A new study reveals for the first time that activating the brain’s visual cortex with a small amount of electrical stimulation actually improves our sense of smell.
A new study reveals for the first time that activating the brain’s visual cortex with a small amount of electrical stimulation actually improves our sense of smell.
People with depression suffer a number of symptoms -- including anxiety, memory issues, and sleep disturbances. Now researchers have found that the brains of depressed people show hyperactivity; The f
By training birds to ‘get rhythm’, scientists uncover evidence that our capacity to move in time with music may be connected with our ability to learn speech.
If you are looking for a particular object -- say a yellow pencil -- on a cluttered desk, how does your brain work to visually locate it? For the first time, neuroscientists have identified how differ
A gene known to control lens development in mice and humans is also crucial for the development of neurons responsible for mechanosensory function, as neurobiologists have now discovered. They found t
Scientists have taken a step forward toward the goal of repairing nerves in such patients more effectively. In a new study, researchers report that a surprising set of cells may hold potential for ner
New connections between brain cells emerge in clusters in the brain as animals learn to perform a new task, according to a new study. The findings reveal details of how brain circuits are rewired duri
Researchers have discovered a startling feature of early brain development that helps to explain how complex neuron wiring patterns are programmed using just a handful of critical genes. The findings
Our bodies are full of tiny superheroes -- antibodies that fight foreign invaders, cells that regenerate, and structures that ensure our systems run smoothly. One such structure is myelin, a material
When you see a picture of a hand, how do you know whether it's a right or left hand? This "hand laterality" problem may seem obscure, but it reveals a lot about how the brain sorts out confu
Ever gone to the movies and forgotten where you parked the car? New research may one day help you improve your memory. Neuroscientists have demonstrated that they can strengthen memory in human patien
Scientists have tapped onto the visual cortex of the congenitally blind by using sensory substitution devices (SSDs), enabling the blind in effect to "see" and even describe objects
New brain imaging research reveals that a region of the brain important for sensing texture through touch, the parietal operculum, is also activated when someone listens to a sentence with a textural
Neuroscientists and surgeons have recorded electrical activity in the temporal lobe -- the seat of the auditory system -- to discover how the brain encodes sound. Their model allows them to predict wh
Holding information within one's memory for a short while is a seemingly simple and everyday task. We use our short-term memory when remembering a new telephone number if there is nothing to write at
Mouse skin cells can be converted directly into cells that become the three main parts of the nervous system, according to researchers. The finding is an extension of a previous study by the same grou
Fruit flies don't have noses, but a huge part of their brains is dedicated to processing smells. Flies probably rely on the sense of smell more than any other sense for essential activities such as fi
Researchers have succeeded in converting stem cells from umbilical cords into other types of cells, which may eventually lead to new treatment options for spinal cord injuries and multiple sclerosis,
For the first time ever, stem cells from umbilical cords have been converted into other types of cells, which may eventually lead to new treatment options for spinal cord injuries and multiple scleros
Objects that resemble faces are everywhere. Whether it’s New Hampshire’s erstwhile granite “Old Man of the Mountain,” or Jesus’ face on a tortilla, ou
One gene appears to regulate the brain's ability to form new memories.
Imagine listening to music while carrying on a conversation with friends. This type of multi-tasking is fairly easy to do, right? That's because our brains efficiently and effectively separate the aud
Scientists studying a unique collection of human skulls have shown that changes to the skull shape thought to have occurred independently through separate evolutionary events may have actually precipi
High-tech medical imaging techniques were recently used to access internal structures of fossil human skulls. Researchers used sophisticated 3-D methods to quantify the shape of the basal brain as ref
It may be possible to use brain technology to learn to play a piano, reduce mental stress or hit a curve ball with little or no conscious effort, new research suggests. It's the kind of thing seen in
It may be possible to use brain technology to learn to play a piano, reduce mental stress or hit a curve ball with little or no conscious effort, new research suggests. It's the kind of thing seen in
Scientists have rebuilt genetically diseased circuitry in a section of the mouse hypothalamus, an area controlling obesity and energy balance, demonstrating that complex and intricately wired circuitr
Drugs that affect the levels of an important brain protein involved in learning and memory reverse cellular changes in the brain seen during aging, according to an animal study.
