Neuroscience

Researchers Link Obsessive-Compulsive Behavior And Obesity

An experiment to probe brain circuits involved in compulsive behavior- where mice were bred missing a gene suspected to be involved in compulsive behavior and obesity - resulted in offspring mice that were neither compulsive groomers nor obese. Their Proc ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 10 2013 - 6:00pm

Pregnancy: Moderate Drinking Doesn't Harm Baby's Neurodevelopment

While too much of anything can be bad at any time, a little drinking- 3 to 7 glasses of alcohol a week- does not seem to harm fetal neurodevelopment, according a large study published in the online only journal BMJ Open. Good thing too, or entire generati ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 18 2013 - 2:40pm

Fibromyalgia Is Not All In The Head, It's In Skin, Paper Concludes

Fibromyalgia is a blanket term for a general painful condition that affects approximately 10 million people in the United States. Because it lacks consistent symptoms and treatments, some doctors believe an unknown number of instances are psychosomatic bu ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 18 2013 - 11:02am

Imaging Study Says It Maps Effects Of Autism On The Brain

A group of investigators from San Diego State University's Brain Development Imaging Laboratory say they can see the effects of autism on the brain. They conclude that connectivity between the thalamus, a deep brain structure crucial for sensory and ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 25 2013 - 4:30pm

The Minds Of Impulsive And Premeditated Murderers Are Different

The minds of murderers who kill impulsively- crimes of passion, as they are commonly called- and those who carefully carry out premeditated crimes differ markedly both psychologically and intellectually, according to a new paper. ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 27 2013 - 5:04pm

Brain Training Products Work- Just Like Placebos

If you see commercials for brain-training products, the companies all tout laboratory studies and scientific backing for their products in how they can improve your brainpower. Most intervention studies like these have a critical flaw, notes a new paper i ...

Article - News Staff - Jan 6 2016 - 9:21pm

A Computer Model Of The Brain- That Daydreams

Researchers have created a virtual model of the brain based on the dynamics of brain cells and the many connections those cells make with their neighbors and with cells in other brain regions- and it daydreams like humans do. The group hope the model will ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 12 2013 - 7:21pm

Cocktail Party Problem, Robotic Frogs And How Two Wrong Calls Can Make A Right

A 'rather bizarre' result using a robotic frog and recorded mating call may provide insight into how complex traits evolve by hooking together much simpler traits. Researchers have discovered that two wrong mating calls can make a right for fema ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 15 2013 - 10:55am

Fear Factor: Missing Brain Enzyme MAO A/B Leads To Abnormal Levels Of Fear In Mice

Learned fear is a good thing. It keeps us from making risky, stupid decisions or falling over and over again into the same trap.  New research found that a missing brain protein may be the culprit in cases of severe over-worry, where the fear perseveres e ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 16 2013 - 11:09am

What's So Tricky About Tickling?

It's a bizarre feeling, yet it’s one that we’ve all probably experienced, at one time or another.   Whether it’s the brush of a feather-duster, or a friend’s fingers under your chin, a great many of us are ticklish. There are a number of spots on the ...

Article - Sarah Harrison - Jul 20 2013 - 10:46am