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neuroscience

09/25/2018 / By Edsel Cook

Neuroscientists study neuroplasticity in tadpoles to learn how autism develops

Pollywogs are providing insight related to the development of autism in human children. In a Science Daily article, researchers reported that their study of neuroplasticity in tadpoles has uncovered the potential role played by certain proteins in how some autistic people process the feedback from their senses. Neuroplasticity is the life-long process where the brain […]

06/27/2018 / By Edsel Cook

MIT researchers develop a machine that manipulates hypnagogia, the state between wakefulness and sleep

As we move from sharp awareness to restful sleep, we undergo hypnagogia, a state where we experience small but surreal dreams that escape our recollection when we wake up. In a Motherboard article, an MIT team reported how they developed a device that can access this dreamland. MIT Media Lab researcher Adam Horowitz led the efforts to create Dormio, […]

05/26/2018 / By Edsel Cook

Can compulsive hoarding and kleptomania be explained by neuroscience? Researchers identify the neurons responsible for “object craving”

Neuroscience may have finally figured out the part of the brain that drives people to shop, hoard, and even steal items. In an article from Science Daily, Korean researchers identified the neurons that caused “object craving” in mice. Children, compulsive hoarders, and kleptomaniacs all love to receive and get objects. It’s natural for the first example, […]

05/14/2018 / By David Williams

How you respond to risks may be how your brain is wired; people who play it safe have more neurons but less coordinated pathways

Personality may have very little to do with people’s proclivity for risk, a new study reveals. Based on the results of the new study, the way people tend to respond to risky odds and risky situations entirely depends on how their brain is wired, as well as how different they are in this regard to […]

05/13/2018 / By Edsel Cook

Neuroscientists look at brain stimulation as an alternative treatment for depression

In search of a way to treat depression, Philadelphia-based neuroscientists found a pathway in the brain circuitry of mice, and reported that stimulating this path causes animals to take up “anti-depressive” behavior. According to an article in Medical Xpress, this discovery could lead to brain stimulation as way to alter depression in humans. Dr. Amelia […]

05/09/2018 / By Edsel Cook

Do you know why our eyesight is sharpest at dawn and dusk?

If you’ve ever been up at the crack of dawn or still outside when dusk falls, you may have noticed your sight is sharper than usual. A German study says this is because your brain changes the way it interprets visual signals during sunrise and sunset, according to a New Scientist article. Study author Christian […]

04/24/2018 / By Isabelle Z.

Healthy elderly brains DO grow new cells — just as many as young adult brains, according to new research

Many older people don’t seem as mentally sharp as young people, and it’s long been believed that brains stop making new cells as they age. Some research has even indicated that adults do not grow new neurons. Now, a new study in the journal Cell Stem Cell casts these ideas in serious doubt as researchers […]

04/07/2018 / By Michelle Simmons

Excessive daytime sleepiness in older adults could be an indicator of plaque buildup in the brain, increasing risk of dementia

Excessive daytime sleepiness in older people could be a sign of plaque buildup in the brain, increasing the risk of dementia, according to a study published in the journal JAMA Neurology. As people age, the tendency to be extra sleepy during daytime increases. Excessive daytime sleepiness has been associated with cognitive decline in older adults. […]

04/05/2018 / By Zoey Sky

Ruh? Dogs visualize what they are smelling, according to research – and they are surprised if it’s not what they expect

According to a study, dogs can create mental representations of objects that they observe using their sense of smell. The findings also showed that dogs might be surprised if what awaits at the end of the trail isn’t what they were expecting to find. It is a known fact that dogs have a keen sense of smell, but […]

04/02/2018 / By David Williams

Graphene can drastically enhance nerve cell signaling in the human brain, say researchers

Graphene has been the subject of a number of breakthrough discoveries over the past two decades. Now, a group of researchers from Vanderbilt University has found yet another one to add to the ever-growing list. Graphene is said to be an effective material to help boost nerve cell signaling in the human brain, and the […]

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