer to objective reality as a perception independent of any conscious awareness. Neuroscientists… Leer más

An artistic take on the "monkey-to-man" cartoon, depicting the final result as a larger human near fast food with a red warning sign around it. Illustrated by McCall Sarrett.

Big Ideas Brain Basics Brain Development Culture

Brain, Healthy Fats, and the Importance of Fitting Into Your Genes

noviembre 27, 2019junio 3, 2021 Marco Travaglio Attention, Brain Fat, Corteza, dementia, depresió, DHA, Diet, Dopamina, Dorsal Attention Network, EPA, Evolution, Fat, Fish Oil, Frontoparietal Network, Genetics, Monounsaturated Fat, Neurological Disorder, Neurotransmitters, Omega-3, Omega-6, Polyunsaturated Fat, serotonin, supplements

Our brains are extremely rich in fat. Indeed, about two thirds of the human brain is composed of fat, 35% of which consists of essential polyunsaturated fatty acids. What are… Leer más

A sleeping brain on the left versus a brain lifting weights on the right. Illustrated by Rajamani Selvam.

Big Ideas Culture

The Neuroscience of Motivation and How to Improve It

septiembre 4, 2019septiembre 4, 2019 Marco Travaglio Dopamina, Insula, Limbic, Mesolimbic Pathway, Motivation, resonancia magnética, neurotransmisor, Nucleus accumbens, la corteza prefrontal, Reward-Seeking Behavior, Ventral Tegmental Area

Motivation can be a hard thing to come by. Whether at home, at school or at work, most of us have been in a situation where we know exactly what… Leer más

A cartoon image of a sun in the sky with golden rays extending outwards, with cannabis leaves on either side of the sun. Illustrated by McCall Sarrett.

Culture Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders

Does Cannabidiol (CBD) Actually Help Anxiety?

abril 18, 2019abril 18, 2019 Grace Browne Amygdala, Anxiety, Anxiolytic, Autismo, Cannabidiol, Cannabis, CBD, Cingulate Cortex, DEA, dementia, Dextromethorphan, Drug, EFSA, Epilepsy, FDA, Resonancia Magnética funcional, Marijuana, Neurotransmitters, Paranoia, Phytocannabinoids, Psychology, serotonin, Society, THC

Cannabidiol (CBD), a non-intoxicating compound of the Cannabis plant, has exploded in popularity in recent times, touted as a medical “cure-all”. Retailers promise their products will heal cancer, stop dementia… Leer más

Image of synaptic cleft in the background with a large cupcake on the right, topped with sprinkles in the shape of pills. Illustrated by McCall Sarrett.

Big Ideas Culture Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders Sensation and Perception

Are Foods Addictive or Just Delicious?

abril 4, 2019abril 7, 2019 Shaun Khoo Addiction, Basolateral Amygdala, Classical Conditioning, Cocaine, Dopamina, glutamato, Neurotransmitters, Nucleus Accumbens Core, obesity, Operant Conditioning, Pavlov, Psychology, Relapse, Sugar, Tolerance, Withdrawal

We are surrounded by an abundance of delicious food. Throughout the developed world, cooking shows saturate our televisions and streaming video feeds advertise greasy burgers and decadent chocolates. Our addiction… Leer más

A neuron halfway between winter and summer season backgrounds. Illustrated by McCall Sarrett.

Big Ideas Culture Aprendizaje y Memoria Sensation and Perception

Is Winter Good for Your Neurons?

enero 31, 2019enero 31, 2019 Marco Travaglio Attention, Climate, Cognitive, Decision-making, glucosa, Memory, Metabolism, seasonal affective disorder, Temperature, Winter

It is that time of the year again. Whilst the Southern Hemisphere is coping with the sweltering heat of the summer, cold is sweeping across the rest of the globe,… Leer más

Aging Culture Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders

Food for Your Brain: Mediterranean Diet May Help Your Neurons Live Longer

noviembre 28, 2018noviembre 27, 2018 Marco Travaglio Aging, Alzeihmer's disease, Cerebro, dementia, dietary fat, Fat, Food, income, Aprendizaje, MeDi, Mediterranean Diet, Memory, Oxidative stress, socioeconomic status

Historians consider it one of the ‘cradles of civilization,’ but for many scientists today the real value of the Mediterranean basin does not lie in its contribution to history. Home… Leer más

Big Ideas Culture Aprendizaje y Memoria Videos

Video: Can Neuroscience Explain the Mandela Effect?

octubre 3, 2018octubre 3, 2018 knowingneurons bernstain bears, Confabulation, false memory, Fiona Broome, Hippocampus, Mandela, mandela effect, Memory consolidation, memory retrieval, Quantum mechanics, Schrödinger's cat

Last year, our post “Can Neuroscience Explain the Mandela Effect?” by Caitlin Aamodt soaked up attention like a sponge and was resyndicated widely across the web, landing on pages such as… Leer más

Brain Development Culture

What Were You Thinking!?: Teenagers show different processing of positive and negative consequences across adolescence

agosto 23, 2018agosto 23, 2018 Jack-Morgan Mizell Adolescence, Adolescent, Adults, Aging, Anterior insula, Cerebro, Actividad cerebral, Brain vulnerability, Cognitive neuroscience, Consequences, Decision-making, Desarrollo, Experience, Harvard, Insula, neurobiology, Neurodevelopment, Neurociencia, Sensory systems, Spindle neuron, Striatum, Teenagers, Teens, Von Economo neuron, WHO, World Health Organization

Anyone who has spent time around teenagers knows they don’t always consider the full consequences of their actions. Just consider the dozens of YouTube videos involving falling dressers or fireworks… Leer más

Brain Development Culture Language

The Bilingual Brain: Why One Size Doesn’t Fit All

julio 25, 2018julio 26, 2018 Angela Grant bilingual, diffusion tensor imaging, DTI, early nutrition, English, fractional anisotropy, immigrant, immigration, language, Maria Konnikova, native language, Patricia Kuhl, polyglot, radial diffusivity, Spanish, estrés

Over the past few years, you might have noticed a surfeit of articles covering current research on bilingualism. Some of them suggest that it sharpens the mind, while others are… Leer más

Brain Basics Culture Sleep

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

junio 14, 2018octubre 8, 2019 Joel Frohlich enfermedad de Alzheimer, amyloid plaques, beta-amyloid, circadian rhythm, dreams, Salud, TEP, 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… Leer más

Big Ideas Culture Neuro News

Want to Feel Unique? Believe in the Reptile People

mayo 29, 2018mayo 29, 2018 Roland Imhoff Behavior, conspiracy theories, Culture, Experimento, new world order, Psychology, reptilian, Investigar

he internet is full of wild-eyed insinuation. Seemingly accidental events are not actually accidental. A few powerful people have hatched plots to bring about certain outcomes, usually with the goal… Leer más