Knowing Neurons

Can Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Delay Cognitive Decline?

October 6, 2020October 31, 2020 Charmi Porwal 0 Comments Age, Age-related cognitive decline, Alzheimer’s disease, Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy, Metabolism, Oxygen

Mental abilities change throughout life, first as a result of brain maturation and later with the ageing of brain cells and their billions of complex interconnections. As we age, our… Read more

Interviews Joel's Pick

So that’s what the claustrum does!

September 24, 2020October 31, 2020 Joel Frohlich 2 Comments claustrum, Consciousness, Interviews, Joel's Pick, Optogenetics, Research, Sleep, sleep waves

Three years ago, I asked “What the heck is a claustrum?” In that piece, I described the mystery of this oddly shaped brain region, located just below the cerebral cortex.… Read more

Brain Books

Book Review: Neuroscience Fiction

September 21, 2020October 31, 2020 Marco Travaglio 0 Comments Book Review, Brain Books, Brain-computer interface, Movies, Neuroscience, philosophy, Sci-fi, Science Fiction

Over 50 years ago, large masses of movie enthusiasts flocked to the premiere of a much awaited sci-fi masterpiece called ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’. The plot was rather simple. A… Read more

Big Ideas Mental Health Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders

Could a computer game help to tackle intrusive memories from traumatic events?

August 31, 2020August 31, 2020 Mariella Careaga 0 Comments Computer Games, Gaming, Intrusive Memories, Memory, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, PTSD, Tetris

Nowadays, experiencing shocking and dangerous situations in which you think yours or someone else’s life is in danger is not rare. People who are exposed to, or have witnessed life-threatening… Read more

Did You Know? Infographics Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders

Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD)

August 17, 2020August 17, 2020 Rajamani Selvam 0 Comments ADHD, attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder, Infographic, neurodevelopmental disorer, Neurological Disorder, Neuroscience, psychological disorder, SciComm, Science

~ Attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by abnormal levels of impulsive and hyperactive behaviors which occurs in both children and adults. Symptoms appear around 3-… Read more

Consciousness Interviews

Frames of Consciousness: An Interview with Martin Monti and Adrian Owen

August 1, 2020August 3, 2020 Joel Frohlich 0 Comments Brain Injury, Consciousness, fMRI, Interview, Location, Motor, Spatial, Study, vegetative

Each night when you dream, your mind is active, yet your body is largely unresponsive unless woken up. A similar situation exists for some brain-injured patients who have lost consciousness—although… Read more

Mental Health

COVID-19 and Mental Health: How Social Isolation Impacts Your Brain

July 27, 2020July 25, 2020 Sophia La Banca 0 Comments Anxiety, Brain, Communication, covid-19, depression, mental health, Oxytocin, social isolation, stress response

Currently, we are facing one of the worst pandemics in human history. Since our means to fight the virus are still limited, social distancing has been the best way to… Read more

Aging Learning and Memory

Spatial Navigation and Memory: How Our Brains Imagine Alternate Realities

July 6, 2020July 6, 2020 Lindsay Gray 1 Comment Hippocampus, Memory, Memory Loss, Neurodegeneration, Spatial Navigation

You’re on the road to work, when your mind drifts ahead to the lecture you’re scheduled to give in the afternoon. You rehearse your talk to yourself as you pull… Read more

Big Ideas Learning and Memory Movement Neuroscience Technologies

Optogenetics: An Illuminating Tool with A Bright Future

May 27, 2020May 24, 2020 Jeff Olney 0 Comments Behavior, Deep Brain Stimulation, EEG, electroconvulsive therapy, Learning and Memory, Light, Optogenetics, Technology, Therapeutic Approaches, Vision

Nearly everything we do requires our brain in some way. Eating a bagel? That uses your brain. Reading this article? That’s using your brain, too. All those questionable decisions you… Read more

Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders Sensation and Perception

Cognition in Schizophrenia: The Missing Piece of the Therapeutic Puzzle

April 22, 2020April 17, 2020 Jessica Brown 0 Comments Antipsychotic drugs, Cognition, Cognitive Remediation Therapy, Hallucination, Memantine, Neurological Disorder, NMDA, NMDA receptor, Quality of life, Relapse, Schizophrenia, Therapeutic Approaches

What kind of mental image springs to mind upon reading the word ‘schizophrenia’? Many envisage individuals locked in dark institutions, plagued by non-existent voices and vivid hallucinations. Fortunately, modern antipsychotic… Read more

Big Ideas Culture Philosophy Sensation and Perception

Understanding Visual Illusions Can Make Us More Empathetic

April 8, 2020April 8, 2020 McKenna Becker 1 Comment Bias, Blind spot, Cognition, Empathy, Illusion, Neuroplasticity, Optic nerve, Perception, 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… Read more