ROYAL Philips Electronics is collaborating with
Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA) to develop technologies which predict and prevent falls in older adults.
Researchers have for the first time matched images of brain activity with categories of words related to the concepts a person is thinking about. The results could lead to a better understanding of ho
Researchers show how the brain stores information for short periods of time. The cells of several neural circuits store information by maintaining a persistent level of activity: A short-lived stimulu
New research suggests that there are parts of our brain dedicated to language and only language, a finding that marks a major advance in the search for brain regions specialized for sophisticated ment
Researchers are investigating the brain mechanisms that contribute to infants' prowess at learning languages, with the hope that the findings could boost bilingualism in adults, too. In a new study, t
Our memories work better when our brains are prepared to absorb new information, according to a new study. Scientists have now shown that activity in a specific part of the brain, known as the parahip
The brain has two big tasks related to speech: making it and understanding it. Psychologists and others who study the brain have debated whether these are really two separate tasks or whether they bot
Hearing Beethoven while reciting Shakespeare can suppress even a King's stutter, as recently illustrated in the movie "The King's Speech". This dramatic but short-lived effect of hiding the
Hearing Beethoven while reciting Shakespeare can suppress even a King's stutter, as recently illustrated in the movie "The King's Speech". This dramatic but short-lived effect of hiding the
Like explorers mapping a new planet, scientists probing the brain need every type of landmark they can get. Each mountain, river or forest helps scientists find their way through the intricacies of th
In both chimpanzees and humans, portions of the brain that are critical for complex cognitive functions, including decision-making, self-awareness and creativity, are immature at birth. But there are
Scientists have discovered a novel way to convert human skin cells into brain cells, advancing medicine and human health by offering new hope for regenerative medicine and personalized drug discovery
Neuroscientists have learned how bats can remain on target despite obstacles. The key lies in bats' neural response to echoes from their sonar pulses: Differences in delay as short as 3 microseconds between parts of an echo is enough to tell the bat the object may not be its target. The research could lead to more precise targeting by sonar-led vehicles.
"Brain cap" technology now being developed allows users to turn their thoughts into motion. Researchers have created a noninvasive, sensor-lined cap with neural interface software that soon could be used to control computers, robotic prosthetic limbs, motorized wheelchairs and even digital avatars.
Researchers have been able to switch on, and then switch off, social-behavior deficits in mice that resemble those seen in people with autism and schizophrenia, thanks to a technology that allows scientists to precisely manipulate nerve activity in the brain. In synchrony with this experimentally induced socially aberrant behavior, the mice exhibited a brain-wave pattern called gamma oscillation t
Brains shrink in humans, potentially causing a number of health problems and mental illnesses as people age, but do they shrink to the same extent in the closest living relatives to humans -- the chimpanzees?
Psychologists have found that our visual perception can be contaminated by memories of what we have recently seen, impairing our ability to properly understand and act on what we are currently seeing.
The addition of two particular gene snippets to a skin cell's usual genetic material is enough to turn that cell into a fully functional neuron, according to new research. The finding is one of just a few recent reports of ways to create human neurons in a lab dish.
A region at the front of the brain 'lights up' when we experience beauty in a piece of art or a musical excerpt, according to new research. The study goes some way to supporting the views of David Hume and others that beauty lies in the beholder rather than in the object.
Researchers have discovered a mechanism that seems to protect the brain from aging. In experiments with mice, they switched off the cannabinoid-1 receptor. As a consequence, the animals showed signs of degeneration -- as seen in people with dementia -- much faster.